What are you adjusting to save yourself money?

[flyingdream]

I'm hoping we don't eat go out to eat as much as we do or order food in. It's just a really bad habit. But we can never stick with it it. Paying 8.50 for a pizza (12 inch from local takeaway) is a large amount and I'm ashamed it's taken recent price increases to make us think.

Also hoping we don't turn on the radiators as much as we do.

Bloody car battery just died! 😩
£125 so that wasn't a saving

As others have said cutting down on takeaways. Using the tumble dryer less.

I read somewhere about person who puts the bits in the basket, but I will only buy on a certain day. And only buy what I/we really need. Rather then just buying whatever, whenever.

I'm also thinking ahead to next winter and making sure we have extra blankets, slippers, shawls and maybe some hot water bottles.

We have the now TV / sky sports package too. Obviously it depends on your family but we watch absolutely loads and can do it all at home so no pub drinks/ meals in order to watch the games. Saves us a LOT overall.

No meals out, not that there were many anyway
No takeaways
Have blankets and a hot water bottle and use the biggest tog duvet.
Tumble dryer is used rarely and am cutting down on washing
Short showers only
Keeping Sky for now, but don’t have sports package.
We’ve sold stuff and will keep the money in reserve.

Always been careful with money, but extra things recently are:
Heating on less
making conscious effort to have quicker showers
Cycling short distances even if it’s raining
Tying to combine car journeys to save fuel
Not paying for gym but doing outdoors exercise for free

We have a baby due in a couple of months so that will save us money as it'll easier to stay home than go out to restaurants and big days out. We'll walk loads as we usually use public transport (no car) but it's easier to walk with a big pram.
We've never had a tumble dryer and have pretty much stopped putting heating on now temperatures are milder. We're in a modern flat so it doesn't feel too cold.
Won't buy any new clothes for myself as my body shape will be changing anyway.
We've stopped Netflix although we'll keep Amazon Prime for delivery and the odd bit of TV.
Generally making use of free entertainment in London for the dc instead of paying, there's more than enough available. Making packed lunches for days out and not buying anything.

I've reduced our Virgin package to Internet and basic TV only (£40/mnth instead of £82) and bought a heated airer to cut down on tumble dryer use. Also cancelled pet club at £14/ mnth because I never remember to go to vets to get flea treatments regularly enough for it to be a saving.

We don't do takeaways, hardly ever eat out but do enjoy holidays and will continue to do so, Covid regulation and wars permitting. Don't tumble dry but like a warm house and spend a fair bit on food and drink. However, we are fortunate as I will get my state pension later this year and having extra cash coming in with prices escalating will be a real help and will hopefully mean our lives won't change much. Without that I expect we'd have to make some changes or spend more of our savings on everyday living.

I get that people don’t want to cook/think about cooking some nights but how hard is it to keep a couple of budget supermarket pizzas in the freezer, frozen battered fish, etc. You’d have those out the freezer and cooked in less time than it takes to phone out and have something delivered or to go out and collect.

During the pandemic when we didn't go out or do anything at all I began to spend a lot more on food from Ocado, fancy cheese, expensive bath stuff, special icecream etc. I have now resolved to go back to the old budget and do the shopping myself at Tesco. I do this to ensure I see all the worthwhile special offers and get the items with the latest use by date. I'm saving about £15 on the main shop and have eliminated a £20 top up shop. This £35 per week will pay my share of the increase in gas and electric and I think cover the extra cost of petrol, as it is at the moment.
I've not cut back on clothes so far, though as they are more expensive I am looking out for sales and reductions. I think restaurants are often poor value now so we are not eating out so much, but still going to our favourite places less often..

I'm in the US and our electric and petrol costs are rising, too. We're retired, though, so it's easier for us to rearrange things since we don't have to stick to any kind of a 'daily schedule'.

We're consolidating trips to try and save petrol. We're trying to stop using our 'diesel hog' pickup (used to tow our caravan) as a second vehicle as opposed to booking appointments and running errands together so they can be done in one trip. Shopping so that we don't have to make additional runs to the store for one or two items.

As far as electricity, doing laundry and electricity-heavy chores in 'non-peak' hours when the rates are cheaper. Where we live there are not many days year round you can't hang out laundry, even if you have to 'finish' with a few minutes in the dryer. We're trying to be more conscientious about turning off lights. I cannot tell you the number of times we've suddenly noticed how many lights are on! During the day lights off and blinds open to catch the natural light and warmth. We're turning off the heat overnight and setting the daytime temp a little lower. And putting up better insulating curtains, both to retain heat in the winter and repel heat in the summer.

@Shiningpath

I get that people don’t want to cook/think about cooking some nights but how hard is it to keep a couple of budget supermarket pizzas in the freezer, frozen battered fish, etc. You’d have those out the freezer and cooked in less time than it takes to phone out and have something delivered or to go out and collect.

Regardless of the cost, I've never understood thr appeal of the takeaway for this reason. I can make an omlette or fish finger sandwich more quickly and easily than ordering a takeaway and it's nicer too.

Never picking a coffee up on the way to work (approximately £60 a month, more some months)

Taking dinner to work with me
(Approximately £80 a month, again more some months)

I'm pregnant so we're going out and about less which is obviously a saving on fuel, saundries when out which is harder to put a figure on but let's say £50 (will be a lot more)

I'm spending less on clothing etc as I can't find the energy to walk round shops or take the effort to return
(Looking at you coat from forever new, only £20 in the end but still... I now have two coats I didn't particularly need!)
Let's say £100 a month on no bits and bobs.

Approx £300 a month just on my bits.

On top of that we're using blankets a lot but we've always done that. I grew up without the heating on so I don't automatically reach for it. A few more jacket potato and cheap teas.

Takeaways, petrol, birthday gifts for people who never say thanks anyway oh and I’m a recent Aldi convert, saved me £100 last month. Oh I’ve stopped going to our local Butcher as, contrary to MN popular belief, he was really expensive (albeit lovely).

@MyNameIsAngelicaSchuyler

We don’t have a tumble dryer and hardly ever eat out or get takeaways. Cook everything from scratch, no meat, no alcohol, no cinema / theatre etc. We do have streaming channels but for the amount we use them are extremely good value.

I’m asking everyone to wear clothes extra times before putting in the wash, ditto towels.

And I know this is peak mumsnet but am considering dropping the cleaner to once a fortnight instead of once a week. Really don’t want to do this though, both for her and me.

I think I would have stopped paying for a cleaner long before I dropped alcohol or trips out!

(Presuming from your later post you don't have a disability meaning cleaning yourself would be a struggle)

We've cancelled our Virgin TV and internet package and have gone with another, much cheaper (and actually faster) broadband provider. No TV service now, just sticking with Freeview. Virgin wanted £120 a month after the deal ended and DP only watches the football! Ludicrous. Think he's going to try the Now TV thing instead/watch football at his brother's house who gets Sky heavily discounted.

Also have been shopping at Lidl mostly and avoiding the M&S food store on my way home from work. Trying to not buy treat foods or drinks either, just functional food for making meals.

@Shiningpath

I get that people don’t want to cook/think about cooking some nights but how hard is it to keep a couple of budget supermarket pizzas in the freezer, frozen battered fish, etc. You’d have those out the freezer and cooked in less time than it takes to phone out and have something delivered or to go out and collect.

I agree with this - it's also often cheaper than cooking from scratch so double win!

@Grapeflavour oooh which Internet provider have you gone with? What speeds are you getting?

Turning everything off standby at night. And only ironing the bare minimum from now on. That might help with the electric.

Cooking a lot more from scratch, learning to do things that are genuinely quick too. I'm working on £6 maximum per day for me and a teen (excluding school lunches).

I don't drink and we don't do takeaways so nothing to cut there.

I grow quite a lot of veg so I'll work a bit harder at that. And I use a log burner so our heating bill is already low, only an hour in the mornings.

I keep switching lights off. Other random family members tend to do things like leave the bathroom light and on the landing on all the time in the evenings. And the downlighters under the kitchen cabinets.

It has been a few weeks now, but they are beginning to get the message.

No takeaways normally (low earners) we do keep fish/pizza in the freezer, but I may have to go back to pizza from scratch. It is easy, but the convenience is a luxury that is getting hard to justify.

Heating is set to 18, but was only on 3 hours a day. We're trying to get it to just half hour in the mornings. But, I do use it to finish off drying the washing. Luckily now the sun is stronger we could use the conservatory more. Already have the blankets, bedding, hoodies etc.

We're already down to one car, and drop DD to school as it's cheaper than £4/day to get the bus. We already lift share and on those days DH could bike. I already walk to work.

I am thinking of taking a second job, we used to be ok, a few treats etc, but now it all goes on bills- and they are getting bigger!

Not using the tumble drier as much (only bedding as I haven't enough space to dry that when it's raining)
I've cut back on the food budget by having less meat.

We have stopped using central heating - it's so expensive now! We use heated blankets instead. Lovely to wrap around you when WFH, to snuggle under when watching TV, and we have one in bed, the one that goes under the bottom sheet. We don't really miss CH now (and I used to feel the cold all the time). To dry our clothes we hang them and either open the window they are drying in, or close the door and the window and turn on the dehumidifier.

We’ve stopped the window cleaner, I’m trying to down grade at the supermarket an example of this is buying shops own cola rather than Coca Cola or Sainsbury’s own brand crisps rather than walkers. We don’t put the heating on until the children get home from school, I just put my dressing gown over my clothes and fill a hot water bottle my husband wears gloves in his office to combat the cold.

Never had a tumble dryer......they eat the electric....cost lots to run....we are vegeterian again and cooking from scratch....do it anyways most months....also bought the new duvets....fleece ones.....so warm....in fact too warm....!!!