Frugal/money saving tips

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AIBU to ask for your top money saving tips and tricks?!

I'm living in my overdraft at the mo. Family of 4. DH works full time. I'm a SAHM looking for part time work. A 4Yyo and 2 year old. 2 cats. One family car. One work car (included in job)

I'm asking for tips on anything! Food bill, bills, activities for the kids..

Thanks!

Don't buy branded products unless they are cheaper than the supermarket own ones.

Meal plan.

Don't eat out our drink out, take for and water when you go out.

Children's things can all be bought second hand, never buy new

You need to go on the money saving expert website. Look through your utilities and see if changing provider will reduce the amount you pay. They you need to go through your bank statements and see where you spend your money and what you can cut out or reduce, remember to check your direct debits. Can you reduce your food spending? If you buy branded move to now branded and have veggie meals.

Get rid of the cats.

Activities for the kids are more expensive in winter as some times parks are too wet/cold.

Go to church playground or Surestart. Get a yearly membership for somewhere you can go once every couple of weeks.

Don't fill the kettle to make only one drink.

Buy toiletries, household cleaning etc from somewhere like Home Bargains Poundworld or Wilkinson's, always cheaper than the supermarket.

Having my heating on 22degrees constantly seems to be working out cheaper than turning it up from cold. I don't know if that would work for everyone.

Delete the Amazon app.

Before you buy something, count slowly to ten. Ask yourself if you really need it. Chances are, you'll put it back before you've counted eight.

Aldi/Lidl.

Check your internet, phone, tv packages to see if you can get better deals elsewhere.

MailTo - is that a serious suggestion??

Jan and Feb are our Council Tax free months so we use this to kick start being frugal for a while to rein in the excesses of Christmas.

We try to eat out of the freezer and cupboards, using stuff thats been there a while festering to itself, so no take aways or unnecessary spending.

DH got some smart shoes from Clarks for half price. We had hoped just to get his other shoes repaired instead but they were beyond saving.

DH also did a comparison on our car insurance and got a better deal - saving £300 (from the new quote).

Get rid of the car. If your DH has a company car, it should be possible to manage without for daytime stuff, unless you live somewhere very rural.

Pare your shopping bill to the minimum: own brands, basics, no prepared foods, get 3 meals out of a £5 chicken .

Check you're getting the best deal for energy, phone/broadband, insurance, ditch Sky/Virgin/Netflix etc, go SIM only for mobiles as soon as you can.

If you have credit card/store card debt, see if you could save by taking out a new card at 0% interest and transferring balances and DON'T use it to buy anything.

Do an online benefit check. You may be entitled to child/working tax credits or housing benefit if you're renting.

Work out exactly where your money goes: draw up a list of what you spend and see where you can make savings. It amazes me how many people have no idea what they spend on. You have to know where it goes before you can it stop it from going there, iykwim.

Oh, and if you discover that your DP is paying £4k a year for a football season ticket, like my friend did, rip him a new arsehole!

@doowapwap

Yes. Pets are a luxury and if you're living in your overdraft you can't afford them.

I absolutely think that small things all add up. You could say that cat food only costs £x but it makes a difference over a year especially when you're at the stage where not over-filling a kettle is a consideration.

mailto that's exactly what I thought

Take your DC to the library. Not just to borrow books, but there are usually lots of free playtime/reading sessions for little ones. Saves on the heating bill if you are out of the house too.
If you shop in Tesco, they usually offer a free piece of fruit for DC to eat as you go round the store (ours normally has apples,bananas and satsumas). Not a huge saving, but better than nothing and one of their five a day!
Sure Start Centre is a great shout if you have one.

@ mailTo

I was thinking exactly the same but I didn’t think anyone else would say it.

Find out the times when your local supermarkets reduce their foods, often about 6pm, and shop then. Be prepared to eat what is available rather than what you fancy.

Aldi cat food is decent and a lot cheaper than Felix/Whiskers type.
Ditch phone contracts as soon s they run out and go with Giffgaff... I pay £7,50 a month as do the rest of my family.
Pound shop for all cleaning products..they work just as well.
I've just gone part time and have reduced my budget accordingly. I food shop ONLY to my list, mostly Aldi and go in the evening when they reduce prices.
I have set myself a 'no spend unless it actually NEEDS replacing' on clothes (trickier with kids tbf).. I did this last year too and it was surprising how satisfying it is.
We eat simply... meat at weekends only (as none of us are bothered about it... lots of jacket potatoes, pasta etc) and come summer we grow our veg... kids love that, seeing tomatoes and beetroot etc growing in gro bags and pots in the garden, It all helps!

"but I didn’t think anyone else would say it."

It's kind of 'my thing'.

I spend half my life self censoring and the other half saying what others were only thinking.

I also agree with meal planning. DH and I do this every week and make sure we go through the cupboards and find out what we've got and what we need. We aren't short of cash but we don't like overspending on food shopping and creating a lot of waste.

I also try to work in cash where possible as it's more tangible and I can see what I've spent

Stop drinking alcohol and buying treats, or at least restrict it to one day per week. Most people could stand to lose a few pounds. We only have alcohol and dessert on Saturdays.

Stop spending unnecessarily. Most people buy things because they WANT rather than NEED them. You don't need new shoes/trousers/etc unless yours have holes in them.

Get rid of expensive entertainment such as Sky tv. Watch freeview and join a library instead.

Turn the heating down! Most houses are far too hot. Put a jumper on instead.

Go down a level in the supermarket (eg if you normally buy branded, buy supermarket brand, if you usually do that, buy value brand) amazingly, you'll likely find some of the cheaper versions are better! Likewise try shopping in cheaper supermarkets if you don't already.

Make a meal plan and a shopping list. Some people would say dont deviate from the list, but personally I'd check the offers out when you shop, and if for example chicken breasts are on offer so would work out cheaper than the sausages you'd planned, then swap them out and adjust the plan.

Do price comparisons on everything, insurance and utilities particularly.

Check your direct debits - are all essential and as cheap as possible? For example could you reduce your mobile bill? (Even if you're in contract, make a note to change it when you can).

Make sure your credit is as cheap as possible.

Prioritise your outgoings. Rent/mortgage and council tax at the top, luxuries at the bottom.

Look around the house for things you no longer use/need. Sell on gumtree/ebay etc. Bear in mind the fees for sites like ebay, it's often better to sell for a slightly lower price on sites like gumtree.

If you are really looking to cut back then go to "debt free wannabe" forum on moneysavingexpert and complete a statement of affairs. People will then comment on where you can cut back. They are very helpful and detailed. To start off, cut mobile phones and get rid of any sky tv type subscriptions. Cut your groceries bill by meal planning, shopping at a cheaper supermarket and doing the brand swap challenge (Google it). Check you are getting the cheapest deal on all monthly payments like utilities and insurance. These things soon add up.

22 is way too hot for heating. I have a under 2 year old and we have the heating at 19c.

Where do you buy kids clothes? Sainsbury have 25% off sale in school holiday and we get shoes from Clark’s outlets.

1st of all sit down with dh and work out your bills and out goings etc.
Set aside all money for actual bills, that have to be paid.
What's left over.
Then divide that down into weekly allowances, food, petrol, weekend money.. Then go from there. Eg you have 70 quid for the food per week, then. Find cheaper shopping within that.
Or you spend 120 per month on gas, so find provider who is cheaper than that.
But you have to know that your exact amounts for each thing first. Eg you change provider and save 20pm on electric, so that 20pn can be added to your food week amount and so on

Noooo not the cats 🙀😿

Track absolutely everything you spend - can be daunting at first but really helps show you where your excessive spending is. I did it and saw just how much money we were spending on groceries. Switched to shopping weekly online and have nearly halved our food bill!

Always pack your own lunches instead of buying out

Make meals where the leftovers can be turned into something else

Switch your bank account, many will give you money for doing so (but you would need to clear OD first so maybe one for the future!)

Look online for coupons or free samples of things you already use

Don't be brand loyal - choose the fabric softener etc that is on offer every time

Shop around for insurance, utilities, phone contracts. Switching is incredibly easy now.

Shop online - even with the delivery fee you'll save so much money by not being tempted into extras and by seeing all the deals plainly in front of you

Use nectar points to double or quadruple up on meal vouchers for nights out (£5 in nectar points gets you £20 in pizza express!)

Cut food waste by using frozen veggies in things like pasta sauce and chilli - cheaper, easier and just as nutritious as fresh

Check freecycle for any furniture / equipment you're thinking of buying. You would be amazed at what people will just give away.

Dear god - all of you saying she should get rid of the cats need to have a hard look at yourselves. Why should the poor cats be forced out of the home they know and chucked in a shelter where they may not find new homes?? They are OP's responsibility and OP is clearly more than happy to look after them. And they're unlikely to be the thing that makes the difference. I have two cats and every month they cost less than £20 total for food, litter, insurance and toys!