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The Top 18 Ways to Save Money in a Down Economy
By plrprousers | July 17, 2009
Economic downturns aren’t ever especially fun, but as Adam Smith observed centuries ago, these cycles of paucity and plenty are a fact of life. Though none of us can say for sure when this most recent slump will reverse, there are at least sure ways of stretching your cash in the meantime. Here are some penny-preserving techniques tailored to our 21st-century lives:
1. Plenty of people are in the habit of cutting out paper coupons, but even though many of us do some of our shopping online now, not as many of us seem to have gotten into the habit of coupon-hunting on the Internet. Sites such as CouponCabin.com, CouponMountain.com, and DealofDay.com list thousands of current offers at retailers all over the Web.
2. Use price-comparison sites such as Shopping.com, Pricegrabber.com, Google Product Search, and mySimon.com to find the best online deals.
3. When you’re out at a store, send a text message to 46645 (Google’s number) and enter the letter “f” followed by the name of the item you’re shopping for. Google will reply with a message quoting the online prices. To compare prices at stores in your area, check out ShopLocal.com.
4. If you don’t already belong to one, consider joining a warehouse club such as Costco or Sam’s and buying things in bulk. This can be especially helpful if you have a sizable family.
5. Buy generic instead of brand-name products. A lot of the difference is often in the marketing ballyhoo and not the products themselves, anyway.
6. Withdraw your money from surcharge-free ATMs, which can be located on AllpointNetwork.com and MoneyPass.com.
7. Buy locally-sourced food at farmer’s markets or stores that sell local produce and meat. Prices there are often lower because the food doesn’t have to be transported far.
8. Shop at dollar stores. You shouldn’t have a difficult time finding them nearby since they’ve been turning up all over the place recently.
9. Buy discount prescription drugs from online pharmacies. You’ll often end up paying less than half as much for the generic medicines carried by these discount prescription drug stores than you would for the same brand-name medications at brick-and-mortar pharmacies.
10. If your vehicle is seven or more years old and/or worth less than $2,500, consider dropping comprehensive and collision from your insurance. Your deductible may be nearing the worth of your vehicle anyway, in which case a major collision would send your car to the junk dealer and you to the dealership.
11. Keep cell-phone expenses under control. Today’s kids love to text message, so save yourself from unexpectedly high bills by paying the flat monthly fee for unlimited text messaging.
12. Use online classifieds to find used items. Sites like CraigsList.org and Kijiji.com are great resources for finding everything you need, from pre-owned furniture to baby gear. By buying from locals, you can save on shipping costs as well.
13. Go to matinees. The matinee showing is usually more reasonably-priced than peak-time showings.
14. Install Power Planners (see www.energycsi.com/energysmart) to lower the power usage of your electrical appliances.
15. For your next date, have a romantic picnic instead of going to an expensive restaurant. Pack a blanket and a cooler full of your favorite foods and you’ve got yourself a cheap rendezvous. Spice it up a little with a bottle of vino.
16. Instead of paying for software, look for (legal) free software from websites like Download.com and SourceForge.net. Depending on how you use a given type of software, the free alternatives will often be just as good as the paid versions.
17. If someone in your house is a student, get the Student Price Card from SPCLive.com. It’s only $8.50 and will get the holder 10% to 15% off in dozens of participating stores.
18. Control your thermostat. Using a programmable thermostat to adjust the temperature will reduce energy usage when you’re asleep and out of the house. Prices range from $30 to $120, but you’ll reduce your bill by 10% to 20%.
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