This article will share ways to save money on a tight budget so that you live an improved life. There are many reasons why you may want to start saving money when you have a tight budget. It could be that you are trying to increase your savings or looking for additional ways to save money. It might also be because you want to start saving if you have no savings. Also, you may need to save money to pay off your debt but most times it may appear impossible to find additional ways to save money.
Besides, it is when things are tough that you need to try harder to save more money for emergencies. There are many reasons for you to save money and that is why you should make it your lifestyle. So, to guide you and help you get this goal easily, here are 10 ways to save money on a tight budget.
Ways to Save Money On A Tight Budget
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Change Your Television Service
The first place to begin the savings is to look at your cable Television service bill and cut it. You can’t believe the amount people pay just to watch television every month. Your cable Television can cost up to $100 monthly. However, if you feel that cutting the cable TV will hurt you so much then, get a cheaper streaming service like Hulu and Netflix whose combined service is about $16 monthly and put the savings in your bank.
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Look at your food bill
Changing the way you eat is one of the ways to save money on a tight budget. This will help you to lose weight on your waistline. It may be tough to start preparing your food personally and it will take a lot of time but it will benefit your savings account. So stop eating out and save up to $50 each week if you usually eat out every day. You can cut eating convenience food and cook your food at home.
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Take advantage of online deals
You may struggle to live within your budget and may budget some money for entertainment if you are the type that cannot do without it. So start looking at online deals on Amazon Local, Living Social or Groupon. And make sure you buy only what you use and stop once you reach the amount you have budgeted. Don’t spend more than you planned.
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Cut every category a little bit
Cutting every category of your expenses a little bit is one of the ways to save money on a tight budget. You may have started cutting things out especially on entertainment. Cut things like cable television and gym membership. If you spend nothing on entertainment, you may be able to save from $5 to $10 daily and then put it into emergency funds or your savings account.
You can also save money by removing something from the list of groceries you buy each week. If you do this you may be able to save another $5 and that will add up to $20 in a month.
Also, you can conserve fuel and save money you spend on Gas monthly. You may adjust your thermostat to reduce the amount you pay for heating and cooling. All this cost-saving measures will lead to a reduction on expenses and you will save more money.
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Find any away to cut back on Big Expenses
You should look at things that eat up much of your money. So go to your Budget and break it down. For example, is your car costs so much money to maintain? You may sell your car and buy a cheaper car. Also, you get a cheaper place to live or move in with roommates to save rent. These are options that you may need to take to increase your savings each month. Besides, if you lower the amounts you pay for those big expenses you will be able to save more money.
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Switch to Cash For Daily Expenses
Switching to cash for daily expenses is part of the ways to save money on a tight budget. I know it will not be easy to pay your rent or utility bills with cash. But you can switch to cash for your Grocery bills and entertainment expenses to reduce expenses. Moreover, if you stop using your debit card when you are shopping you will become more aware of the amount you spend each time.
And when you start paying with cash you may have to make the hard decisions to put back some items at the store as you start noting what you spend on shopping.
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Work on Paying Off Your Debt
If you have high-interest debts like credit cards this can eat up your monthly income. Or if you are carrying a balance on your credit cards the interest will be much. So, do all you can to pay off your credit cards fast to free up extra money for savings.
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Track your spending for one month
Tracking your spending for one month is one of the ways to save money on a tight budget. Track your expenses for one month and record all the expenses you make in a notebook or Smartphone. You may also use a free internet application to track your expenses. Doing that will enable you to know how you spend your money each month.
And it will help you to decide on what to buy each time you want to buy anything. For example, you may stop buying coffee at $4 from a coffee shop, because you do not want to write the amount you spend on coffee on your list. This strategy can free up more money to save in your emergency fund or Savings account.
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Go Meatless
Meat is expensive so cutting it off from your menu will be good. So take a few days off eating meat each week. You can become a vegetarian on those days and eat beans, rice, vegetable chili or food you make using pasta. When you cut of meat for some days in a week, you can save up to $10 weekly and $40 per month.
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Shop Around for Car Insurance
You can change your car insurance easily and save some money. This is the last strategy on ways to save money on a tight budget. To start, compare prices online and find out if you can get a better price for your car insurance. For example, if you save up to $20 on monthly premiums, in one year you would have saved up to $240.
Conclusion
This post shared ways to save money on a tight budget. Saving money is hard but you can do it. To achieve this goal, you can start by looking at what you spend your money on. And then adjust your expenses. Also, you may need to cut off or the minimize money you pay for entertainment like Television and eating out. So, create expenses that are necessary and cut off wastes.
About The Author
Emmanuel Bassey
Emmanuel Bassey is a finance professional with over 20 years experience in Banking, Finance and Consulting sectors. He has a first degree in Accounting, in addition to an MBA and has attended several professional courses both locally and internationally. Emmanuel is also an entrepreneur who has established and successfully ran businesses and is currently working on some new projects. He loves reading and is also an avid investor in the real estate, stock and Forex markets
