Tuesday, February 7, 2012

Saving Money...Saving $2000 a Year Without Even Trying!

I know I'm always touting how "little things add up", but it's a crucial concept in your savings journey. For example, if your goal is to save $1000 this year, you'll only need to spend $2.73 less per day to achieve that goal. Sounds a lot less daunting, doesn't it?

Here's a savings plan example where you can save $2000 over the course of a year. Some of you probably do a lot of  these things anyway, but it's still amazing how much you can save by cutting things out that won't even make an impact on your lifestyle! (All figures for a family of 4 unless otherwise noted.)
  • Eating out 1 less time per month---$360/yr
  • Ordering 1 less gourmet coffee per week---$192/yr (per person)
  • Bringing leftovers for lunch instead of eating out 2 times per week---$480/yr (per person)
  • Indulging in 1 less grocery store impulse buy per week---$144/yr
  • Ordering water instead of soda at a restaurant 2 times per month---$192/yr
  • Buying bagels and cream cheese at the store instead of going out for bagels 1 time a week---$192/month
  • Borrowing a book from the library instead of buying it new 1 time a month---$120/yr (per person)
  • Lowering your Christmas budget by $5/person---(varies, for us it's around $125/yr)
  • Buying ice cream at the store instead of going out for ice cream 2 times per month---$178/yr
  • Making birthday cards instead of buying them---$50/yr
  • Grand Total--$2008/yr
These are just a sample of the many ways to shave off a dollar or two per day to reach your savings goals. What are your favorite ways to save that really add up over time?
Join the Save Money, Live Joyfully Facebook Community

4 comments:

  1. I love your blog! It makes cents to watch the little expenses. We saved all of our change in a jar and at the end of one year we bought a new t.v.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I think your list is a good way to show how little savings add up.

    For my own family, however, none of those items that you mentioned are normal expenses for us. We do give Christmas gifts, and if we are able to, I MIGHT spend $5 per person, but gifts are usually homemade at our house, suing what we have.

    We don't eat out, so that eliminates all of those. We don't drink coffee. I never buy birthday cards. I rarely go shopping for food (I haven't been shopping at all this month).

    My favorite ways to save money definitely include some lifestyle changes from what you've listed. However, we've had more than a 70% decrease in income, which neccessitates a change in lifestyle! Here is our list:

    http://www.theprudenthomemaker.com/index.php/frugal-living/saving-money

    ReplyDelete
  3. Great ideas! Some little things we do are:
    Combining errands so we spend less time and gas money driving around
    Cooking with dry beans instead of canned
    Buying used instead of brand new

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Great idea combining errands. Totaling gas money should be a consideration when choosing stores to shop at as well.

      Delete

What do you think? I love hearing from my readers!

Popular Posts