Do you have a friend who reuses their ziplock bags and brags about using coupons for grocery shopping? Well, if you cloned that penny-pincher a million times and put all them on Reddit, you’d end up with the subreddit r/Frugal.
This passionate community of aggressive savers recently shared their top money hacks on the forum and some of their techniques could be more valuable than your financial adviser’s. Here are the top seven tiny money habits that could be big game-changers for your personal finances.
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Cool-off period before online shopping
Many Reddit users suggested creating a cool-off period before shopping online to tame their urge for reckless consumption. One user suggested waiting up to 48 hours between discovering a product and actually buying it to make sure the purchase was really necessary.
A 2020 Swiss study found that roughly 3% of people were addicted to shopping while 11% were at risk. Many shoppers go into debt to finance their addiction. Implementing a cool-off period could help some of these compulsive buyers.
Even if you’re not a compulsive shopper, waiting before you hit the BUY button could reduce the amount of money you spend shopping over the long-term, potentially saving you thousands of dollars.
Meal planning
Clever meal planning and strategically cooking meals at home was another money-saving technique suggested by many Redditors.
Eating at home is a simple but often overlooked way to cut costs. Eating out is not only more expensive, but the costs are rising faster than that of groceries this year. Many Americans are adapting to this shift by spending more time in the kitchen and leaning on ChatGPT to plan meals.
Read more: Here are 5 ‘must have’ items that Americans (almost) always overpay for — and very quickly regret. How many are hurting you?
DIY grooming
Redditor LastGlass1971 claims to have learned how to cut her own hair as well as her partner’s during the pandemic and the skills now help the couple save roughly $100 a month.
The costs of haircuts and other personal care services have surged 3.8% over the past year, higher than the general rate of inflation, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. In 2024, the average price of a standard women’s haircut in the U.S. was $51.71, while men’s haircuts averaged $34.56, based on transaction data shared exclusively with CNN by payment platform Square.
Put simply, you can save hundreds of dollars every year by learning some basic grooming techniques.
Thrift shopping for clothes
Thrifting and buying second-hand clothes was a common suggestion on r/Frugal. That shouldn’t come as a surprise given that 66% of Americans now claim to be thrifting, according to Talker Research, and roughly one in five are doing so online.
If you aren’t on the second-hand bandwagon yet, hopping on could save you and your family some serious cash.
Managing your subscriptions
With nearly every service moving to a monthly subscription model, there’s a good chance you’ve accumulated too many recurring bills. Reviewing all your subscriptions and membership plans every few months or once a year could help you weed out the ones you no longer need.
One Redditor even suggested using virtual debit cards with spending limits to manage all subscriptions so that they stay within budget. This simple money hack could save you plenty of cash by the end of the year.
Reducing or reimaging your commute
Workers across the country lose $9,470 on average every year because of commuting, according to LendingTree. Not to mention the opportunity cost and time spent commuting every single day.
If you can either move closer to where you work or find work closer to where you live, you could save thousands of dollars every year and potentially spend more time with your loved ones. Bonus points if you can ditch the car for alternatives like an e-bike or public transport.
Keeping maintenance and repairability in mind
“If I NEED to buy something important, I always make sure it’s something that will last,” says Reddit user DeadGravityyy. By focusing on quality, longevity and repairability, you could save thousands of dollars in repair and maintenance over the long term. This is especially true for big-ticket purchases such as appliances and cars.
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This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind.
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