Best Money Saving Tips

Starting this article. I have acquired many top tips for saving money. I've sorted them into ten of the best and ones that can be applied to anyone financial background. These are my own personal favourites that help me to save money and if they help me they could help you to use your money more wisely.

Shopping Online

Shopping online can save you money and it's all about the little things that help with this way of spending your money, if you plan out your shopping instead of buying stuff on impulse, then it is a fact that you will indeed save some cash in the long run.

Buying groceries and all the day to day stuff you need should all be condensed into one or two large shops a week with the online method, by planning out the usual things like lunches, dinners and teatime aswell as scheduling out snacks and other toiletries, you have the necessary plan to cut down on your spending.

The key here is to minimize your shopping habits and sort out what you really need from what you do not.

Day to day shopping is no fun and can get repetitive and this is where the cash is lost to impulse buys and overspending, so I do recommend planning your online shopping lists with the view of only buying what you need, only then will you have the foresight to see what you can spend any spare cash on later on.

New releases, New Products...just wait a little longer

I find particularly with Dvds,cds,books and specialist items that they go down in price and you can get them at a discount price later on, it may mean waiting a couple of months but if you are patient then this can save you some spare cash that builds up over the course of a year or so.

This also means keeping an eye out for the many winter sales and other bargain sales through out the year but that's part of the fun for me, finding a heavily discounted product that only a few months back my friends paid the full recommended retail price for and then I laugh at them and say "look what I bought!!"

Coupons, Vouchers and Money Off Incentives

I learned this from the money saving expert Martin Lewis and what he had to say that there are literally thousands of coupons and money off incentives for all the types of products and services we buy or use every day and when used over the course of a long period the money that you save could buy you a holiday each year, which sounded kind of far fetched, but then if you do get money off coupons or vouchers from the places that you shop each day or in a week then this is possible.

Vouchers and coupons are those special offers that you may see to promote a trial product or buy one get one free. An offer or promotion that is intended to get people buying a certain product whether they use that product or they might intend to switch to that product in the future. Large companies shell out huge amounts of money on customer purchase incentives like these.

Turn Your Stuff Off!

Not only is this one which has a positive impact on our supposed carbon footprint and reduces green house gas emmissions.  It could also save you a huge electric bill whether you pay quarterly, monthly or by a pre payment meter.

All you do if you are not using something that is plugged in and switched on, is you turn it off, sounds quite simple, but most people think that if something isn't in use, but is still switched on by the plug switch that it doesn't use the electric up, they are mistaken.

The amount you could save in electric bills is only equal to how much you normally use, so anyone could save money but as to what amount is a personal one

Bundled offers are nothing new but they are quite good to obtain and they save you on buying each individual product or service and save you money in the long run.

Examples of bundle deals:

Mobile phones

Internet broadband

Sky or cable tv

dvd boxed sets

Cd album compilations

Some of the above products and services could be in conjunction with each other or separate on their own and you could save the cash that you would pay for individual services by spreading your cash even further by seeking out these bundle type offers or 2 for 1 or even 3 for 1 offers

We like many currently save on internet and sky/cable TV and telephone charges. We worked out we save £67 to £75 per month which is a superb value for these bundle type offers and I recommend you look for the same if you don't already have a bundled service such as this.

Ever visited a charity shop?

Well to some it may seem an embarrassment but to others it is their primary source of good quality clothing and furniture that otherwise would have gone to the scrap heap.

I often find nice little ornaments and picture frames aswell as the odd suit and jacket for a few pounds. In fact don't tell the mrs, but I once did the rounds at the local charity shops and bought up a few nice looking gifts for her birthday, naturally I told her that I saved and spent a little bit on here but she was worth it, in reality though they only cost me at least £20 that's nearly $40.

Charity shops are ideal for low priced bargains and plus you are helping out a charity too which is nice to give a little back to help the aged, cancer research, or cruelty to children (which are the 3 main charities I truly care about!!)

Free Services Why Pay When It Is Free!

Free services could include public services like libraries, bus passes for the elderly, free eye tests this sort of thing, by staying alert to the potential free offerings you are also saving money too.

People always look for freebies from free energy saving light bulbs to free meals and cinema tickets they are all out there to be found, online there are lots of freebie sites that will offer you free stuff for either taking surveys or just filling in a form, because companies need to spread the word on new products all of the time they send out promotional free samples of this and that in the hope that a brand name will stick in the mind of the person who has recieved it and to this extent it works!

I remember recieving a free nappy(diaper) through the post and the brand was Pampers and then when it came to buying nappies guess which brand I thought of...yep Pampers( even though I always tried to get the lowest priced supermarket brand...(it saves money don't you know!)

So always be alert to free samples, freebies,free services and anything free because anything free is a sure hit to save you some cash!

Avoid credit cards and loans

I know this one may seem obvious but it makes sense to avoid loans and credit cards as they pile interest rates on top of the items you pay for out of the money you borrow, so in effect they are legally taking money out of your pocket.

Some people get loan after loan and then wonder why they are always in debt, if you really feel,the need to get a loan, wait and pay the first one off before you get another one and if you can, pay off the loan as quick as you can so that the interest doesn't pile up.

But loans and credit cards are fast becoming the easy solution, but when it comes to getting out of debt it can be quite hard, so I say don't bother, instead work hard at saving money throughout the year and put all that saved money towards what you really need, work a few more hours if needed, because no one should be a slave to money as life is too short and if something where to happen and you was not around and you had kids you'll have no money to pass on to them.

Saving all of your pennies for a rainy day

By saving your change when you have it is an ideal way of building up cash that you would just waste on small things like extra snacks or little things you don't need anyway, by saving your pennies you put money away in a jar and cash it in when it is full.

I always have jars scattered all around the house for my loose change and every year we build up enough change for a week holiday or a few days break, it's surprising how much small change adds up over a full year.

Car boot sales and bargain hunters

Car boot sales are the ideal place to find bargains for a wide range if stuff that people just want rid of, often the stuff they are selling are in good condition and they sell them for pence or a couple of pound and this is a fantastic bargain if you look around.

Most times local markets attatch themselves to weekly car boot sales as this will yield a sort of joint venture approach and will attract more people to hunt for reduced prices on market products and stuff people are selling.

Saving money takes effort and determination to keep up so always be on the look out.