5 Money Saving Tactics You Can Employ Today

Whether you're looking to save money to put towards your student loan debt, mortgage, or simply want to cut off your unnecessary spending, you can easily automate, cut, and revamp your way to savings. Here are some tactics and strategies you can implement right now to begin saving more money today.

1. Cut Back on Subscription-Based Services

Whether it’s for shopping, streaming movies, or delivering groceries to your door, subscription services can add up quickly. Once you’ve signed up, it can be easy to let those monthly payments go unnoticed as they are automatically deducted from your debit or credit account. Examine which subscriptions you actually use each month, including memberships. Are you paying monthly for a gym that you haven’t been to in months? If so, it could be time to cancel these types of memberships to help you save money every month.

Consider streamlining your streaming services by limiting the number of subscriptions for viewing movies and listening to music to just one. You can always rotate through the services, especially streaming services, so that you are only paying for one at a time. Are you needing to continue a personal service subscription such as clothing? See if there’s an option to set up the subscription on a quarterly, rather than a monthly, basis.

2. Create a Savings Account

Saving money can be as simple as creating separate bank accounts to manage your deposits. Opening a savings account and setting aside money in it each month will enable you to hold back some of your finances from the bigger pool from which you pay bills and make purchases. Whether you’re saving hundreds or even a few dollars a month, you can easily set up an account online and start to see your savings grow. The traditional larger banks typically pay very low interest rates on their savings accounts, so seek out high-yield savings accounts from online banks that are currently paying as much as 4% SPY interest, or even higher. Make sure the bank is FDIC insured and keep in mind that banks change their interest rates up or down as the Federal Reserve changes interest rates.

3. Be Strategic With Your Personal Debt

From college to starting your new career and building a family, personal debt is a financial situation that many Americans live with daily. Personal debt is frequently used to pay for education, a new car, a house, and even regular personal expenses. In December 2022, the total revolving credit card debt reached $925 billion dollars in the U.S. The total household debt in the U.S. reached over $16.5 trillion in the 3rd quarter of 2022, the highest in history. 4th quarter figures haven't been released yet. If you are currently carrying a lot of debt, it could be very beneficial to find ways to reduce and help make it easier to cover the expenses. Consider changing to a credit card with zero percent APR financing can aid in saving you money that would’ve been spent on interest, back into your wallet. There are also consolidation loans that can be advantageous with a lower interest rate that would allow more of your payments to apply to the debt instead of higher interest payments. There are other debt payoff strategies that Escient Financial can help you with.

4. Break Your Eating Out Habit

Save money and gain a new skill by reducing how frequently you eat out at restaurants. If you've been eating out frequently, creating a shopping list and budgeting for groceries has the potential of saving you thousands of dollars a year. This is a simple way to incorporate extra savings into your budget. Discover various ways to meal prep and save on groceries to make your dollar go even further.

5. Resist Impulse Buys

When you hear about the latest smartphone or you see a great sale online, it can be tempting to splurge, especially if you think it is a necessity. However, breaking the cycle to get the latest and greatest gadget is key in saving money in the long run. Try to set aside a number of days as a minimum before buying something that isn’t groceries, gas, or other necessities. This is a simple way to keep your impulse buying to a minimum and add to your savings.

Additionally, you can try to resist temptation by reducing the number of promotional emails you get from your favorite stores. Whether you can adjust your email settings to automatically send promo emails to a certain folder or just unsubscribing, limiting the number of specials and sales emails can help in keeping the urge to shop to a minimum.

There are a lot of tactics and strategies that can help you spend less and save more. These were just some of them. If you need help budgeting and managing your debt, or if you want to plan out your financial future so you can meet your goals, Escient Financial is here to help. Feel free to...