12 Amazing tips to live a frugal life as a single
You might have a concept in your mind that frugal living is merely using your old stuff again and again, and skipping dinner outside. Some people also think that the best way to live frugally is to save money and eat only veggies.
Living a frugal life as a single person means applying different frugal options to manage your finances and incorporating more frugality into your life.
If you have difficulties finding multiple options to become frugal, you can find some frugal tips below. This will help you achieve your monetary goals easier than you think.
How to become a frugal person without being cheap
Being frugal isn’t similar to being cheap, though they often are used interchangeably.
A frugal person would always research and compare the price before buying any object so that he or she will get the best price along with the best quality. If you choose the best quality goods, it may cost you higher initially. But it will give you the service for a longer time, compared to other low-quality goods. This is the main finding of frugal living.
On the other hand, a cheap person does not spend so much time on research and would buy the goods that have the cheapest price. Eventually, he or she will spend extra money on that thing, as it won’t last long. So, technically being a cheap person is costlier than being a frugal guy.
The best frugal living tips for singles
1. Create a budget as per your lifestyle
These frugal living tips are meant for single people who want to manage their finances alone. Without a solid budget, you can’t live frugally.
Your budget is a tool to get what you want and within limited resources. You may use the method of backward budgeting where you need to focus on keeping the expenses low. This way you can save more.
Apart from that, you may also use the zero-sum budgeting method, and one of the most popular, the 50/20/30 budgeting method. It may give you the option to invest a percentage of your income for a better return in the future.
You should also allocate money for your entertainment purpose in your monthly budget.
2. Increase your monthly debt payments
Paying off your debts quickly is one of the best ways to save money from the interest payable on your outstanding dues. This way you can live more frugally by reducing the amount of interest payable every month.
Being a frugal guy you should build up a few good habits! And spending less is one of them. You can start increasing the monthly debt payment amount and save on your interest payments.
Slowly increase your payments, do not add up to a big amount. This may hamper your monthly budget. Remember you are the only one who is earning here, so you only have to pay all those bills on time. To it’s better not to play rough initially. This way you can save more from living a frugal life as a single.
3. Increase your income by working extra
If you want to increase your savings, try to increase your overall income. If you earn extra money it’s better that you should save it for emergencies.
Earning extra can help you save more every month. Getting some extra money helps to cover your savings account and removes the pressure when you are facing a monetary crisis.
If you are experiencing a financially tough time, frugal living can guide you to handle that situation. Having a side hustle can be helpful to save more.
You may boost your income by doing side hustles, on the weekends, such as working in a pizza joint or in a bar.
If you’re willing to put some of your intellect on the table, starting online blogs or doing freelance writing can be a way to earn more. The possibilities are endless; you just have to pick the right one!
4. Stop incurring further debts if possible
One of the best tips for frugal living is to avoid debt at any cost. For that, you need to control your spending, maintain a good emergency fund, and use your credit cards wisely.
At present, people mostly suffer from credit card debts and high-interest payday loans. So, why don’t you limit your credit card usage and pay bills on time? This way you can stop more credit card debts from building up. Also, try to avoid payday loans as much as possible.
5. Contribute more to the emergency fund
Do you have enough savings to cover any kind of unexpected expenses? Did you calculate how much you need to pay for the repair of your old car? Do you have any idea how to pay for the mechanical repair cost of your garage door?
In most cases, the answer would be a big “NO”.
So, you need an emergency fund to pay for sudden costs and avoid debt.
To build a decent-sized emergency fund you may start with a $1000 deposit. You can increase your deposit amount at any time. Try to save an amount on this fund every month.
Save money to meet emergency expenses if there is any situation. Make sure you save 30% to 35% of your income for emergencies.
6. Downsize your existing home
If you live in a house that is too big for you, and you are also paying a lot of rent, it is the best time to move into a cheaper, smaller home.
You’ll get two benefits after implementing this step. First, you can save money on rent. Secondly, it’ll take less time to clean your house as compared to the previous one.
7. Use cold water for washing
Washing your clothes in cold water can save your power bill to some extent. Apart from that, it’ll make your clothes last longer. This is because cold water does not harm the coloring and also preserves the fine thread material.
Try to wash your clothes at home. This way you may save from the laundry cost, keeping your favorite clothes as good as new.
8. Decluttering your possessions
If you want you can sell off your unused possessions before going on vacation. This way you can get rid of unused stuff, restore a decent amount of space in your room, and also retrieve a decent amount from your old stuff.
Even if you’re not going anywhere soon, decluttering your possessions is a good idea for a frugal living single person. It can save you a lot of money.
9. Prepare a meal plan
If you want to save money on food costs as well as want to save preparation time, then you must prepare a meal plan for at least a week.
Planning your meal helps you to stop buying food items that you don’t need. The less food you store at home, the more room you can get in your refrigerator. It’ll also make you use the previously stored veggies and other foodstuffs.
Meal planning is a must for living a frugal life as a single person. Your grocery bill is the ideal area where you can cut some slices without any hassle and make some savings.
10. Replace expensive brand with the store brand
Wherever you go shopping, make sure you pick local store brands instead of buying expensive brand goods. This is a simple frugal tip that you can use while buying cheaper brands as per your requirements.
You might get a good discount on the store brand compared to other expensive brands.
11. Buy used items instead of new ones
Whatever you buy, try to buy from second-hand stores before hitting directly to the authorized shops.
If that’s not possible for you, then you can search for online forums and blogs to buy used products.
Buying used things can be better for nature; it reduces waste.
12. Try to buy in bulk
Buying goods in bulk is sometimes cheaper. First, you need to do some calculations, then start buying.
Most of the time you should buy things like flour, sugar, milk, toilet paper, and other groceries in bulk as they will be available with good discounts.
You can hit the local stores or you can search online.
Conclusion
There are millions of frugal living tips for a single person available on the internet. It is up to you to do some math and implement it accordingly.
By bestdebtconsolidation_admin on December 23, 2020
Valentina Wilson is a writer and blogger who specializes in personal finance and positive change and associated with BestDebtConsolidation. She has a master’s degree in financial journalism and seven years of experience in personal banking and believes that small behavioral changes are the key to achieving financial freedom.
Follow her on Linkedin: valentinailson