Hi, I am in my early twenties and I was wondering if anyone had any money saving/budgeting tips?
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I’m not very good at saving money! I seem to spend it far too quickly.
A few things that I think helps
Meal planning has helped me. I used to have a lot of wastage, and also end up in a supermarket hungry buying everything that didn’t make a full meal.
I now shop once a month in Aldi to get bulk items and then elsewhere more regularly (online sometimes) which seems to have saved a little.
Batch cooking - if you have regular meals you eat it’s good to batch cook & freeze.
Taking lunch to work & planning lunches in advance.
I sell items I don’t use anymore on Vinted & Ebay. I also look on these sites for 2nd hand before buying.
I try to use top cash back or Avios when purchasing online.
I like Monzo - to help save. You create pots with targets and then transfer into those pots to see your pots growing and hit your goal. I do this for my expensive hairdresser & holidays - I add money each month to the pot so it’s not one big hit.
I have in the past air b&b my spare room from time to time if I have something I’d like but can’t afford.
Not sure if you have a parking space - but you can rent it out.
Hope this helps x
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Also I believe Chase do a current account bank account that gives you 1% cash back on all spend.
Normally if there’s something I see and really want to buy, I’ll take a screenshot and wait a month. If for that month I can’t stop thinking about the item, I’ll let myself buy it - it definitely has stopped a lot of impulse purchases x
Thiese might sound so obvious but it actually changed the game for me!!
Be realistic and put the money you want to save away as soon as you get paid, rather than waiting to see what you have left to then save. And I actually put it in a separate bank account to my current account so I’m not seeing it when I login to internet banking. It allowed me to be more strict on my spending as I considered what was in my current account as my total money and wasn’t tempted to dip into savings.
I know there are lots of apps that are designed to help save but for me nothing works better than a spreadsheet with realistic planned spending and saving and I would do this for a whole year ahead so that I could see what my savings pot could be if I was sensible and stuck to it. And that for me was so motivating.
In terms of budgeting the things that saved me the most pennies day to day in my twenties were:
Future planning your travel, buy train tickets or bus tickets well in advance if you know your plans
Get a 16-30s rail card - you can attach this to your London travel card if in London and it works on underground fares too. You save a 3rd on all rail travel
Meal plan every meal and stick to it - do your food shop at the start of the week for everything in one go in a Lidl or Aldi rather than using high street tescos and sainsburys that are more expensive
Make your morning coffee at home and take in a travel mug instead of buying from coffee shops - thats an easy £3.50 everyday
Be smart and sell clothes you don’t wear anymore on depop or vinted
Your 20s are all about having fun but you dont need to say yes to everything
Use beautypie for your makeup and skincare rather than branded makeup - their stuff is just as good!
I mostly did at home workouts in my twenties with weights and muscle bands because London gyms are so expensive
And don’t impulse buy, always wait a week or so before purchasing - you’ll probably be over it and won’t even want it by then!
x
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Echo a lot of the things already but just to add a few:
Rent out clothes to make a little bit of extra cash, I bring in about £100 a week just from letting people borrow things I don’t wear!
Bulk order or set up subscriptions on Amazon for snacks (protein bars, nuts etc) and always have one in your bag in case you’re hungry on the go.
Try Too Good to Go for veggies/fruits, you get them for a third of the price at the end of the day when they are about to go off.
I’ve not tried it yet, but Twig gives you immediate cash when you upload an item for sale, you can do it for an old iPhone, clothes etc.
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If you are hoping to buy your own property, definitely open a LISA and put a sum into it every month. Government adds 25% each year. So annual savings of £4,000 become £5,000!
Sign up to MoneySavingExpert emails for advice on energy, mobile phones, bank accounts etc. Some good savings accounts now and short term Bonds or cash ISAs. There are also tips on here for cheap food, make-up, cinema tickets etc.
Check Quidco, TopCashBack etc to make savings on online purchases.
For treats, weekends away and holidays look at Wowcher, Groupon and TravelZoo.
M&S Credit card is good for vouchers and use loyalty cards/ Apps for Tesco, ASDA, Nectar, C-Op etc. Though ALDI is best overall for low prices.
As said before, do make you own lunch and hot drinks flask every day. Saves a fortune on nipping to the bakery or coffee shop.
Use a library rather than buy books and share glossy magazines with friends or look for FREE in-store magazines.
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