Not only do I use coupons to save money but I also have other ways to save money that I want to share with you. You may already be aware of these tips but there may be some here you are not aware of. If you have a great tip that is not listed please leave me a comment at the bottom so that I can start taking advantage of it and also add it to this list!
Eating Out Tips (or in)
- Lets say you want to have a weekly Pizza Night, instead of ordering a pizza to be delivered (can cost $20 and up), unless you have an awesome coupon or deal, stop by the grocery store and pick one up for under $10 and bake it at home. You will save at least 50%! We have a local pizza place that offers a large one topping hot and ready to go for $5 all the time so we just pop in there if I do not find it a better deal at the grocery store. (Little Caesar’s Pizza)
- Steaks can be super expensive. Right now the best deal I have around me is $4.99/lb. What I have found to be a really cheap alternative is going to a local steak house with a buffet which offers steaks on the buffet (cooked to your specifications) after 4pm. You get a plate and fill it up with whatever you choose for just $4.29/lb. I can get a pound of Fillet Mignon, Porterhouse, T-bone, etc. for just $4.29/lb cooked and ready to eat! All I do is fix the sides at home and for under $10 my entire family can have a steak dinner!
- I can not stress enough that before you go out check online or in your local paper for coupons! My family likes to eat out but the cost is just too much. There are many places that offer coupons in the papers or online. For example, Chic Fil A will often put coupons in our paper for a free kids meal wyb any value meal. My husband and I can order our meals and the kids can eat free. Sonic will also offer many great coupons in the paper as well. Also, be sure to check to see if they have a loyalty program or mailing list that you can sign up for. They will offer coupons many times if you sign up. Sometimes you can get free meals! Just keep your eyes out for them.
- Sometimes you can find travel magazines in the restaurants off major interstates. Shoney’s is a restaurant around here that has them in it. If you pick up one of those magazines you will find that not only do they have great hotel and entertainment savings but local restaurants will also offer great savings.
- Restaurant.com
 offers gift card purchases for super cheap. Right now you can get a $25 gift card for $10 and depending on the offers they have sometimes they are even less.
Clothing and Accessories
- I have found that purchasing clothes from mass merchandisers may not always the cheapest option. Many times I can get my family name brand clothes from department stores cheaper. Belk and JC Penney for example will put their clothes on clearance for 75% off and up around the middle of the season preparing for the next season. I have been able to get my kids Ralph Lauren dresses for as little at $5!
- Again, I can’t stress this enough, look for coupons! Many times I have found that stores will give you a coupon if you sign up for a mailing list or join a loyalty program. I have also found them in the paper. The two above mentioned stores offer $10 off $50 purchase very often. Combine those coupons with great sales and you can really come out cheap!
- My husband and I needed new shoes. We did some research to find what the best shoes were for us and we set out to find a great deal. Everywhere online we looked the cheapest price for them was $69.99 (reg. $104/each pair) but we went to our local Shoe Carnival and found the same exact shoe (maybe not the same color) on sale for $35. Not only were they a great deal (50% off of the online sale prices; which are usually cheaper) but they were also offering a buy one get one 50% off. So we were able to get both pairs of our shoes for $58 (which included tax)! That was a savings of 72% from the original retail price ($104) for both pair and an 80% savings for each pair! I forgot to mention that these are New Balance shoes.
- My daughter needed new shoes as well. We have a store near us called Liquidation Wearhouse. We went in to see what they had in stock and found her shoes on clearance for $12! These were Nike that normally sell for $45! That was a savings of 73%! My point is shop around. If you are not in dire need of something right now but know you will need it soon take the time to shop around and sooner or later you will find what you need for a better price.
Household Items
- Last year our refrigerator went out and we needed a new one. Instead of running out and buying the first thing we saw we shopped around in our town and the town next to us. What we found was even if you are shopping at Home Depot in “X” town and find an item is full retail, town “Y” may have the same item on clearance. We found a stainless steel GE Profile in our town for $2600 that we really liked but found the same exact fridge in the town next to us on clearance for $1500. The only reason it was on clearance was it has a small scratch on the very bottom on the side. It is set back into a wall so you can’t see the scratch! Not only was it on clearance but we also showed them the paper that offered 10% off any Energy Star appliance and we negotiated with the sales man. We walked out paying $1000 for it! But wait it just gets better. We used a credit card (hate the things most of the time!) that gave us 1 year no payments no interest. Of course we are paying each month to get it paid off before the interest kicks in so we will not pay any interest on it. They also threw in a 3-year warranty so if anything goes wrong they will fix it or replace it at full retail value. What that means is if it goes out we will actually get a $2600 credit! I love my fridge so I hope nothing goes wrong but if it does then we will actually profit $1600! Sure we could have purchased a cheaper appliance but this is an Energy Star so we will save on our power bill but if/when we put the house on the market stainless appliances will result in more money! Percentage saved: 61.5%
- Its true what they say, “When it rains it pours”. Just before Thanksgiving last year my dishwasher went out. Instead of running out and purchasing a new one I just washed the dishes by hand until I found one I liked at a reasonable price. Because we purchased a stainless refrigerator we wanted to also purchase a stainless dishwasher. We intend on replacing all of the appliances with stainless (as they go out). Now, the dishwasher I had was a top of the line Kitchen Aide that the previous owners of our home purchased just before we bought the house. They paid about $700 for it. It actually was highly rated but from day one it never washed the dishes right. I had to wash them before putting them in the dishwasher. It took upwards of 4 hours to wash a normal load. Anyway, my point is is it is not always best to go with top of the line. One day about 3 weeks ago I was in Best Buy and decided to go over and see what they had in stock and found a stainless Whirlpool on clearance for $299! The regular retail price was $599. My husband spoke with the sales person and they dropped the price another 10% and my Father-In-Law gave us a gift card with $12 left on it. Our out of pocket, including tax, was….$284!!! Not only was it a great price but the Energy Star rating is $35/year!!! Percentage saved: 52%!
- We currently need a new bedroom set but I refuse to go to a furniture store and pay full price for one. My plan…Craigslist! Craigslist.org is a great place to find all kinds of different items really cheap! We purchased our couch and love seat from someone on Craigslist. It was only two years old and used in the unused sitting room of their house. It is a Broyhill set and was originally more then $1000 for the set. The price we paid…$200! Most items are used and being offered by the owner but some are brand new offered by dealers. If you are ever in need of something check out Craigslist to see if you can find it cheaper!
- For outdoor and sporting gear there is a great site that offers a deal of the day at super low prices. SteepandCheap.com also offers a toolbar that you can download that alerts you of the deal of the day. Check them out!
- Tell friends and family when you are in need of something. They my be shopping around for the same thing for themselves and you can get their old items. Example, my inlaws recently purchased a new mattress and boxspring set (within the last 2 months). They found they could not get any sleep on it because they actually needed a different type. So they set out to purchase a new set, again. They called my husband and offered their two month old set to us! That means we got an almost brand new set for FREE! The original retail price on this set is around $1600. Percentage saved: 100%
Household and/or Automotive Repairs and Services
- A year and a half ago I was driving down the road and ran over a nail. Unfortunately, the nail went into the sidewall. If you know anything about tires any kind of damage to the sidewall of a tire is not repairable. So, off we set to find a good price on not 4 but 2 new tires. You see if your tires are in overall good shape you can just replace 2 at a time. We decided to replace the back two tires but instead of putting them on the back we took the front tires and put them on the back and put the new tires on the front. In doing the research we found that the cheapest place around town was Sam’s Club. The only problem was we were not members. The difference in the cost of the tires at Sam’s Club and everywhere else we checked was about $150.00. To join the club was $35 per year so we decided that even if we joined the club and paid the $35 membership fee we still saved $115 off the cost of our tires.
- Barter. If you have a service that someone else is in search of and they have a service you are in need of trade off. This is another time when Craigslist.org is a good option. The site has a Barter section under the for sale section. For example, there is a person offering house painting services for $16/hour or they are willing to trade for food and/or gas, ect.
- Car detailing, oil changes, ect. If you are able to do these things then you know how much money you are saving, but if you are unable to do those things for yourself then you want to find the best deals. We have a local auto shop that offers a fleet account. If you have 3 cars or more you can have a fleet account. My husbands family decided to go in together and add all of their cars so that we could take advantage of the fleet account. Basically, with the fleet account what would normally run $36.95 we are able to get for $26.95 and that is an oil change with the topping off of all fluids and a car wash and interior cleaning. My advice is call around and find out if anyone in your area offers reduced prices if you have more than one automobile. If they require more autos than you have go in with friends and/or family so that you all can take advantage of the lower costs.
- Lets say you need your heating and air unit replaced. This can cost thousands of dollars if you just pick up the phone and go with the first person on the list. What I recommend is shop around and get bids from multiple companies. If you like and really want company “A” but they have one of the higher bids and company “Z” has the lowest bid then show company “A” company “Z” bid and see if they will match it or come close to it. If they can not match it then you have two options:
- Just walk away! You have to be willing to do that because this is a financial decision and if you truly do not have that much money then that is what you will have to do.
- See if they are willing to throw in other services, upgrade the unit to a better unit or maybe an extended warranty to offset the extra cost.
A Few Extra Tips
- With the economy the way it is right now pretty much every price you see is negotiable. Even medical procedures are negotiable. Some doctors will knock 10 – 50% off of the cost of a procedure or service if you pay up front. Uninsured people are more likely to get the 50% off.
- If you find something you really want but it has a price tag you don’t like it never hurts to ask for a better price. This works really great if the product has been in the store for a while. Let them know that you know the product has been there for a while. Ask the sales person if they can come off the price and if they tell you they don’t have the authority tell them you want to speak with the manager. Don’t let the employees know how desperate you are to purchase something always seem as if you are just browsing. If you walk in with a desperate look on your face then they will not give you a better deal. Once you start the negotiating do not concede! If they are not willing to go as low as you want (within reason) then walk away, leave! Almost always they will stop you before you get out the door and offer you a better price. If they don’t then take your business else where. Someone somewhere will be willing to let you have what you want for the price you want it.
- Some places also offer a referral fee. Our Optometrist offers a referral fee. My grandmother referred me to him and she received a $25 certificate for her next visit. I then referred my husband and I received a $25 certificate and my husband referred my brother to him and my husband received a $25 certificate.
- Cell phone services, credit card interest rates, mortgage interest rates are all negotiable. If you have been a long time customer of your cell phone company give them a call and see if they have a better package available for you. You can do the same with your cable services. Sometimes they will throw in premium channels for free for a year. Credit card interest rates are also negotiable. Call and simply ask if they can give you a better rate. I know you are surprised to find that your mortgage interest rate is negotiable but it is. Call a couple of brokers and ask for a “good faith estimate”. Once you have them take the best offer to your bank and see if they will match it. Sometimes you will find that they will even do better than the best offer! Of course anything dealing with interest rates is dependant on your credit score and current payment history. I do not recommend trying to negotiate if you are behind on your payments or your credit score has dropped. These two things can make your interest rate go up and not get better.
As you can see you do not have to just use coupons to save money! I am sure there are many, many, many more ways to save money but this is what I have come up with so far. As I learn about more ways I will be sure to add them to this list.
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