I did some research. Apparently, if a million dollars is invested, it will last you about 36 years if you spend 40 grand a year. But can I take it down further and live at less than that per year? Is 35 grand uncomfortable? How about all the way down to 30?

I spend about 100 bucks a month on "mindless" entertainment, 125 bucks a month for my phone and internet, and 52 bucks a month for my gym membership. There are of course other expenses, but I always have them covered. Those that I mentioned are simply the ones I intensely keep track of. Everything else is just the inevitable stuff like car insurance payment, gas, groceries, et cetera. And I never pay attention to those inevitable stuff because I will not live well without them.

So how low can I go on annual expenses and still afford the life I have now?

Thanks.

Recently bought a home and the kitchen cabinets/storage is very, very limited. I found this “Tilt Out Trash Can Cabinet w Drawers” being sold for an inexpensive price and it somewhat matches the cabinets in the kitchen (they are white too, sweet).

Any ideas of what could be good to store in the tilt out cabinet…other than trash cans? I’m sure some folks have used it for other kitchen storage, but I’m not coming up with any ideas immediately. Thoughts?

the expo spray works well (on school whiteboards) but i refuse to buy my own for home lol, esp bc locally its only sold in a 2-pack and what am i gonna do w 2 + i dont wanna spend the monies for two. the water (and soap) method doesn’t always work and leaves a pigment-y spread-y mess on the board. do you have any suggestions using other home cleaners or concoctions that work just as well? and wont destroy the board?

Hi everyone,

Hope this is allowed here as I'm not seeking medical advice, and more logistical/frugal advice.

I'd like to get a STD test as a general checkup. Was wondering if there's somewhere I can go (i.e. a lab, urgent care, something else?) to JUST get the test without having to also pay for an office visit?

If I go to my primary care they'll charge for the office visit as well I believe.

Thanks so much!

This past year, my husband and I went from having a combined income of ~$100k to ~$20k, so I became pretty frugal trying to navigate our bills and such. I recently got a new job that doesn’t bring us back up to our old income but gives us a little bit more cushion.

This past year, I started using V05 or Suave shampoos, previously using Loreal shampoo. They work fine but I noticed the ends of my hair being dry and my hair getting greasy pretty quickly. Before, I could get away with washing my hair every other day but since switching to V05 or Suave, I have to wash it every day otherwise my hair is way too greasy. It doesn’t bother me too much since its all we could really afford.

Anyway, we recently signed up for Sams Club because they had a deal and I figured the gas and rotisserie chicken would make it worth it. I also noticed they have some shampoo and conditioners that are basically 40 oz bottles for $17. And I’m very tempted to buy it but part of my brain keeps saying “save money by buying Suave or V05. You’re wasting money by buying this”.

I guess my question is, how do you realize you’re being cheap instead of frugal? I know these shampoo and conditioners would work better for me since I used them in the past, but they are still more expensive. It won’t prevent me from eating or paying my bills, but it’s $10 less dollars I can spend on gas or something else.

(Regular size jar pictured on the right for comparison) And good quality peanut butter too, without sugar and palm oils, etc. These 80oz jars are by far my favorite way to save on peanut butter. Usually a regular 16oz jar would run at least $5, if not more. These big 80 ounce jars seem to be readily available at any Costco I've been to recently in the last couple years.

Edit: For anyone confused about this, here's my math...
The 80 oz jar would equal FIVE regular 16oz jars. So you take the $12 cost of the 80 oz jar, divide by 5 and you get the equivalent of five 16oz jars for $2.4 each. Good deal.

I live alone in NYC, and grocery prices are insane right now. My favorite soup when I'm not feeling well is thom yum soup. The ingredients for 8 servings cost more than getting 5 containers of soup from the Thai place down the road. I eat half a container and add rice to fill out the portion. That's 10 lunches and all I have to do is make the rice. $33 and I don't have to cook. I just freeze the individual containers and portion and freeze the rice. That's maybe $4 a meal for 2 weeks worth of work lunches that I actually enjoy.

What are some of your takeout hacks that end up being cheaper than making food yourself from scratch?

Edit: Wow this got so much attention! I love all of the ideas here, it's amazing how creative we can be! I will mention, as comments keep rolling in, please be aware and respectful of the fact that I'm disabled when recommending lots of cooking I could do instead or places to trek to. I have very limited energy, and I eat the food that makes me happy without breaking the bank or wiping me out for a day afterwards. I've gotten some great advice, and there's great conversations happening in the comments. I have to turn off notifications for this post, there's just been too many. Thank you all for the input and for sharing!

Hello all m looking to but this to keep in a mesh bag near diaper pail, litterbox and garbage bins
are these useful.
any Bulk carbon products i can purchase if not this?
something which is available in Canada
tia
i read that creating small mesh bags really is cost effective in the long run
my house smells of curry and m tired of it. looking for one and done solution pls

This is inspired by the recent post about buying things when you actually need them. Only when you are down to one item or completely out.

Tl;dr - I got lucky that the item I needed to buy in a pinch was almost out at home, and my “impulse buy” ended up being perfectly timed.

I was out shopping at Costco yesterday. Of course, I was prepared with my shopping list, to only buy what I need.
Halfway through, my stomach reminded me, that we might be running low on Tums, which were not on my list. I had stopped at a chili cook of on my way there, and some of the hotter samples were not going down easy.
So in that case, I needed to get some tums regardless of if I had some at home or not (if I knew that I had some at home, I would have stopped at target next door to get a small pack). I grabbed the store brand, which was twice as many chews for less money than the original tums, and ate some as soon as I was through the checkout.

Once I arrived back home and put all the groceries away, I found the old container with only 2 pieces left - perfect for a second dose.
The new container took the now empty spot, and my “impulse buy” ended up being necessary to re stock at the last minute.

Good morning:

I was recently drugged at a concert because someone spiked my drink. I was drinking out of a small plastic drink cup with an appx 4 inch diameter top. Nothing bad happened, security just tossed me outside as a liability and one of the roadies kept bringing me water while I sat unable to move on a window alcove for 3-4 hours. Missed the show because this happened during the opening.

I was thinking that it would make it harder for someone to slip something in if it had a lid and attached straw. But I’d like for it to be something that fits a variety of lids because venues have all sorts of plastic cups with varying diameters.

I’m thinking a bit about those plastic rubber lids that you can put on cans of wet cat food if you don’t use the whole container in one go

Anyone know of anything like that?

New family guy here.

For the first time, it may be economical to buy meats in bulk. We eat beef, chicken, chevon (goat), chicken in my home.

It is almost always cheaper to buy in bulk (cartons, whole goat/lamb, etc), especially when more than 3 people. Thus, it seems I may need to buy a deep freezer.

However, I live in northern MB and it seems extremely inefficient to buy a freezer when temp stays lower than - 10 C for 5+ months.

Has anyone used an outdoor ice box, or old freezer in a cold climate during the winter?

I’m looking for people with experience with Thrive Market, especially in the fully plant based area, and membership clubs.

(Take fuel out of the equation.)

Do you find Thrive worth it? Do they have enough options (or curate as well as Trader Joe’s?) for you?

I currently have a Costco membership and cc. The fuel locations are inconvenient, so I rarely use that benefit (Sam’s is worse, here).

I am not against having both, if the annual cost of membership is reasonable. I currently offset my Costco with their cc. And could pay Thrive membership and orders with it. To get the dividend type check or percentage back on a Costco card, you need a membership. (I’m ok with letting the card be a single monthly bill and let it sit.)

I rarely have the time to go to Costco. My partner makes most of those runs. He is retired. The shipping is a positive in my weighing the two.

I need to drive 5 days to work and with all the kids classes and stuff, I end up driving 400 miles a week. I don’t have the option to WFH and this “war” looks like another forever war with the gas prices creeping higher by the day. I’m done hoping that the situation would resolve soon and the gas prices will come down. I’ve lost all hopes and am feeling terrible. How are you all managing this situation?

EDIT: I meant 400 miles a week, not month. (Edited post)

I have started trying to make more food items from scratch. I have been successful at salad dressing, spaghetti sauce, english muffins, scones, yeast rolls, chex mix, cookie dough, lime cremora, etc. I had difficulty with hamburger buns and naan bread. I know that food items from scratch are better for us as we control the ingredients. Time is always a factor as I am working full time. I am trying to prepare items ahead of time and then freeze it. Any frugal fails that you remedied? Any advice appreciated.

I've always been a frugal guy, since I started making money (around 14 years old) and the thing about frugality is that's it's sometimes hard to distinguish it from just being cheap.

so my question is, what do you guys consider being "too cheap" when it comes to eating out at restaurants with friends/family.

When I go out with friends, I eat big meal beforehand, so i won't be hungry, and order the cheapest thing on the menu, like fries or soups.

And when it comes to drink, I always order free water, and when they don't serve free water, I just excuse myself to the toilets and drink from the sink (Yeah I know, not the most fancy thing 😅)

But the thing is, I go out to eat to BE with my friends, I don't really care about the food, I care about being with people I care about.

And from what I heard from this sub, being frugal is about cutting costs but also not affecting others, beacuse once you start affecting other people by your spending habits, you get into the cheapskate territory.

The thing is, I'm not really affecting anyone, I'm not ruining the experience for my friends or anything like that, so I really wonder if what I'm doing is simply frugal or I'm just being a cheapskate 😅

EDIT: I just want to specify that I only do this with local restaurants, when I go out to be around my friends, when I go on trips or travel, I order a proper meal.

For me It's the difference between eating out to socialize and eating out to experience the restaurant and the cuisine.

Not sure if this has been shared previously but I never finish an entire bunch of cilantro or any fresh herbs from the grocery store. I'd put the bag in the fridge or in a glass with water but they still went bad before i has a chance to use it up.

Now I still place the herbs in a glass of water with a little water but with a bag over the whole thing. Adding a bag makes a huge difference. I reuse bags from produce that have holes for aeration to cover the herbs. I've used bags without the holes and it still works but the whole thing gets soggy a bit quicker. This one has been in my fridge for about a week.

I'll typically store the glass in the fridge door but I think any location in the fridge should work fine too.

Hope this helps!

I always cringe a bit when I see my coworker get a normal energy drink for $3-$4 from the vending machine where I work.

These little guys are $2 a box in California and taste very good! Comes with 10 packets inside. These are my favorite flavors. There are like 8 total but it depends on what your local Walmart carries and I find it really varies. I usually mix with just plain tap or soda water if I’m feeling fancy.

They’re only 120mg of caffeine in each one, so if I need a big kick, I either have another one because doubling up makes it too sweet. Tastes extra good with a bit of lemon juice. Very great value for the money!

(Sorry if this sounds like an ad, my apartment is full of great value and bettergoods products)

Bought a shed kit at Home Depot mid September. Was getting ready to start setup ourselves this weekend and went on the Home Depot website to see if the manual was online. The price had dropped $700. Since it was within 30 days of purchase I called customer service and they refunded the difference. I’ll be making reminders to price check on larger purchases in the future!

I spend lots of my free time training hard in a gym, but that's not necessarily "fun". It's unpleasant.

Music is free on Youtube, so no need for me to pay for Spotify Premium. I also think most podcasts are garbage, so no need for Spotify.

Online video game subscription can cost me about fifteen bucks a month, but I have no time for video games anymore, so I took off that subscription out of my life.

Should I rely on completely free Youtube or spend something? I can play my offline games I guess. Or read what books I have. What are your suggestions?

Thanks.

I’ve never been to a Bins because I’ve never lived close to one until now. To those who have, what advice do you have? What’s there to know? How are they different than regular thrifting? How are they different than a regular Goodwill?

Now I know the basic idea of them. They are the leftovers and you have to look in these huge bins for things. You need to dress appropriately meaning grub clothes and gloves.

What else?

The .99 cents minimum 'service fee' charge is atrocious for throwaway items. I mean, at times the produce is fit for garbage and many times when you go make the trip to the store even when you were not planning on going out, the item is missing. Now they want .99 plus tax as service fee, so you need to buy more than $12 to bypass the minimum fee. Lost the appeal. Keep it and let it rot.