Learn about the frugal meaning and how it can help improve your life starting today. Check the best frugal tips and easy ways to have a frugal living.
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Frugal living isn’t about being cheapskate or being cheap. Frugal living meaning is much deeper. It is about smart spending and responsible consumption.
Frugal living is basically a way of smart living when you spend and use your resources, including time and money wisely.
The goal is not to spend less, but to spend it wisely and smart.
The Frugal Living meaning
For all of you, guys, who have wondered what does that hipster word mean, here is what frugal living means:
Living a frugal life simply means smart money management.
Frugal living doesn’t mean living a poor life and buying cheap, low-quality products. With implementing frugal living tips, you still can buy something expensive, but spend it wisely and smart. Moreover, frugal living is about cutting unneeded costs and getting rid of everything extra that doesn’t make a real difference.
For example, you can have a lunch box and save on going out for a lunch break if you don’t mind it and afford an expensive dress that you really want. Or otherwise.
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I mean, the most important frugal living tip is the need to prioritize things and save money on unimportant expenses.
Benefits of living a frugal life
There are so many benefits to living a frugal life, starting from saving extra money to responsible consumption.
As I see it, the meaning of frugal life is taking your life into your hands to create a better future for you and actually living life.
Plus, you are a more responsible consumer towards nature, natural resources, and other people.
Myths about frugal living
Here are the most popular myths about frugal lifestyle:
1. No idea what it is, so it’s not for me.
When people hear something new, they tend to skip the information like it is none of their business and it has nothing to do with their perfect lives. Well, don’t be like that. And if you read this post, it means that you are far smarter than the majority of people.
Sometimes, new movements can bring new motivation and new inspiration in our life and change it towards a better one. I’m 100% positive that the frugal living is one of the things that can do all of that, just give it some try.
2. Frugal meaning cheap.
It is one of the most popular misconceptions about frugal living. Frugal living means a smart way of spending, therefore saving money for important things like travel, mortgage, or early retirement.
I don’t think that putting on one side a fancy lifestyle with tons of things that you don’t actually need plus working till the end of times to afford this lifestyle and modest life with an early retirement you will go with a fancy choice.
3. Living a frugal life requires a lot of work.
That is not necessary. You can make small adjustments today that will lead to frugal living. For example, brewing your own coffee instead of using Starbucks. Or use cash backs while shopping. You may have already been doing this, so there is no need for a total lifestyle change – just some minimal improvements to change your life to a better one and save money for important goals.
4. You’ll have to give up a lot.
People usually think that in order to save money, they have to give up a lot of things they are used to. That is not always the case. With a frugal lifestyle you are not giving up the things you need. You give up the things you don’t need or replace them with cheaper and better alternatives.
5. You won’t save a ton of money, so why bother.
Well, that might be the thought of many of you, guys. But as Benjamin Franklin said: “A penny saved is a penny earned.” Frugal living is one of the pieces of a financial freedom mindset. Invest some time into making frugal living tips a part of your routine, and in the future, it will make a huge difference.
How to start a frugal life
Here are the easy ways to live a frugal life:
1. Create a budget.
Review the budget and adjust the categories. Cut the costs where possible. This is the number one step towards understanding your budget and finding opportunities to adjust your spending.
2. Save while shopping.
There are tons of different ways to save and even make money while shopping:
- use coupons;
- use cashback and reward points that can be transferred into real cash or gift cards. For example, use Ibotta or Swagbucks to get cashback on everyday purchases;
- look for sales;
- use loyalty programs;
- and so many more.
In general, shop smart, save money where you can save them, and use rewards to make extra cash.
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3. Buy only what you need and can afford.
It is very tempting to have a new and very good car, a bigger house or fancy clothes. If you can afford it, that’s great. If not, then buy only the things that you can afford. Otherwise, paying for them will stress you out.
4. Shop responsibly.
Try to purchase things that you really need. Did you know that 30% of the shopping cart is the things we took impulsively and don’t actually need? Since I’ve found out about those statistics, I use it to review my cart every time I shop. Just a quick look before checking out: what are the 30% that I don’t need? Usually, it is extra packs of chocolate or ice-cream that I actually don’t need, because I already have them.
Moreover, don’t go hungry to a grocery store. Otherwise, you’ll have more than 30% of impulsive purchases.
When you want to buy an expensive item, give yourself a couple of days to think it over. Maybe it was an impulse, and you can save money, or maybe it is actually the thing you need.
For that kind of purchase, think of cash in one hand and the thing you want to buy in another. If you prefer cash, then you don’t actually need it. Otherwise, when you choose the thing you want, then go for it.
5. Implement Food and Meals management.
This means budgeting the food. Creating a monthly meal plan and budgeting coffee shops and restaurants is a real deal. If you ok with cooking at home and preparing lunch boxes, it will save you a lot of money vs. going out, and order take away. To save time, cook at home in bulk for a couple of days in advance. You can even do a date night at home with a special dinner.
Moreover, with prepared at-home food, you can be more confident in the quality of the products and follow healthy habits.
If you not the kind of person who likes cooking, then think of the ways to save money while going out. It can be coupons, happy hours, or loyalty programs.
6. Find free ways to entertain.
Check free concerts or free movie nights in your area. Choose at-home movie nights instead of going out. Look for free entrance days in museums. Gather your friends at home for a board game instead of going to a bar.
7. Brew your own coffee when possible.
You will be amazed by how much it is possible to save if you skip Starbucks. Annually people on average spend around $1,221 for take away coffee. That’s a lot of money that can be landed on your saving.
8. Stop buying bottled water.
Because it is not smart and irresponsible towards nature. First of all, bottled water costs a lot. I mean, it is just water, but a small bottle in a grocery store cost more than a gallon of gas. Secondly, it is simply a lot of plastic that goes to trash. Buy a water filter or install one and drink clean filtered water. The savings can be hundreds of dollars per year.
9. Use the local library.
Did you know that a library is one of the best resources for frugal living? At a library you can rent movies, take tons of books, including best-sellers and new releases for free!
10. Review car expenses.
The first part is the car. Do you own an expensive car? Do you own several cars? Can you find a cheaper car that will answer your needs?
The second part is the car insurance. Shop around for better insurance plans. I bet you can cut the car insurance costs by simply making several calls to different insurance companies.
11. Review TV cable and TV channels subscription.
I don’t want to just say “cancel all the subscriptions,” because it may sound too hard to implement. It is not, believe me. The only subscription we have in our household is Amazon Prime. That’s it. We don’t even have a TV set in our home. As you see, some people do it and save money on a monthly basis, so can you.
I challenge you to an experiment. Don’t watch the TV set for a week. Instead, talk to your family members during dinner, read in the evenings and play board games on the weekend. Spend less time in front of the TV, more reading and talking to your dear ones. It’ll improve your life quality; you’ll learn a lot of new things from books and simply by talking to your family members or friends. Or you can even start a new hobby or a side hustle. Just find another more fulfilling and free activity instead of TV watching.
If you need a no-brainer after an exhausting day of work, try watching videos with Swagbucks and make money.
Read here about Swagbucks program and how you can make extra cash.
If this challenge goes well, why not cancel TV subscriptions and save the money?
Of course, you can randomly purchase a one or two-month subscription when you favorite series released a new season. I simply ask you to think, do you need it that much or you can save money and spend time with more quality?
12. Use Craigslist and Facebook Marketplace.
There are so many high-quality things that people sell. Check Craigslist and Facebook Marketplace before making a brand new purchase.
13. Review your living situation.
Do you pay the best price for what you need? Maybe you need a smaller apartment or a smaller house. Maybe you need cheaper accommodation. Think of what you have and what you need, and maybe there is a room for money saving.
14. Stop using napkins and paper towels.
An average person uses around 3,000 paper towels per year and around 1,000 napkins. That’s around $1,500 per year! Use fabric napkins for dinner time, fabric towels for kitchen, and microfiber towels for cleaning.
15. Travel smart.
Choose cheap travel destinations. Use credit cards rewards to book cheap flights and hotel stays. Implement money-saving travel hacks. Look for free activities while at the destination, like outdoor landmarks or parks and free museums.
16. Review your wardrobe.
Don’t buy what you don’t need, sell what you don’t use, plan the clothing shopping ahead.
Moreover, I just want you to know that it is ok to wear the same items over and over. For example, I personally prefer to do so. I have several striped dresses (for example, like this one) that I can dress up or dress down for almost every occasion.
It saves not only money to have a minimalistic wardrobe, but also mental efforts that we spend choosing what to wear.
Think of Steve Jobs, a billionaire who was wearing the same model of Levi’s jeans, the same model of New Balance sneakers, and a black sweater all the time. He cared about the bigger picture, and his vision changed the world.
17. Get rid of unhealthy habits.
Stop smoking, reduce the amount of alcohol. It will benefit your health and save money on doctors’ appointments in the future. Stop drinking sodas, choose clean water instead. Your skin and teeth will thank you for that. Reduce the amount of artificial sugar and fast food consumption and choose products that are tasty yet healthy, like dark chocolate or home-made meals.
18. Use reusable glasses and plates when possible.
Do you like to host parties? I do. And I never use plastic or paper glasses and plates. First of all, why pay for glasses and plates when I already have them? I mean, we all have dishes that we use every day and on special occasions and we all have a dishwasher. Why not take advantage of that and save money?
Not only using real dishes instead of paper plates and glasses will save you some money, but it will also create a feeling of luxury touch.
Here are some funny glass markers for your guests, so they don’t confuse where whose glass is.
19. Make at home celebrations instead of going out.
Did I mention that I love hosting parties? It is a great way to spend quality time with friends and family in a non-rush environment. When we meet at the bar, we are limited by the time we actually eat or drink. While at home, we have time to talk and play our favorite games.
To make such gathering even more frugal organize potluck parties, where everyone brings a dish, and everyone is engaged.
20. Buy high-quality products.
There is a saying, “I’m not that rich to buy inexpensive things.” The deep meaning of this saying is that cheap and low-quality products usually don’t last. So you spend more time and money to buy new things. In my opinion, it is much better to buy an expensive thing and use it for a while.
For example, I spend a hundred bucks on sneakers. I do it every 3 years. Yes, you’ve read it right. I use the same pair of sneakers for 3 years. The last pair did a USA cross-country, Italy cross country, traveled from North-East to South-East Coast, and so much more.
Here are the sneakers I’m talking about.
Or for example, I’m a hiker. My hiking boots cost around a hundred. I hiked glaciers and waterfalls trails, volcanos with live lava, rainforests and dunes, I climbed walls of rocks and did a lot of crazy things. And I’ve been using them for 7 years already, and they still look good. I will probably use them for another 7 years if not more. Imagine if I bought low-quality boots that would have fallen apart after a season?
I think it is a wise investment to buy expensive things that you need for the long run.
Final thoughts on frugal living: Does frugal life worth it?
Speaking from my personal experience living a frugal life is totally worth it.
As a matter of fact simple and easy change of habits towards a smarter consumption and responsibility towards nature game me a feeling of owning and living my life. Not just sitting and waiting for a better future. No doubt that what we do today impacts our tomorrow. Therefore, a frugal lifestyle is a smart way of living and every person should give it a shot.