Being economic with your money and resources isn’t something that you should be ashamed of. Quite the opposite! Throwing wastefulness in the bin and embracing frugality, thriftiness, and creativity are the way to go—especially if we want our wallets and our environment to reap the rewards.
The r/Frugal subreddit, a community housing nearly 1.9 million savings-minded members, encourages people to take a different approach to spending. Using our heads more instead of opening our wallets wider, lies at the core of their philosophy. We’ve collected some of the best life hacks that will help you budget better and help protect our lovely Planet Earth at the same time.
Waste not, want not, so let’s get scrolling. Upvote the hacks that you found to be the most useful and if you’re feeling generous, share some of your own frugal-living tips, dear Pandas.
#1 Instead Of Spending $20 A Month On Printer Cartridges, I Spent $60 On A Continuous Feed System That I Can Fill For Almost Nothing
Image credits: DentalDriller
#2 Til Wd-40 Removes Sticker Residue. The Middle Bottle Still Had A Snowman Label On It; My Bathroom Is Going To Look Civilized Again
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#3 Some Cheap Rit Dye Made My Old Backpack Look New Again
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The ‘Frugal’ online community lives by the motto, “Waste Less—Gain More!” And they’re absolutely right: there’s lots to gain from living less wasteful, more flexible lives.
“Frugality is the mental approach we each take when considering our resource allocations. It includes time, money, convenience, and many other factors,” the subreddit mods describe what their community is all about. Active since March of 2008, r/Frugal has since then entrenched itself in Reddit and formed a very sizeable niche for anyone and everyone who wants to embrace a more economic, less wasteful way of living life in the 21st century.
#4 Been Using My Great Grandfather's Razor For A While Now. Decided To Clean And Polish It This Morning. Most Frugal Way To Shave. Blades Are Dirt Cheap! Before/After
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#5 Decided To Put My Hobby To Use And Make Reusable Swiffer Pads! I Have Three Cats And One Dog And I Get So Tired Of Buying Those Ridiculously Expensive Dusting Pads To Get Up All The Pet Hair. You Can Also Wet This, Dip It In Cleaning Solution, Wring It Out And You’ve Got A Mop
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#6 Started Couponing And Got All Of This For $7!
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In an interview for a previous Bored Panda article, I had a chat about saving on food costs if you’re a fast-food lover with Jake Butler from ‘Save the Student,’ a UK-based organization that advises students on how to make their money go further.
According to Jake, we have to talk about the obvious—you can save the most money on fast-food and takeaways by learning to say ‘no’ to tasty treats and cooking solely at home. However, not all hope is lost, dear Pandas!
You can make a lot of your fave fast-food meals at home. The best parts are that it’s way cheaper and that you have complete control over the nutritional value.
#7 Enjoying The Porch Of Our New Home, Where We Live Rent Free As Caretakers Of A Wildlife Sanctuary. Eight Hours Of Labor A Week In Exchange For What Would Be At Least $1300/Month
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#8 Always Check The Weight
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#9 Don't Pay For Scientific Journals
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“The good news is that you can easily recreate your favorites at home for a fraction of the price. It's much healthier this way too. Google is definitely your friend here as you can find fakeaway recipes from a number of sites. During the lockdown, McDonald’s even released instructions on how to make their famous breakfast egg McMuffin at home,” Jake from ‘Save the Student’ told Bored Panda that we don’t have to live without tasty food even if we’re saving money.
#10 A Little Cleaning And A $30 Leather Repair Kit, And It's Almost As Good As New!
Image credits: IAmAPhysicsGuy
#11 Both Of Our Children Used This Crib For The First 2.5 Years Of Their Lives. Trying To Get Another 5 Years Out Of It!
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#12 My Frugal Friends, I Just Made My Bathroom Counter Look Like This With An $11.99 Roll Of Adhesive Paper. Now I Wanna Cover Everything With It
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“The good news is that the ingredients for most of these recipes aren't too pricey and you can still hunt for bargains to make the dish cheaper. Buying in bulk is always a winner too when it comes to saving money so it's a great idea to get together with friends and maybe take it in turns to make your favorite fakeaways,” Jake said.
According to him, the essence of creating takeaways at home lies in the seasoning! “Salt and pepper won't break the bank, but they can make or break a meal. Don't forget that sugar can take a dish to the next level too.”
#13 I Work At A Travel Agency, And When We Have To “Destroy” Our Outdated Maps, I Reuse Them As Wrapping Paper
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#14 Not Paying For Expensive Spices Shelf. Instead, My Boyfriend Made This From Old Bed Slats. Jars From Mustard, Jams Etc. To Keep Homemade Seasoning Blends
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#15 In An Effort To Make My Iced Tea Obsession Less Expensive And Also In Trying To Be Less Wasteful, I Took The Labels Off Of A Pack Of Snapple Bottles And I've Been Using Them To Make My Own Iced Tea For A While. It's Seriously Has Cut My Drink Cost Down By Like 90%
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#16 Finally Figured Out How To Extend The Life Of My Fresh Spinach To Avoid Waste And Enjoy It Longer! Transferring To A Zip Lock Bag After Purchase And Inserting A Folded Paper Towel Reduces The Moisture That Collects In The Original Bag. Still Fresh Weeks Later Instead Of Spoiling Within A Week!
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#17 Never Buying Bread Again. I Realized I Can Bake About 50 Loaves Of Bread From 50 Lb Of Flour. Mega Savings
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#18 Learned This From My Mom. Everytime You Buy Chives/Green Onion Just Cut Most Of It Off And Use Them Or Store Them In The Fridge. Then Put The Roots In A Cup With Half An Inch Of Water. Regrows Back To Full Size Or More Within A Few Days. Can Repeat Up To About 2-4 Times If You Have A Good Batch
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#19 Basically Getting Paid To Exercise, While Helping Clean Up The Neighborhood. Collecting Cans While Getting My Steps In. Frugal Af!
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#20 I Recently Lost A Lot Of Weight And Had To Replace My Whole Wardrobe. I Didn't Want To Throw Away Old Clothes That Still Had Some Kind Of Life, So Here We See 11 Leggings, 9 Tank Tops, 1 Top, And (Part Of) One Skirt Repurposed Into A Rug
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#21 Psa: It's Time To Oil Your Leather Boots
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#22 Made A Staircase With Rocks And Repurposed Cement Slabs
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#23 Didn't Want To Waste The Failed Films So I Turned Them Into Little Paintings
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#24 Protip, Throw Hairpin Legs On Any Piece Of Wood To Instantly Upgrade Your Furniture
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#25 Pet Tip (Oc): Save All Semi-Viable Parts Of "Dead" Dog Toys, Order Some Replacement Squeakers, And Make A New Super Fun Franken-Toy!
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#26 I Made Shelves Using Recycled Thrift Store Speakers
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#27 I Saw A Previous Post Which Used Old Maps As Wrapping Paper, So Here Is My Old Music Used As Wrapping Paper!
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#28 I Think You'll Like The Gift I Got From My Frugal Aunt
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#29 Beaded And Appliqued This Rust-Stained Dress And Wore It To A Wedding
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#30 Cloths Pins Are $1 For 100 And So Much Better Than Plastic Chip Clips
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#31 My Way Of Recycling Disposable Masks. They Are Stronger And Longer Than The Average Twisted Ties
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#32 My Kids Love Happy Meals. I Don't Like Spending $15 On Each Trip. So I Made My Own At Home (Saved The Packaging From A Previous Trip). They Loved It!
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#33 Our Canning Haul For The Year, Still Have To Do Apples Yet. All Home Grown Veggies
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#34 $23 At A Warehouse Store - 13 Years Ago!
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#35 About 6 Years Ago I Ditched Paper Towels And Switched To Cotton Shop Towels. I Bought 150 Off Amazon For About $30. They Have Been Life Changing For Staying Frugal And Eco Conscious! I Keep A “Garbage Can” In My Kitchen To Separate These Out And Wash When Full With Hot Water, Detergent, And Bleach
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#36 My Husband Loves Berry Jam, But Berries Are Quite Expensive This Year, So I Decided To Forage Instead Of Buying, And Picked Over 4kg. Of Them
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#37 Whenever I Get A Dish Sponge That Is Past Its Lifetime For Washing Dishes, I Always Cut It In Half And Then Retire Those Sponges For Household Cleaning Around The Bathroom And Other Dirty Areas. Cutting In Half Make Sure That They Never Get Used For Dishes Again
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#38 Dry Erase Marker On The Fridge Was A Game Changer For Me. It Saves Me So Much Food. It Also Makes It Easier To Just Pick A Weeknight Meal, Instead Of Endlessly Scrolling Through Recipes
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#39 Check The International Foods Aisle For Spices. Price Difference Of Two Aisles Over At My Local Grocery
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#40 I Built A Chicken Coop For Free Out Of Materials From Craigslist
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#41 I Made A Two Piece Outfit Out Of This Men’s Shirt I Got For $2.50 At Salvation Army
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#42 I Really Wanted A Backpack Vacuum But Was Off-Put By How Expensive They Are. Luckily I Already Had This Guy And A Box Of Rope
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#43 My Method For Reducing Reliance On Paper Towels In The Kitchen! "Un-Paper Towels"
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#44 I Asked My Local Farm Stand If They Had Any Damaged Produce They Couldn't Sell. They Gave Me All Of This For Free!
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#45 I Got Bids From Tile Setters To Do A Backsplash For $2000. I Ended Up Doing It Myself For Under $200
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#46 Have A Crappy Desk Chair That Offers No Back Support? Slide A Pillowcase Over It With A Firm, Fluffy Pillow
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#47 Couple Years Back I Ripped Out A Deck For My (Now Passed) Great Uncle. My Grandpa And I Saved The Pieces For When Eventually I Could Have My Own Back Yard! We Just Built It Today! Free Wood And 5 Hours Of Work!
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#48 My Wife’s Great Aunt Has Been Saving On A Birthday Card For 35 Years With Her Friend As They Just Send Each Other The Same Card Back And Forth To Each Other Every Year. How Cool Is The Card And The Story That It Has Created?
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#49 I Used To Throw Away All The Stuff My Kid Gets From Goody Bags At Other Birthday Parties. Now I Recycle Them And Put Them In A Piñata On Her Birthday
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#50 Spent $2 On 4 Heads Of Garlic Last Fall, Now I Have Over 70 Heads Of Garlic All Braided Together
1. Separate the heads into cloves
2. Plant in dirt 6ish inches apart in the fall
3. Wait until summer when the leaves start to die back
4. Harvest and braid into beautiful vampire necklaces
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#51 I Found Myself Buying Makeup Removing Wipes Every Few Weeks.. But No More. With Fabric Remnants, An Old Hand Towel, And A Few Hours Of My Time, I’m Saving Money And The Planet!
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#52 Made My Own Lunchable To Pack In The Cooler. Normal Lunchable Is $2.48 For 6 Pieces Of Ham, Cheese, And Crackers. I Paid $8 For A Pound Of Cheese, Box Of Crackers, And Package Of Ham Which Will Last Weeks
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#53 Turned A $2 Thrift-Store Top With Awful Sleeves Into My New Favorite Sweater!
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#54 Save Clothes From The Trash With A $10 Fabric Shaver. Sweater Went From Fuzzy And Pilled To Like New In A Matter Of Minutes
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#55 Made Some Cinnamon Sugar Cookies From Leftover Pie Crust
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#56 This Is 2 Lettuce Butts (After Getting Chopped) After 2 Weeks Of Sitting In Water. Easy Way To Save A Little Cash And One Less Reason To Leave The House During The Pandemic
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#57 Instead Of Replacing Dated Recessed Light Trim At $20/Light, I Painted The Ones I Had For Free
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#58 Every Pair Of Jeans That Start To Wear Out Become Jorts In This Household
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#59 My Local Supermarket Sells 'Miss-Shaped' Fruit And Veg For Several Dollars Cheaper Than Regular Produce - Easy Way To Save A Few Bucks, Plus The Packaging Is Super Cute!
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#60 Girlfriend And I Wanted A Large Mirror On Our Wall, But Didn't Want To Spend $$$ So We Found 6 Small Closet Door Mirrors On Sale For $4 Each
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#61 Wedding For Under $3k USD. Dress For $15 USD. This Was Right For Us
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#62 Money Is A Bit Tight Right Now So I Made Some Homemade Halloween Decorations. Turned Out Pretty Good, I Think
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#63 To Whoever Shared Wine And Painting Date Night Idea - Thank You!
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#64 Oh The Life Of An Electricians Wife, Forced To Strip For Extra Cash!
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#65 I Combined A Broken Hockey Stick And Rake Into A Much Stronger Rake. Is This A Win?
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#66 Lowe's Employee Here: My Manager Told Me To Throw Away Bags Of Seeds Because We Needed Floor Space For Other Products. I Asked For A Deal And Got Each Back For 3-5 Cents. Regular Price Is $1.09-$2.49 269 Bags For Retail Price Of $646.59. I Payed $5.40
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#67 Free Empty Wine Crates From A Local Liquor Store? Free Bookshelves!
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#68 Polishing Your Shoes Is The Frugal Choice
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#69 The Tool Set Gift I Got My Dad For Father's Day Was Heavy And Awkward To Wrap Traditionally, So I Bought A Small Tarp And A Pack Of Colorful Bungee Cords To Act As Gift Wrap And Ribbon! Practical And Only Cost Me $10!
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#70 Built A Table Out Of Shipping Pallets Left For Trash Outside A Shipping Center! Total Cost: $23
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#71 My Local Rural Gas Station Makes Fresh Food All Day Everyday And Throws Everything Away When They Close. 30 Min Before Closing They Gave Me All This For Free. They Offered More But I Was Modest About Taking Too Much
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#72 Finally Convinced My Girlfriend To Consider Cooking Meals At Home More Instead Of Eating Out. A Nice Meal Of Salmon, Organic Grain Mix And Broccoli For Two From Trader Joe’s, All For Less Than $20. A Boston Restaurant Would’ve Easily Charged Over $40. Hopefully We Keep This Trend Up!
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#73 May Be A No Brainer But, Never Buy Prepackaged Fruit. This Was A $2 Watermelon That Would Have Cost $20 Precut
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#74 Every Morning When I Get Into Work, I Mark “Black” If I Didn’t Eat Out Yesterday And “Red” If I Did To Track My Eating Out
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#75 I Just Learned That When The Box Wine Stops Pouring You Can Cut It Open And There's Another Glass Or Two Of Regret Still In There
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#76 My Library Receipt Shows How Much Money I’ve Saved By Using The Library
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#77 I Was About To Buy The Bigger Bottle Until I Noticed The Difference In Concentration And The Directions!
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#78 Just Made 22 Burritos For Lunches Instead Of Chipotle
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#79 A Little Effort Can Save A Lot Of Money! Got This Stool For Free And Used One Can Of Spray Paint, Discounted Remnant Fabric, And New Rubber Feet!
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#80 My Pillow Case Kept Sliding Off, Instead Of Buying A New One I Just Made Two Slits And Tied A Ribbon In It To Hold The Case!
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#81 I Hated My Black Table. Instead Of Buying A New One, I Painted It. Love How It Brightens Up The Space
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