1y ago

What are your "poor person" money life hacks?

Let's get a list going. Like with a Target debit card you can get $40 cash back and it takes 1 to 2 days to be withdraw from your checking.

347 comments

Food banks. Look at your local church, synagogue, or mosque. A lot of them do community outreach and have some kind of food bank.
If you're skipping meals or you have $5 'til next Friday, the food bank is for you. Don't feel like you're taking something away from someone "more needy." It's you. You're needy. Take the help. That was a hard lesson to learn in my 20s.
- If you have a gurdwara in your area, they often do free meals, almost like a restaurant. Baptist churches tend to have dinners on Wednesdays, and the Hare Krishnas are always good for some heavily dairy vegetarian foods. I wish more people knew this.
  
  A what?

I'm not poor but this always helps everyone. Wait for a while before you buy the thing off your shopping list. Wait for a week and reconsider whether you indeed need it.
If the answer is still yes, buy it. It is a must do for expensive things. Never break this rule for any massive purchase like a car or something!
- Also, there's a big difference between being able to pay for something and being able to afford something.
  
  Thank you! Wish my last girlfriend understood this.
  I could pay for her, but I couldn't afford her...
- If you add an item to your cart but don’t buy it right away, you will sometimes see a discount that it meant to encourage you to buy it.
- To add a light structure to this approach I always liked the "wait $100 a day" approach. Want to buy something that costs $300. Wait three days after you have decided you want it. Want to buy something over $1000, think about it for a couple weeks. A $50 impulsive purchase, maybe think about it over lunch.
  
  With no offense intended, I don't think you're as poor as you think you are
  
  Be right back, waiting 10,000 days before I buy that house
- I was looking for a new car (leasing) and kept checking different for some weeks until I stumbled upon one offer that was 100€ less than any other while being essentially the same (power, space, etc). That was nice and I don't really care about brands as long as they are somewhat reliable.
- Interesting I guess this is why my partner does this. Kind of drives me nuts though because then we'll have something on the list for months and he keeps putting it off until I finally just go on my own to buy it because I actually need it. Obviously not for big purchases but for stuff we don't use often like flour or jam or something.
  Growing up my parents sheltered me a lot more from the financial instability we faced, his did not and he's still stuck in survival mode even though we are past it, so we have very different spending habits.
- That's not a bad idea
- I try to never buy something the same day I learn of it. I'll take someone's business card, look it up online, comeback later, etc. that way it's only if I really care about it and not just feeling pressured or spending money for fun (buying stuff feels like an accomplishment, but the feeling never lasts).
  
  My suggestion is only for things, not people.

Get a chest freezer. It's much more efficient for long-term storage than an upright fridge with a freezer because the cold air doesn't spill out when you open it.
Toss your incandescent and fluorescent lights. Get LED bulbs (not smart lights, just white LEDs). Where applicable, install timer switches.
Fuck cars, get a bike. A simple, sturdy one, like an onafiets. They run on toast and determination.
Understand the difference between having enough money to buy something and being able to afford something.
Unsubscribe from music/video streaming services. Return to the seven seas.
Maybe engage in some light tax evasion.
- Toss your incandescent and fluorescent lights. Get LED bulbs (not smart lights, just white LEDs). Where applicable, install timer switches.
  It's crazy how efficient LEDs are. They are a little bit more expensive but you'll save it on your energy bill over time and you'll have to replace them less.
  People also don't realize how much of their energy bill is heat & air conditioning. If you don't have pets, turn your heat off or way down while you're at work. Just make sure it stays above freezing and above the dewpoint. If you can get any smart thermostat for cheap, they'll save you a ton of money over the long run if you're like me and constantly forget to set the temperature before you leave for work.
  Also, thick drapes work wonders at keeping the cold out of cheap windows. You can get them and the hardware to hang them pretty cheap from goodwill. You can also wrap them in Saran wrap if you really want to keep the cold out. They sell kits, but painters tape and a cling film are way cheaper if you can hide them behind some drapes.
  https://youtu.be/tbq6uZ9Y0nQ?si=m1Z9kp21PTQFhGnx
  
  I’d be careful about the HVAC thing. I read somewhere a while back that it can cost more to change temperature than to just leave it slightly lower/higher and just wear a sweater or just shorts and a T shirt. Changing temperature is especially expensive if you’re drawing more electricity during peak times to make that change, like getting home from work at 6pm or so, when rates are higher. If you have a small apartment it may not be so bad to change the temp in a smaller volume of space.
  YMMV, check your rates and times you’d be changing temp. Wear a sweater or strip as much as is feasible.
- I don't have an omafiets, but a single gear bike. The only gear it does have is quite tough to start, but my God is it so much better than something with 8 gears or whatever. So much less effort once you get going. I never realised this, but apparently you lose a lot of power through the gearing.
  
  The derailleur transmission design introduces a LOT of friction because the chain is forced to bend and twist between gears that are out of alignment, and it hates doing that. It also leads to increased wear.
  
  I also like single gear because it's simpler to fix if it breaks
  
  Only ride on flat trails?
- Maybe engage in some light tax evasion.
  haha made me lol
- Really great video on the bikes!
- Maybe engage in some light tax evasion.
  Not me (definitely not me) but my friend certainly had a lot more money when they had a job that made light tax evasion easier :(
- The efficiency trade off of a chest freezer is often broken by people’s inability to remember what’s in it. If you can’t reach the stuff at the bottom then it all goes bad. This is why an upright most likely makes more sense, even though it’s less efficient. You end up wasting as much food simply from forgetting what’s in there.
  
  I consider not letting food go to waste as part of a poor person's ~~fiscal~~ financial responsibility.

Get a cheap subscription to a 24h fitness with warm showers, lockers and wifi.
Combine with a library card.
This will allow you to live in your car or be homeless, in relative(!!!) comfort, and still be presentable enough to hold down a job.
- Although this seems to be an excellent tip (thanks), this sounded very USA to me.
  
  Out of curiosity, how would a homeless person in your country accomplish the same things?
  
  Not American. BasicFit and similar chains allow you access to all their gyms across Europe. Obviously, the car will be a problem here. If you can afford it, something like the citroen berlingo will do. They're everywhere, relatively affordable, and not super noticeable. If that's not an option, there's the library or public transport, combined with the occasional hostel. Not ideal, but better than sleeping on the street and not being able to wash at all.
- How enraging is it that this is genuinely the best advice for a huge chunk of the US population, we are the richest country in the world :(
  
  I echo the sentiment, but the US is barely in the top 10 richest countries in the world.
  https://www.worldatlas.com/gdp/the-richest-countries-in-the-world.html
- You do first need to have said car.

Learn to fix things yourself. Mend your clothes, fix your bike or car, patch drywall, whatever. Learning to do things gives you the option of to save money doing it yourself. If you don't learn, your only option is to pay someone else to do it.
- Absolutely.
  Changing the oil in your car only requires a spanner, pan, and household stuff like cloth rags. You can do it in your driveway faster than you can drive it round-trip to the dealership. I've saved heaps over the years.
  House painting is a good skill. I knocked over $20k off my house build price by picking up a paintbrush. It was about 2 weeks of work and maybe $1k in supplies.
  Learn computer maintenance. Like, how to format it and start over. How to diagnose and fix small issues. So many people buy new computers just because their old one is clogged with cruft. I fixed computers that others threw out, and avoided upgrade costs for decades.
  Most importantly - learn to cook. Home cooking is so much cheaper.
  
  Changing the oil in your car only requires a spanner, pan, and household stuff like cloth rags. You can do it in your driveway faster than you can drive it round-trip to the dealership. I’ve saved heaps over the years.
  Are your car services limited to changing the oil? Because mine aren't. They include all kinds of checks for degrading parts (filters, brake pads etc), and while I could possibly do all that myself if I had the time and could get hold of a shop manual for my car, I'd also need to acquire the parts first. On the other hand, my car doesn't need changing oil outside of the 15000km service interval.
  What you absolutely should learn is how to change a tyre. So many people don't know how to do it and have to get assistance when they have a flat...
- Same goes for home repair. Learn to spackle and patch drywall, change a doorknob, install a toilet, snake a drain, and replace a capacitor or heating element in your hvac system. These are things anyone can learn to do with minimal tools and inexpensive parts, but will cost hundreds to hire a professional.
  
  A lot of times its even quicker than calling someone, making time and then having them work at your house.
  Also spackling is the fucking best.
- It also broadens your horizon because you know how things work and what to look for in them quality-wise

Take care of your teeth.

SLPT: Get depression! You'll lose all interest in most things, instantly cutting spending on those things by 100%!
- Unless you manage your depression by trying to fill that bottomless pit with stuff on the net.
- Sleep for dinner!
- ill do u one better
  get so depressed you get into calisthenics then you can do full body workouts with minimal equipment alone in your room and get shredded for super cheap. given u diet but healthy foods can be cheap in bulk/cans

I know credit cards can be a slippery slope for some, so learn how to practice financial discipline before getting one.
That said, if you're not paying with a credit card, you're paying at least 2 percent too much for everything you buy except the things that can't easily be paid for with a credit card.
That adds up big over the years.
- Credit cards should be avoided at all times, unless you have the money to pay them off each month. Or if you're getting zero-interest financing and you are able to stick to the plan of paying it off before interest gets added.
  Getting into credit card debt is one of the most common and worst poverty traps. Getting behind on credit card bills can ruin your credit and take years to repair, which impacts your financial stability when it comes time to make a purchase with Real Credit such as a home or car.
  My best poverty tip is to not buy expensive things that are unnecessary. Also cook your own food at home, and learn to repair anything that you value. I've saved thousands of dollars over the years by doing my own car repairs, and driving old cars long past having them paid off.
  
  A credit card is a spending tool, not a debt tool. If you buy things with a CC that you can't pay for right away you are doing it wrong.
  Get a cashback $0 fee card and use it for everything you need and nothing you want.
  
  I know credit cards can be a slippery slope for some, so learn how to practice financial discipline before getting one.
  
  My neighbors living in a slumlord's two bedroom apartment Rent to Own everything. The got a TV from Rent to Own so big it had to be delivered cause it didnt fit in their car ... i got the cheapest roku pos tv at walmart for $50.
  Their daughter when she comes over to play with my kids has told me about so many frivolous things from Rent to Own they probably pay more to Rent to Own per month than in actual rent for their appartment.
- Plus if you're young it builds a credit score. Get a credit card, pretend that it's your debit card. Set up automatic payments.
- Knocked out 80% of my Christmas shopping on my cash back this year.
  
  This is the way. December is always my spendiest month and cash back from the previous year nearly always makes up for the difference.
- On average people spend around 5% more with credit cards. That 2% cash back is a partial refund of increased spending.
  
  Yeah, don't spend more. Use it as a debit card.
  And, again, make sure to be financially responsible and literate before you get a credit card.
- Some debit cards have great cash back too. Some even have good interest rates (2-4%).

Remember a lot of effort and money is spent into brainwashing us from young ages to be constantly be buying shit we don't need and to feel like we are living bad lives if we don't have it.
Remember it's bullshit, remember that you are more than the fucking trinkets and landfill filling they want you to trade all your time for.
Boycott shit, find any reasonable moral cause as a good reason not to buy something. There's almost always a good reason not to buy something that you don't need.
- I feel like it would take just as much effort and basically a whole other upbringing, in a sense, to become accustomed to all the things we were raised with. So i get what you mean, but I dont know exactly how possible it really is, or none of us would really be here, for example.
  
  For sure, to me it's just take every step you can, nothing is ever perfect.

learn the Maslow's hierarchy of needs and make sure your money has a most bang for the buck in regards to shelter / food / safety
The library has all your entertainment if but it does require a change of mindset
stay away from anything that only has one type of use, find things that can be used for multiple uses and try and buy it used if possible
Thrift stores sell clothing for pennies on the dollar. You can put together a professional wardrobe for less then a new pair of Levis
- Mostly agree, but a lot of thrift stores in the US have gotten significantly more expensive and lower quality over the past 10-20 years. You can blame resellers (like vintage stores) for at least the second part of that, but also fast fashion in general.
  
  I have been to hundreds of thrift stores across the country. Rarely are any two the same. Rarely are they the same store if you visit it months later. And some are expensive but if they are, they usually have better stuff. Visit the stores in the areas that are generally poor and you will still find lots of hidden jems at deep discounts to the retail price. So much so that it's always worth the extended trip outside of your neighborhood.
- I cook a lot, I strongly agree with avoiding things that only do one thing.
  That slapchop looks real handy, don't it? Wait till you gotta clean it. Any time savings are instantly lost, and now you have nooks and crannies for bacteria/detritus to hide in.
  Look, generally speaking: if you don't see professionals using something, there's likely a good reason for it. Maybe you're doing something smarter than a pro. But that's rare, remember that.
  
  Sometimes the reason the pros aren't using a thing is because they have spent 10 hours a day, 6 days a week for 20 years learning how to do it that way. Sometimes the tool is just more sensible.
- To add onto this, Goodwill is the worst thrift store, so try to poke around and find some mom and pop thrift stores. They do more good with donations and charge far less when you're buying (plus will usually help you out if you are really in a bind and need something)

It requires a bit of financial discipline, but having a credit card that you religiously pay off in full every month can be a really powerful budgeting tool when money is tight. It lets you combine paychecks or borrow from a future week's budget so you can take advantage of bulk prices or a really good sale price to stock up on things you use a lot of. And once you get stocked up on all your staple items, the money you would have spent on those things gets freed up for other things for weeks, or maybe even months at a time.
Speaking of stocking up on bulk items, my Costco membership has saved me a ton of money since I've had it. It might not make the best budgetary sense for everyone, but my membership fee more than pays for itself just with what I save on gasoline. Even when they don't have the best price on something, often the quality you get for the price still makes a lot of their stuff worth it for me. But even if I don't find a deal on something it's always nice to be able to grab a huge rotisserie chicken that I can make meals out of for most of a week for $4.99.

Wearing thick clothes instead of paying for heating.
- Also drink tea, or just mix some boiled water with your regular water. Drinking room temp water when your room is cold will make you feel cold.
  
  Get a thermos that has proper insulation and you will have a cold/hot drink for half a day.
- Yes and also get a hot water bottle - thay direct heat is also just super cozy
  
  Wouldn't the plastic melt?
- Or get a small room heater and use it instead of central heat
  
  This gets complicated. The small heater is almost certain to be resistive electric heat. Your central heat could be anything. In my area, the gas furnace is usually cheaper to run for the entire house than it is for a space heater in a single room.
  OTOH, if you have a resistive electric furnace, your advice is spot on
  
  Electric heaters may actually cost more in electric bills than you would spend on heating. It depends on the type of heating and the size of your space, but something like natural gas might cost less to keep the whole house at 65 degrees, rather than trying to warm a single room from 45 degrees with a space heater.

Brush your teeth twice a day. Floss daily
Go for a 20 minute walk a few times a week
Don't have a pet
Prevention is much cheaper than dentists and doctors in America
Pets are amazing but if you're searching the couch for extra change for a meal they don't need to be in your life.
- Holy crap pets. Both of my dogs passed, but it was about $1,000/yr each for normal stuff, when you add it all up. Food, vet, boarding, toys, beds, etc. you aren't kidding.
  I also know that people will skip better food and the vet, meaning they end up with unhealthy pets too.
  
  Still cheaper than having a kid.
  
  All of the foods suck, just use your dog as a food disposal for healthy stuff that is starting to get sketchy. There stomach can handle it, and honestly my dog will pull it out of the trash or compost bin completely wrotten and eat it anyway.
  Also don't buy a dog if you live in an apartment, or don't have land and refuse to walk, it's just mean. They are meant to expend a crazy amount of energy, and the blame only falls at your own shoes when they inevitably destroy your apartment or have health issues.

Buy solids, don't buy liquids. Solids are cheaper specially if you buy in bulk.
Don't buy drinks at fast food restaurants.
Eat less meat.
Drive less.
- Solids vs liquids - could you elaborate on that? Soap seems like an obvious example, and a couple specific food items like broth vs powder... but that's all I can think of off the top of my head.
  
  A couple years ago I switched from drinking soda to drinking those powdered wylers light drink mixes, it was mostly because I wanted to stop drinking so much soda but I went from spending $6 every other day to $20 every month and a half.
  It makes sense when you think about it. Most drinks are 90% water and it just seems so wasteful to have water shipped rather than using the pipes that come directly to my house!
  
  Water weighs about 8lbs/gallon (1kg/L). When you're eating soup, the actual flavors/salts/veggies take up about 20% of the weight, tops. Additionally, volume is far decreased, so you can have more food in a smaller container. Finally, bacteria have nothing to work with in material without water. Just add your local water when you need it, it's already there.
  So, buy dry goods to reduce shipping costs for both you and the producer. Ship only the food part of food, not the water. The costs are much lower, for all the reasons above.
  
  Dry beans, peas, etc are also cheaper than buying cans.
  
  A lot of things including milk, jello, drinks, general purpose cleaners, and detergent
- Don't eat at fast food restaurants if you are trying to save money

Pasta with cheese.
And beeing born in a wellfare state kinda helps ngl
- Ew. Why not pasta with... Any kind of fat or sauce?
  
  Cheese has fat in it, it is basically congealed milk fat after all.
  
  Cause cheese is tasty
  
  You can't tell me pasta with butter and parmesan isn't delicious
  
  Alfredo is basically liquid cheese.

If you have a Sam's or Costco in your area, you can get past the membership by using a gift card. You can also buy a gift card without a membership. Sometimes they're sticklers about it if you're there super early, because that's apparently "special members hour" or some shit, but the worst that happens is they tell you to leave.
If you can save up $15-20 for a 25lb sack of rice, it'll last about 100-150 meals, which means it's about 10-20¢ per meal. Just keep it in a plastic container to keep bugs out.
Get some cheap frozen vegetables and bulk, dried beans and you can eat pretty good for like a dollar per day.
Honestly it's kinda cruel that buying in bulk saves a ton of money, but the people that need it most can't afford to.
- I'm not 100% convinced that buying in bulk at Costco saves significant amount of money. At least on staples anyway.
  The best deals I've gotten at Costco were electronics. But things like chicken thighs ($1.39 / lbs at Costco vs $1.49 / lbs at the local grocery store)...I don't think it's worth the price.
  I bought soap there for $2 or so less than at Walmart. I'm sure it all adds up but between the shitty parking and long lines, I've been debating giving up my Costco membership.
  
  Be sure to compare unit cost, not just overall cost. Often times, the thing you buy at Walmart for $5 is less quantity/weight than the comparable thing you buy at Costco for $4.75.
  
  Access to their gas pump alone will cover the cost of the membership if you drive.
  pharmaceuticals are probably the most notable point of savings in-store.
  They also sell a lot of expensive shit, so you definitely need to be selective.
  
  In my area, a rotisserie chicken is $10 now, but it's still $5 at Costco.
  The thing is, "significant" in this case is subjective. I perfectly understand why it wouldn't be worth it for some people.
  
  But things like chicken thighs ($1.39 / lbs at Costco vs $1.49 / lbs at the local grocery store)…I don’t think it’s worth the price.
  2 things:
  The chicken you get at Costco is probably a better quality, and generally you get more actual chicken per pound. Google "air chilled vs water chilled."
  Get the things there that make sense for you. We like calrose rice in this house for a lot of stuff, go through quite a lot of it. At costco, the gigantic bag is like $20 compared to a tiny little bag that is $10-$12 at the cheapest regular grocer.
  Combine those factors and I think it's worth it. I have things that are "costco items." Bulk spices, rice and some grains, dog food and treats, chicken, paper towel and TP, plastic wrap, hot dogs, pretty much any cheese, laundry soap, frozen convenience foods (dino nuggets, kirkland pizza, eggos, etc) and even some produce. Anyway, I go maybe once a month, and I've done the math many times over and it more than pays for itself. I wish I lived closer, because there are some things that I would buy more frequently that are way cheaper usually - milk, eggs, salad mix, fruit, etc.
  But yeah, this is a 6 person house, with 3 adults and two teenagers.
  Oh, last thing. Buying quite a lot of things at Costco is basically like buying an extended warranty or insurance. If you're going to buy a TV, for example, and Costco sells something that's close, buy that one. The OEM is going to offer a 1 year warranty, Costco will take that return for much longer.
  
  Costco meats are very good quality afaik so that might be why they seem similar prices, or meat is just not something you save on at costco. Buying cheese at costco is like 75% off & cereal is like 50% off. Pretty sure I could make a costco membership worth it with 1 visit of non-perishables.
  
  You aren't entirely wrong. Most items at bulk clubs aren't cheaper than other stores, just bigger. There's generally a handful of items worth getting, and everything else should be avoided. Also Costco is usually more expensive, because they have random products that are organic, non-gmo, artisan things that cost more without good justification.
  
  Costco's return policy and extended warranty also make it a much better place to buy higher price electronics
  
  It really depends on what you buy. Some stuff is crazy cheap, others are pretty much the same price. If you're buying a single shirt from Sam's you're probably better off going to Walmart. Always check the per-unit price, and only buy what you're sure you will use. My favorite brand of yogurt is cheaper per unit than the great value brand at Walmart, and is almost 50% lower compared to buying it in packs of 4... But it takes up half a shelf in the fridge. But generally meat is just as expensive at Walmart/Kroger, often you can get it cheaper on sale at Walmart/Kroger than you can get at Sam's, and it's already in packages that you can just toss in a freezer.
  Also, I don't know if Costco has it, but the Sam's app lets you scan and pay with your phone, so there's no lines for checkout or anything. That doesn't work to use the gift card trick though.
- Tell you to leave? Not if there's a pharmacy inside! Non members are allowed to use their pharmacy and their food court.
  I believe the pharmacy one is by law, too.
  
  I think they get around this by having the pharmacy hours be a few hours offset from their actual business hours. My local Sam's opens at 8 for "plus" memberships and the pharmacy doesn't open until 10 when the ~~poor~~ normal members can start shopping.
  
  Also liquor. That's by law as well.
- I live in an area with a Sams club a inconvenient distance away and no Costco, Sam's has been getting less and less worth bothering with, as the prices are getting less competitive, and the product quality degrading as Walmart's distribution takes its toll (don't even get me started on the shit quality of Walmart these days) plus dealing with large quantities of product when you have a small home can be very annoying. At this point I only buy soaps, toilet paper and baby wipes at Sams Club and that barely comes out ahead of the membership cost, and I've already had to stop buying one of the soaps because they switched to only selling a container that would simply be too inconvenient at home.
  Aldi seems to have the real food savings, although my last trip I noticed the prices had crept up a little, they still beat Walmart and the local supermarket chain on prices by far

A huge part of living poor is buying and selling items when you no longer need them. This applies to a lot of things but I have the most experience with cars. For the love of God, research exactly what you're trying to sell. Learn everything about it, it's features, age, learn how to fairly and objectively grade its condition, and learn what the actual value of it is (not just what you want to get). If you don't know exactly what you're selling, there are so many people put there who will try to get one on you by lying about it. The other day, I had someone tell me that my car wasn't worth as much as I had it listed for "because it wasn't one of the manual ones" for a model that was only released in automatic.

These two meals kept me more or less healthy as a student, even through "omg I have 10 eur to last me 2 weeks".
Lentils and rice form complete proteins when eaten together. Lentils are a staple, and very cheap. They should be bought dry. Look for Indian recipes for daal for inspiration, or just cook with some broth and fry up some garlic and onion to throw in at the end.
Fill up a casserole with potatoes to boil, but leave some room on top, use a lid and don't fill up water so it completely covers your taters. Mackerel wrapped in aluminium foil with some aromatics inside like bay leaves, lemon slices if you're not a fan of fish. Place the fish on top of the potatoes when there's 25 min left on them. This dish also consumes very little electricity, but most importantly it will provide you with plenty of omega 3, vitamin d and all macros you need. Super important for those who live places where you get little sunshine through the winter months!
- Bulgur is really good. You can prepare a lot of kisir and eat it in portions

If you have any public drug coverage and you can't afford food, you might be able to get your dr to "prescribe" food (stuff like Ensure, Resource, etc) and have it filled for free from public exceptional coverage.

Cook your own food. Ready made meals will always be made with as much cheap non nutritional filler as possible. Learn how to use a few spices, buy produce that is cheap with the season and keep track of weekly discounts in your local stores. It will save you money, you'll eat better and it's rewarding to have a tasty meal in the end.
Also I'm surprised how many people don't seem to understand pricing in general. When comparing prices, see the price per weight or volume. That is money/kilogram or money/liter (substitute with freedom units). Money per package can be deceiving if you compare 75 money for a smaller package or 95 money for a larger.
Edit: If the need to learn spices makes you overwhelmed, start out with some spice mixes! Pick a couple of different blends that are different, like one Cajun Mix and one Mediterranean and one oh idk something else culturally generic. Also salt, pepper, paprika and bullion. There. You can make lots of different sorts of foods and learn on the way what spices you like. Don't be afraid to experiment. Don't get discouraged. Some stuff will turn out meh, but others will make you go wow. All of those are learning experiences for the future!
- On the cooking one, I also recommend cooking double portions when you can. If you can cook twice as much with minimal effort, that's half the cleaning you have to do afterwards and half the meal planning you have to do. You get up in the morning and know that you have leftovers from dinner ready to go for lunch in the fridge. Also, rice. Rice is cheap, good for you, and incredibly flexible in what you can do with it. A rice cooker is also a great appliance to have in general. Not only is it an easy set and forget for a pot of rice, but you can do all sorts of meals in it from steaming meats and vegetables to cooking soups and even baking desserts. An air fryer is similarly flexible and great for making meals for one person. You don't have to preheat it or anything and it doesn't cost all the energy that a full size oven does.
  
  That's true. Food prep is great for the economy and also for the soul. You can generally find larger amounts cheaper per weight and it's nice to know them you get home and are tired that there is some good food waiting to be reheated.

Buy the whole damn chicken, it's always cheaper, protein for 4 meals.
- Where do you live where you can afford chicken to begin with? I'm semi vegetarian just because of absurd meat prices.
  
  Costco rotisserie chicken
  
  In Portugal a whole raw chicken is around 3.5€, about 0.45% of a minimum wage.
  
  whole chicken is a lot cheaper than separate parts because there's little processing involved
- Back when I used to eat meat (6 or so years ago), my grocery store would always have huge bags of chicken thighs which were cheaper than a whole chicken. May not be the case anymore.

Buy expensive shoes. Well, let me rephrase that. Buy GOOD shoes. A good pair of QUALITY shoes will save you money in the long term as they will last a lot longer than buying many pairs of cheap shoes.
- Good ol' Sam Vimes.
- As the old saying goes: being poor is expensive.
  
  We aren't rich enough to buy cheap things
- And shop around
  Realized the 80 dollar slip resistant work shoes I got at Shoe Carnival were like 20 bucks at target. Same shoes, just didn't have a football player's name on the tag.
  Put em side by side they look identical and I wear them interchangably not even noticing a difference
  Don't pay for advertising
- I would also argue that many pairs of shoes can also have the same effect. If you can rotate shoes, you're not wearing out any one pair excessively. I have shoes that are in still good condition but are a discontinued Adidas line that's not available anymore. Although I do have shoes I still haven't worn so there's definitely a point of having too many pairs lol

Don't take on debt if at all possible. If you use a credit card, try to pay it off each month. Don't get one with annual fees. Get one that has cash back not miles or points.
Learn to make your own coffee instead of buying Starbucks or whatever. A decent hand grind will last for a decade and cost around $50. A no name pour over dripper and filters are a cheap way to make coffee at home. Buy beans and keep them in an air tight container and they will be good for a month.
- Learn to make your own coffee instead of buying Starbucks or whatever
  Be warned, this habit can very easily form into a hobby that is more expensive than buying Starbucks every morning
  
  I'm a coffee snob, but it's amazing how much a French press can do for making different kinds of coffee.
  Now espresso, too rich for blood so far. Those machines are nuts.
  
  Most poor folks can't afford a hobby.
- A no name pour over dripper and filters are a cheap way to make coffee at home.
  Moka, French, and Turkish give you better results, don't require disposable filters, are usually cheaper, and aside from Turkish don't require experience to make good coffee.
  
  I do moka pot at home every weekend. I would argue that experience is needed to make good coffee. It is easy to make something undrinkable.
  Other than that it comes down to personal preference. I believe manual pour over results in a better tasting cup of coffee.
- Woah, the coffee one is billionaire-making advice! /S

Take beverages with you from home.
You can fill an entire wardrobe with kmart clothes for $100, it's cheaper and more practical than even op shops most of the time. Maybe just don't buy your shoes from there.
Bottle sauces and seasonings can last a long time, and can dramatically improve the diversity and quality of your home cooking. Basic chicken, rice, and greens can be turned into a dozen different dishes depending upon the sauces.
Avoid subscription services like the plague.
There's always a few exceptions, but name brands are rarely worth it.
- Avoid subscription services like the plague.
  Great advice. You didn't hear it from me, but Stremio is a pretty easy way to cut streaming costs if you choose to install certain add-ons...
  
  What would those certain addons be? Just so that I won't do anything illegal by accident.
- Avoid subscription services like the plague.
  Check what services your library card gives you free access to.
- Hallelujah and Amen to avoiding subscriptions
- Honestly I have stuff from clearance racks at Gap that have lasted 15 years and cost $3 -$5. Thrift stores have gotten expensive here but the mall clearance rack can still sometimes be a great deal. I didn't buy clothes this year at all, don't usually since I have enough to rotate. But when I do eventually, I look for something I can like for a long time.
  Also smartwool socks, I thought I was throwing away money because they were so expensive, I got them for running because they are so good and help avoid blisters. I had to replace them last year, looked in my Amazon history and saw they were 11 years old! So I saved money really. Socks that lasted over ten years!
  Of course these are all middle-income tricks. When I was very poor - you can live in your car but can't drive your house, keep the car if you have to choose. Ask for help from people you know - you would help them, right? Roommates, so many roommates. Splitting rent 8 ways makes it affordable.
  If you have secure housing but not much else - our neighbor used to bring us fruit & veg he dumpster dived because he knew we were struggling. Look for free healthy food like that to supplement what you buy - some community gardens you can harvest from, that's how ours works, it's not a grow your own space, everyone grows for everyone. Some farm coops you can trade time & labor for food. We couldn't get food stamps because Florida but if you are willing to jump through the hoops that can really help get you through too.
- What's a KMart lol?
  
  Rofl. I didn't even notice because I'm old.

You can save money if you go without eating at least one meal a day.
- It's probably good advice to eat at least one meal a day
- Coffee and half a banana and aim for dinner.
  Eat at work if you can. Coffee at work if you can save time and money.

Cook all your meals in advance. Pasta, potato gem casserole, and a Thai red curry can give you roughly two weeks of lunches and dinners if you alternate well. You can add breakfast bowls of eggs, cubed ham, and potatoes and they’ll keep for a week, minimum (I don’t know how long exactly because a dozen eggs gets me six meals).
I usually pay around $50 every two weeks for food, plus a bit more if I’m running low on coffee or milk.
- I gained weight when I could make money. Now I keep intermittent fasting for 10-12 hours just to prolonge my food. It not just keeps me lose weight but I .sure of I start making money again , I won't be able to get fat because this discipline. Also it reduces your hunger significantly, I now can stay fasting even in winters.

Eat rice and beans for every meal.
Don't eat three meals a day
Buy tools from pawn shops and learn to service your vehicle or bike
Cold showers and dark rooms
Pick up a sewing machine from a thrift store
Basically DIY as much as possible. And steal anything you can.
- Don't put yourself into an even more miserable situation when it doesn't even benefit you in a measurable way.
  E.g. Lights/dark rooms: Let's say you use a 5W LED light bulb (which should be bright enough to decently light most rooms). If you leave that running 24/7 for a whole year, that is going to cost you ~13€/$ (0,3€/$/kWh). You are not going to keep it running 24/7, you are not even going to run it half the day. It is not worth 5 bucks to spend the whole year in darkness, no matter how little money you have.
  Obviously turn off the light when you're not in the room or it's the middle of the day in summer, but be reasonable with yourself.
  The same goes for food: Sure, buying cheap staples (in bulk if possible) is a great idea, but don't try to save 5 cents if that means skipping on the salt, herbs and tomato paste which would take your 2/10 bland bowl of carbs to at least a 7/10 and give you something to look forward to.
- That last sentence is going a lot of heavy lifting
  
  If they're stealing heavy things, they're a shitty thief!
  (Seriously though: if you're going to steal, do it from large, company-owned places, etc. Don't prey upon struggling people or small businesses.)
- And steal anything you can.
  On that note, when you're buying groceries at self-checkout, it's perfectly acceptable to take the 'oops, all bananas' strategy.
  Fuck exploitative grocery store pricing; food security should be a human right.

Here's the trick I used when I was young and poor. I worked for cash with an estate liquidator, and I saw the passion some of the customers had for their collectables. I decided to develop that flavor of passion for a collection of $20 bills.
For me, the hardest part of saving money (assuming it's even a possibility) is avoiding the trap of saving to spend. The savings itself has to become a goal, and that can be really, really boring.
Another tactic I used was to always save double the value of a large planned purchase: if I started with $500 and I wanted a $200 item, I'd save until I had $900 before spending. That way my stack never felt like it was diminishing.

My work made me get dress clothes, my solution was thrift shop bargain bin, just pick the clothes you like as long as they fit or are too big, and get them fitted.
It was cheeper then going to Walmart and getting worse clothes.

If you just eat egg fried rice using ingredients from Aldi you’re able to bring your weekly food costs down to about £2-£3 a week, I lived that way for about 3 months during the cost of living crisis. Sure it was only 1000 calories a day but I was able to get all the nutrients I needed from the ingredients.
- How do egg and rice have all the nutrients you need?
  
  Because you can mix in other stuff like frozen vegetables and some meat if you can afford it
  
  I think eggs have pretty much all the nutrients you need. They are high in cholesterol though. Same thing with milk. They are the sole nutrition for animals for a period of time, so they have everything needed in it (at least everything the animal needs).
- I don't know where you live but where I am the eggs alone would eat up £2 a week assuming you ate 1 a day.
- Just to add: rice + cheap ricecooker.
  Perfect rice every time, no need to boil water so saves electricity, you can also use it to boil vegetables and chuck other stuff in.

A lot of times you don't need to buy containers, you can reuse the ones where your food came from.
For example inside my freezer there are three ice cream pots, but none of them has actual ice cream - it's tomato paste, chickpeas, cat food. In the past I've also reused margarine and requeijão pots to store leftover food, as makeshift planters, etc. The requeijão pots even worked as drinking glasses in my uni times.
- Glass salsa jar = nice drinking glass
- "They don't know about butter tubs?!" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Rax8qvVOG4

Not a hack necessarily, but worth repeating; if you can't afford to pay it off right away, don't put purchases on your credit card. Don't make the same mistakes I have in the past.
That said, if you can afford to pay it off, credit is probably a better choice than debit for most purchases. Build up your credit score and earn those reward points.

Way healthier and cheaper to make your own roast beef. The recipe is simple as it gets.
Leave meat out until 60 degrees to the core. Rub with light virgin olive oil, then heavy on the salt and pepper until it's coated with it. Bake uncovered 375°F, 20 minutes a pound.
Cover for 20 minutes when you first pull it out so all the juices settle in. Aluminum foil and a bath towel works well for this.
Cool off to room temperature before putting in the fridge.
You will have the best RB for sandwiches you ever had.
Only buy roasts when they are on sale.
I just bought a 10 pound roast for $3.99 pound, saving me $14 a pound over deli roast beef that has added water and nitrates.
I froze half of it already sliced in vacuum sealed bags so I have some when Roast Beef is not on sale.
- You left out that you need a $70 -$150 meat slicer.
  
  I once sliced a piece of meat so thin you couldn't even see it! 🫨

I've saved literally a couple thousand+ dollars and a shit load of time by cutting my own hair.
Buzzed is easy mode if you've got the head for it (definitely NOT a good look for everyone, so proceed with caution).
Actual styles are doable by feel / with a double mirror setup, but that ofc comes with a learning curve, and it WILL look janky until you get a feel for it.
I spent $30 on an electric clipper over 15 years ago - paid for three haircuts since then, which were all mandatory purchases in basic training. Easily the best $30 I've ever spent.
Also, super short hair takes like two drops of shampoo per shower, so if you go the buzzed route, you'll save a lot on hair products too.
- I will second this. YouTube can teach you step by step how to cut your own hair. I've been doing it for years, and currently have a fancy asymmetrical one side buzzed cut that I do myself. The learning curve is going to result in you looking awkward a couple of times, but the amount of time and money saved over the years is tremendous.
  
  Thirded. June of 2020, the cheap clippers were already all sold out, so I bought a really nice set of clippers at an inflated price. But since I used to pay about $20 every month for a haircut, they paid for themselves fast. And now every time my partner cuts my hair, its like money going into pur pocket.

Sign up for a health savings account and USE IT. (United States specific advice.)
It lowers your taxable income. The only caveat is you have to remember to use that money to buy things you were already going to buy anyway. Convenient hack to know what you can and can't use: Doordash now labels HSA-eligible items at CVS. You don't have to actually use Doordash to see which items you can buy with your HSA card.
- You actually don't have to spend money with an HSA, ever. You can invest it, and it rolls over. FSAs must be spent within the year you contribute, though.
  
  Sorry, I didn't say that clearly. What I mean is you have to remember to use the damn HSA card when you go to buy Tylenol instead of your normal payment method. This is...where I tend to fail lol
- There is a massive list of HSA eligible expenses, too. I am not advocating that people go out and spend their HSA money frivolously, but if you need to buy something that seems medical-related and you already have HSA funds, maybe look into getting reimbursed.
  The coolest one to me is if you're overweight or at risk for things like diabetes or atherosclerosis you may be able to get your doctor to write you a note allowing you to get things like fitness classes, gym membership fees, or fitness equipment (stationary bike, treadmill, etc.) paid with your HSA funds. In many cases prevention is the cure, and exercise is hugely hugely beneficial in preventing and managing a wide range of maladies so if you stick to it you may actually be saving yourself an even bigger medical expense down the line.
  https://www.healthequity.com/hsa-qme

Pretty much every item of clothing I own is from the thrift store or has been second handed in some way. I love being able to find clothes that are more my style without the $70+ price tags and I'm able to maintain a business casual wardrobe required for my office.
Furniture that isn't beds are all second hand as well, I just steam clean everything upholstered. Buying brand new is a money making sham that only fills our landfills unnecessarily.
Also, learning how to cook has saved us a lot of money of takeout and prepackaged meals. There are so many ways to learn now too.
We also no longer own a vehicle, we walk, bike, or transit everywhere. I do maintain a license so I can rent a car when necessary though. Vehicles nickle and dime you to death when you own the outright or cost a years wages or so to buy, plus gas and insurance prices are insane. It costs me $500 a year to ride the bus.

https://freecycle.org

A hot water bottle to stay warm in winter. Also a really good tip if you're not poor.

steal
- Yeah. Just take shit. If society can't take care of those in need, the needy cannot be blamed for taking matters into their own hands.
  
  Remember, if you see someone stealing food, no you fuckin' didn't.
- Also: piracy.

Get to know a gardener or forager. Both are cheap and healthy pastimes that provide great food and save money.

Make a youtube compilation channel and profit off of other people's content.

Buy a 6 pack of good wool balls. Finish up using your fabric softener first and never buy any again.
- We tried this. Used them for a while, but ended up going back to fabric softener. The wool balls help, but don't do nearly as good of a job.
  
  I like the smell of the softener. Tbh I never even considered that fabric softener.... Softened fabric... In my head fabric softener = good smelly conditioner.
  One day my SO and I were bickering and I was asked what is the point of fabric softener. I said for it to smell good. And they said it was to soften the fabric. Oops.
- I’ve used the same three tennis balls going on 20 years now.
- I don't care for the softening any more. Softeners also wreck your towels' absorbancy. Never going back.

Never buy plastic/paper/whatever bags in supermarkets. Bring yours and if you forgot them for whatever reason, lurk for trailing cardboard boxes. Supermarket are often filled with those. They are solids and the supermarket is going to thrash so they don't care.
Same when you move out, don't buy boxes. Go to your local library to ask them to put aside some cardboard boxes for you. Books cardboard boxes are really solid and always clean. When you are there you can also buy Mutual Aid: A Factor of Evolution by Kropotkin.
- Same when you move out, don’t buy boxes
  Bars and liquor stores are also great for getting good boxes because alcohol boxes are designed to hold a lot of weight
- Get banana boxes from supermarkets - they're like the sturdiest boxes ever. You can use some cardboard pieces to cover the ground hole
- That's the way!
- Some years ago I accidentally took home one of those plastic shopping baskets from Kroger. I take it in with me on my trips to the grocery when I don't need more than a basket full. They have long since changed models and color of basket, so it doesn't really look suspicious. Someday, maybe I'll have my own cart too.

Go to Germany to get groceries cheaper and VAT free.
- The "ermäßigter Mehrwertsteuersatz" (reduced VAT rate) you pay for staple food in Germany is 7%. That might be less than what you pay in surrounding countries, but 7% is remarkably bigger than 0%.
- Oh, you pay VAT. Difference is that you ain't getting the shit that VAT money buys.
  
  Nope, when you shop under the limit of CHF 300 you can go to the toll post and get the VAT back.

If you do have debts - try to consolidate them wherever possible. Don't have more than one credit card adjacent means of payment (store credit cards or similar).
If you find yourself with extra money, try to pay off debts first, or at least make extra payments. Reducing debt repayments over the forward term can have a huge effect.
- Hey! This isn't a poor person hack, this is how to climb out of debt! This guy's a PHONY!

Thrift stores out of season. Look for your winter jacket in June, you'll get the nicer brands, and most thrift stores will do some kind of rotating discount on certain colored tags. Most 'dry clean only' items can indeed be machine washed on gentle.
Preserved and frozen meats and fish can be made into fantastic recipes. We do salsa chicken straight from frozen in the instant pot, and I make a killer pasta with tinned sardines and breadcrumbs. The benefit of these is that you can buy them on sale and don't have to worry about cooking them quickly to avoid spoiling.
Drugstore makeup can be just as good as expensive stuff. Aldi moisturizers are incredible and $4 a pot. I splash out on super expensive shampoo and conditioner, so I don't have reccs there, but my husband swears by Aldi's black and white bottle stuff.
And this tip is a little wild, but learning to forage can be immense. There is so much free edible food around you, from flowers and leaves that make delicious tea (passiflora flowers), weeds that can substitute salad greens (lambs quarters, kudzu, and wood sorrel), to absolutely delicious fruit that you couldn't even buy if you wanted to (pawpaws!). Use the golden rules of having three different ways to identify it (three sources, don't just use photo ID apps, learn the description, not just the visuals) and also know the sickly lookalikes, and never forage for carrots or parsley.
- You can straight up live off oyster mushrooms for like 2-3 months in a cold season. And the mighty little “potato bean” Apios americana, grows in almost every slightly moist disturbed area and is much more nutritious than potatoes. (Louisiana)
- carrots or parsley
  Why not those two?
  
  It's incredibly hard to tell the difference between wild carrots and poison hemlock.
  
  More for them.

Decide how much you will spend each week and spend a little less than that, slowly over 3 months you will reduce your expenses. Buy clothes and wash them after 2-3 uses unless you live in super dirty/dusty/warm area. This will prolong clothes life significantly and added advantage is they come back in fashion after a while. I have a shorts which I use still after 10 years.
- I stopped washing my t-shirts after a single use (unless visibly dirty, smelly, etc) and the lifespan difference is immense. Also drying clothes in a drying rack instead of in the machine makes a massive difference in durability.
- Why would washing my clothes more often prolong their life?
  
  Do you wear your clothes more than three times without washing them currently?

Don't do drugs.
- Yeeeeah that's probably where my money issues are coming from :x smoking weed every day isn't a cheap form of escapism
- I had to stop drinking 5 years ago and holy shit the savings.

Black beans and Tapatio will keep you full and is pretty tasty for less than a dollar a meal. Also you can eat it out of the can. That how I lived when I was homeless.
- Black beans and brown rice have gotten me through a lot of hard times

Learn to cook. Learn how to use fresh and pantry ingredients.
I can easily get by on $75 a week at a bougie produce market in the city (pasture eggs, free range chicken, etc). Or, I could get food delivery twice and spend more than that.

Get a 2nd hand multicooker off eBay. They slow cook, do rice/lentils/soups and lots of other things. I got one that was a bit bashed about but worked perfectly for £20.
Grow herbs either inside or outside. Rosemary, Thyme, Bay and garlic and a few others will grow fine. For the rest, get dry. Herbs add instant flavour to rice, lentils etc.
A small chicken (about £4) equals 4 meals. When the carcass is stripped, put it in your multicooker, just cover with cold water, add a whole carrot, a whole onion, both halved, some peppercorns, 3 or 4 bay leaves and 2 teaspoons salt. Slow cook on a very low heat for 6 hours. Get rid of all the solids and you now have chicken stock.
- I second the herbs - that's a real healthy luxury that you can get for basically nothing.
  
  It's also crazy because at least stateside enough fresh herbs from the supermarket for 1-2 meals is like $2.

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