What are some things you can/should cheap out on?
I often hear, "You should never cheap out on a good office chair, shoes, underpants, backpack etc.." but what are some items that you would feel OK to cheap out on?
This can by anything from items such as: expensive clothing brands to general groceries.
All your basic staples: salt, flour, oil, sugar, pasta, pasta, milk, eggs etc. There's literally nothing to do better or worse, so for god's sake don't pay for the label. Fancy olive oil is nicer, and fancy butter for actually putting on bread is nice too - but for cooking, cheap the hell out.
Get your spices from an Indian / Asian / etc grocer - you can get a huge bag for the price of a tiny supermarket jar, and because they have so much turnover, they'll be plenty fresh.
Store-brand laundry detergent and dishwasher tablets work just fine for me (and dear god you can save a lot on those).
All your basic staples: salt, flour, oil, sugar, pasta, pasta, milk, eggs
It depends. Cheap salt is just fine. And flour, unless you're into baking. But some things can make a difference and you don't necessarily have to pay a lot more for it.
Pasta, for example. Bronze cut pasta absorbs sauce a lot better than "normal" pasta. It looks dull, rough, and pale as opposed to shiny and smooth. It usually only costs a buck or two more. I find it's a big step up taste and texture-wise.
Or butter. The ones without natural flavor taste better. Sometimes it's the store brand that doesn't have added flavor.
And eggs. Orange yolks are way better than the pale yellow ones. But those you do have to shell out for.
Eggs I always buy free-range because yeah it makes a difference to taste (and is so much kinder to the chickens), but in the UK butter is butter. I know in the US you have butter that's practically white but here's it's all yellow and tasty. Flour every brand has plain, self raising and bread flour and those categories are pretty similar across brands.
Milk, the filtered stuff (Cravendale or similar) is nicer but not much nicer so it's not worth the upgrade IMO
Agreed. The store brand pasta at my store sucks. It's sticky and falls apart. It used to be fine but something changed recently.
Eggs isn't true. The only thing you're buying is for sound of mind for ethically raised chickens and the orange color of the yolk specifically for things where you need that nice orange color.
Nutrients aren't statistically significant. Taste has no difference. Especially if you aren't eating them plain.
Flour - disagree. King Arthur for baking vs your basic supermarket crap is a tangible taste and texture difference in baking. While you're at it, get a mill and buy organic wheat berries and save money for higher quality l, more nutritious flour. It's literally cheaper to get better quality if you are willing to mill it.
Butter- Same for butter if you're using butter as a spread. It's ok to use cheap stuff in cooking but if it's the main complementary flavor, like butter on toast, treat yo self to some Kerry Gold.
You’re absolutely wrong about flour. There’s a huge difference in flours (besides the cursory fact that most wheat undergoes a process called desiccation which is literally spraying it with roundup).
I’ll take my glyphosate-free wheat and corn and I won’t be cheaping out thank you very much, Toxic Avenger.
You are also missing the FACT that the other essentials you name are also badly polluted with chemicals that medical science has yet to understand.
Be careful with cheap spices, some of them (like turmeric) can be laced with lead and other nasty stuff to make them more attractive.
I'd even suggest buying laundry detergent in bulk online.
Agree on spices, bulk and into the freezer. Cheap spices aren't just as good, they are better.
I used to agree on flour, got good bread flour but recently husband brought me store brand unbleached white flour and it near killed my sourdough starter, so my mind is changed on that - I'd still use it for cake, but cheap flour is low protein and won't work for everything.
Disagree on pasta too, good pasta is easier to cook, doesn't turn to mush as easily.
I always buy the cheapest pasta available and they've always been good. Just last week, the store brand (Complements) was cheapest for the first time I've seen, and it was also my first time experiencing bad pasta. I don't know what they did differently, but there's clearly a way to mess it up.
Great advice for the most part but I very much disagree on dishwasher detergent. Nothing works as well as finish pods for us. Could be our dishwasher of course but all the cheap brands leave our dishes dirty.
Smartphones. Most people don't need to buy the latest and greatest iPhone every year.
Going to respectfully disagree here. Outside of my glasses, my phone is the tool I use most often, many times daily. It's worth getting a quality device, and if there's an issue with the current one (battery, cracked screen etc) it's worth replacing. But you're right, it doesn't need replacing just for the sake of newness.
Gonna respectfully disagree back at you. You don't have to get a $100 crapsung, but most people whose work depends on a good phone still don't need a $2000 top of the line phone.
An iPhone SE or Pixel ?a phone is more than sufficient for almost anyone anything more I'm probably going to call opulence.
Think outside the box. Get a previous generation. Pixel 8 was about to be released. To move inventory, Google discounted the 7 series by like 30-40%. I got the 256GB 7 Pro for $600. Without the sale, $600 is the same price as the 128GB 7. I got a top of the range flagship phone for the cost of a midrange. My mom did something similar with a Samsung phone. She got an S20 when the S22 released. Huge discount when Verizon offered it for $449.
I second this, especially with Android you can breath new life into a phone by installing a custom ROM
I'm on my phone 8 hours a day. Quality counts. Slow is bad. Lacking features is bad. Crappy cameras are bad. Get a good phone. Use it until one of the following happens:
For me it's just the last one that counts.
Just for my personal understanding. How often have you heard about security issues from missing updates in older phones? In real life, I mean, not in some blog or video? I'm having a hard time finding any information about real cases. There are hundreds of articles from tech-sites and security companies.
To me it feels like selling pick-proof locks, a market without actual use-cases. You can pick them all anyway, but nobody actually does it.
Don't tell people that!
I always get a refurbished phone which are last years model that someone traded in when they got the newest and greatest thing. If people stopped doing this I might have to actually shell out for a new phone!
It is the one device most people use literally all day everyday. Having a great one is worth the money. But it does not need replaced every year. Mine is 4 years old and still works like new (one battery replacement). I will likely replace it next year.
I usually try to stay about 3–5 years behind whatever the newest one is. It’s good enough for what I need and helluvalot cheaper than current phone prices.
Another way to do that is one year old manufacturer refurbished phones. I generally spend $250-$300 for a year old phone that will last me 4-5 years
There's a reason my phone has no trouble with the Roku, works immediately when I use microHDMI, and gets updates for games on time and my roommate's does not. Hardly a day passes where I'm not convinced he's relegated to a worse quality of life because his phone just isn't allowed to do things right. His phone doesn't even run the transit app properly.
Now I'm not saying but a new phone every year for the incremental improvement, but don't get something from a crap factory pushing high volume for small margins. Get something good.
What phones would you consider worthwhile in terms of price, i.e. those you can cheap out on, but not suffer the consequences of it being slow even in the simplest tasks?
One Android phone I had, Nokia 5.1, had to be replaced in less than 5 years because it often froze and lagged when I had to make or receive a phone call, open a single tab in some light-weight browser, etc.
I'm not a big fan of the smartphone industry and especially the reviewers because they seem to have a very twisted idea of a budget device. Or maybe I'm a cheapskate.
To combat this generally, you can buy one with more RAM. Also, right now there is a bit of a "race to the top" for longest phone support with Google announcing 7 years of support in November. Repairability is coming around too, which is great for replacing old batteries and broken charging ports.
I’ve adopted a policy of buying the latest iPhone every 5 years, which is about how long they tend to last in my experience. So far it’s worked out well.
Yes and no. For apple you can use their phones for quite a long time securely. For Android that is a very different story. As far as I know only Google with their new pixel phones and Samsung have offered more than 2 years of updates. After that time your phone becomes a security risk. So make sure your devices receives updates or can be used with a custom ROM (though that can be insecure as well).
What a load of crap. My phone is 5 years old and the only security risk is me blindly installing questionable APKs off the Internet or clicking pop-up ads or something. It's not like I'm walking around with a time bomb or anything when all I do is browse a few apps and text and call.
Also the new pixel 8 supposedly is supposed to come with 7 years of updates. It's entirely possible Google abandons that plan though, given their track record.
Generic meds vs brand meds.
Brands pay a lot for branding, and thus charge more. The formulas are moderated and regulated by the FDA, so unless you enjoy paying for ads, get the generic.
This isn't always true. The content has to be the same, but the delivery mechanism can be different in generics as long as testing shows similar results
Generic concerta for example, often sucks
Unfortunately, generics can vary wildly in efficacy & quality. As @Aradina pointed out, sometimes the encapsulation is different (e.g. extended release coating vs. standard release), but also the form of the drug can differ (e.g. capsule, tablet, softgel, chewable, etc), chemical by-products from different manufacturing techniques may be present in different amounts, and different manufacturing processes can also yield different chiral enantiomer ratios in the end product.
The "same" drug from different manufacturers may vary in effectiveness / side-effects, and brand-name drugs aren't always the best formulations for most patients.
Generics are required to be as efficacious as name brand in the US.
I do not understand your point on encapsulation and the form of the drug. Name brands can have different encapsulations and forms within their own line. That has nothing to do with it being name brand vs. generic.
I've got a family member with a rare allergy. I've found that sometimes one or the other will have the allergen in it, but it's not consistent between generic/branded. Always check the ingredients and never assume it's exactly the same just because they have the same active ingredients
Drugstores here (Denmark) are required by law to ask if you'd like to buy the cheaper alternative to brand medicines. They will often change from week to week so a typical order at the drug store would be "I need this" - "I'll grab it for you but are you OK with cheapest alternative?"
Caveat: you aren't super sensitive to extra/less medicine. The tolerances for generic are much wider.
Technically no. The tolerances should be more or less the same (generally 90%-110% label claim for the active ingredient) . Manufacturers aim for 100% and generally hit that target (or get very close to it).
The bioavailability could be different though - if you are doing a bioequivalence trial for generic VS brand, the generic would have to be between 80% - 120%. This difference is generally a result of the starches, fillers, and other stuff that may be in a generic formulation.
Same net effect as your comment (wider tolerances), but there is a bit more nuance.
Medicine: the branded stuff is normally exactly the same but many times the price.
When I go to the pharmacy I always ask for the cheapest generic drug product of Ibuprofen or whatever I need, it's a couple of euroes cheaper.
Here in Sweden they always ask: "Do you want the cheapest option?" when you buy prescribed medicine. If there's a reason for a specific manufacturer then that's stated on the prescription.
I've even had them say that the drugstore I'm at is out of the cheapest option and then ask if I want them to look up which drugstore is closest that has it in stock and if they should send them a note to save what I'm looking for so there's no chance it might sell out before I get there.
And there's also high-cost protection, an annual maximum amount (about $275) you can spend on prescribed medication and anything else healthcare-related. So any medication you buy and the cost of any medical services you use are added together and if that cost reaches the maximum amount within a year everything is free until the next year. So basically you can't pay more than $275 per year for medication and any other medical services.
Always compare active ingredients for OTC stuff too
I switched to the store brand breakfast cereals. Never going back to Kellogg's again. The store brand ones near me are so good. And they're made with better ingredients like cane sugar over corn syrup and shit.
I agree, even the ingredients part, except referring to color/flavor additives.
But cane sugar is an utter "word trick" that means absolute nothing. It is just as processed, and is exactly as good for you, as corn syrup. It's an example of "health theater" that companies do with labeling.
You know why it hurts so much? Because we know it's true.
Damn you. But bless you too.
We eat generic all the time, but I will say that frosted flakes and honey nut Cheerios do taste a bit better with the name brand. Luckily, they're really cheap a couple times a year and I'll buy a couple boxes then that last me pretty much until they're on mega sale again
Tools you’re not sure you’ll need. Harbor Freight tools are super cheap and flimsy, but may be the right choice if you’re not using them often.
If you find yourself using a cheap tool all the time and hating the quality of it, then it’s time to buy something better.
I go by: If you are not sure you need a good one, buy the first one for cheap. Of you break it, buy a quality one. You obviously need it.
I would say if you're not sure if you'll use it, borrow it first. If you keep borrowing something, then buy a nice one.
If I break it, I buy a better tool. If I lose it, buy a cheap one.
Fashion clothes, if you're getting something that you'll wear for one summer and then never again then Primark is fine.
Salt, sugar, most herbs and spices, it's all the same stuff regardless of brands
Some snacks, often crisps are the same Aldi own brand as Walkers or whatever, or they're perfectly good. Yes we all want some kettle chips sometimes but it's all good, same for jelly sweets, a lot of chocolate, etc.
Hobbies for beginners, if you want to take up knitting then start with a cheap kit and upgrade as you get more serious.
Hobbies for beginners, if you want to take up knitting then start with a cheap kit and upgrade as you get more serious.
This is the big one. If you're starting a new hobby, it's easy to fall into the trap of buying loads of expensive kit because it's shiny and new. Buy the cheaper versions first and learn what you actually need. If you need to upgrade then, at least you know what to buy.
Obviously this doesn't apply to safety kit 👍
I find the opposite with some hobbies. If you buy a cheap acoustic guitar it's going to be horrible to play and will probably sound crap. That might discourage you from continuing. More expensive guitars have a much better resale value too, so you'd probably be out of pocket for less if you buy a nice one and sell it again than if you bought a crap one and no one else wanted to buy it.
Absolutely, and you'll know what you like. I started walking a few years back and bought expensive shoes for my first walk but realised I like ankle support so only 6 months later I had to buy expensive boots.
Fashion clothes
Better yet: buy long-lasting stuff that is ethically produced. Primark is notoriously bad in this regard — but most fast fashion stores are.
It depends how much you plan to use it. If you're going to wear something a few times then a long lasting piece of clothing is wasteful.
Not sure if this applies to the US but for most things you buy from a supermarket the generic supermarket brand is usually just as good or even better than the big brands. And it's usually much cheaper.
In some cases it’s actually the same product made by a big brand. They might be losing money (or just not making as much profit), but it denies profit to the competitors, so it’s still considered a win.
To counter this I used to visit some factories for a big contract manufacturer in the UK. They would often make say lasagne for the supermarkets and for the "premium" brands. Whilst they were all made in the same place, the "premium" brands products had much better quality ingredients in them and different ratios of the good stuff (say meat) to filler (say pasta sheets).
For some things it's the exact same materials, but for many it's different. You have to do blind taste tests to see which ones you prefer.
You’re conflating copackers with brands.
Store brands will go to the same copackers, truth. But the copacker will not just make a premium brand product for a store brand at a lower cost. It will be a recipe made to a taste/price spec. Maybe all the ingredients are sourced from the same place, but the recipe will be different.
What can be nearly identical are branding tiers. Large companies like Unilever, Johnson & Johnson, Procter & Gamble etc will sometimes have multiple “competing” brands in the same market, all made in the same factory.
Kroger's "private selection" brand is legitimately unbelievably good in every category! Their chocolate is better than Lindt. Their bread is simply the best! Their jerky is effing amazing and with options I've never even heard of from other brands! The tea is pretty good, though I have actually had better. The ice cream bro!
I have certain things I don't buy the generic for, such as Mac & Cheese and crescent rolls (one because the sauce is unmatched by off-brand and the other because the cans are impossible to open) but this is generally good advice
From my experience, most of the time they're healthier too!
A lot of store-brand products either don't use as much sugar, or salt or saturated fats then their big brand counter parts.
Often it's literally the same thing. In Europe there is a code in every product that'll show you where it's produced. You'll often find that the cheap brand comes from the same factory as the expensive brand. They just get different packaging.
In the US, most of the food is made in the same factories because they're regional, then the name brands might get to pick the freshest batch, but often it's the exact same stuff just in different boxes.
Things which are commodity items, such as sugar, all-purpose flour, etc. I buy store brand. The main difference is marketing.
Oh, here's one: Power tools. Yeah I know, I know. But...
here's a Porter-Cable branded 6-inch jointer on sale for $365 at time of writing.
Here's a Craftsman branded jointer being sold for $299.
Here's a Wen branded jointer for $241.
Look at the three of them. They bear a striking resemblance, don't they? Makes sense for the Porter Cable/Craftsman ones, both brands are currently owned by Stanley, Black and Decker...but Wen has nothing to do with them, yet they're selling the same fuggin' jointer. Admittedly without the speed control, but what do you need a speed control on a jointer for?
It's the same tool made in the same factory in China, the cost difference is what logo you're willing to pay for.
At minimum the cheap ones have lower QA tolerances on components. Sometimes they straight up swap in shittier components (eg: plastic instead of metal, etc).
Not saying you always need the most expensive option when choosing power tools, but looks same != same.
I agree. For power tools, especially where decent accuracy is key like it is with a jointer, definitely more of a "do your research, price is not equal to quality," not "you can do fine with any cheap one."
A rule that I stole for tools is to buy a used or cheap one. If it breaks I buy the better version. If it don't break then I don't need it at all.
yeah thats a great stategy. Not sure where you are but in Europe, Aldi and Lidl have the notorious "center isle" where one can buy hand and bench tools, all the way up to band saws.
I broke my shitty center isle heat gun and now have a makita, outgrew my butane soldering iron and now have a webber, but I'm still rocking my center isle reciprecating saw and circular saw cause they work just fine and I dont use them enough.
Cell phone. A $200 android is extremely fast these days
Absolutely, currently in the purchase of a Pixel 7a (second hand) for 300euros, looking forwards to getting that in hand and install Graphene 👍👍
Depends. That's about what I paid for my previous phone second hand and it lasted me 7 years and I loved it to bits. But I was pretty broke and only could afford that. New phone, I decided to buy a brand new fairphone, because i think that the moment I get enough disposable income, I have a moral responsibility to use it in ways that encourage more ethical practices, for all the people who can't. Doing that is bloody expensive, but if it somehow helps make this dystopian hellscape a little more bearable, I'll invest.
Or tablets. I'm using a tab s6 for browsing news sites occasionally. Best tab that runs lineage and was 200$ new (bought it late 2023)
Store brand foods are good a lot of times. They used to be garbage, but nowadays they're pretty good.
Frozen veggies instead of fresh is usually okay if you're steaming or roasting.
Automotive parts off Amazon have worked alright; Rebuilt my suspension for, like, $120. That's tie rod, sway bar, shocks, and struts. No issues for the two years since that repair.
A ton of hobbies have perfectly respectable aliexpress alternatives. Keycaps, Fountain pens, 3d printer parts. They rob intellectual property, but I like linux ISOs, so I don't exactly have a history of respecting that type of property.
Software in general can be cheaped out on; I don't think I need to champion FOSS on here.
Refrigerators and washing machines can be cheaped out on, as long as you do a bit of research about their reliability.
Lots of stuff is easy to DIY if you have some work space. Furniture, fish tanks, thermonuclear warheads. Learning to sew is valuable, not because you should make your own clothes -fuck that- but because you can mend the stitching on your current clothes.
Services can usually be cheaped out on. Youtube videos and a can-do attitude can get you through manicures and toilet repairs. Court clerks will sometimes be willing to walk you through basic legal stuff like name changes. Things you should educate yourself about beyond a short youtube video: Electricity, flammability (from heat sources), and anything involving significant pressure (pistons, compressed air, and power washers, mostly.).Also be a little careful with chemical reactions: cement hardening, for example, will produce a bit of heat. Usually this isn't a big deal and you can ignore it, but there have been idiots.The world's information is at your disposal. Provided you've got some common sense, and you never fuck around with the capacitor in a microwave, you should be fine.
Lots of stuff is easy to DIY if you have some work space. Furniture, fish tanks, thermonuclear warheads. Learning to sew is valuable, not because you should make your own clothes -fuck that- but because you can mend the stitching on your current clothes.
One of those things is not like the other....
Most people could cheap out on tools and they'd still last. The average person just doesn't use the ones they own very often or work them particularly hard. Really, you're going to know if your usage will require higher quality tools and it's not the average techbro posting on /r/buyitforlife.
Backpacks are similar. If you're just using one lightly loaded for an urban commute there is nothing wrong with cheaping out. Spending more is really for people who are wearing them hard and filling them to capacity.
Most people could cheap out on tools and they'd still last.
I think this is a great one. I learned growing up that if you need a tool for a project buy the cheap one. Then if you use it enough to break it, buy a more expensive one next.
Tool trial by combat, so to speak.
40 something year old here who likes to fix stuff and make simple things at home. Heed this advice younglings. You don’t need the high end products if you’re not using it daily. If you use it til it breaks get something midrange that’s slightly more than what you think you’ll need and if you take care of it, it will last.
Generally agree on tools except for stuff that needs to work in an emergency even if you don't use it frequently, or stuff that can pose serious safety hazards if it fails.
My understanding is that most cheap tool brands save costs in QA and material choices (e.g. lower quality steel), which is what leads to things like the harbor freight jack stand recall.
I "just" moved and now taking care of the garden. I want a small vegetable garden (again) in raised beds.
You have a lot of raised beds kits the cheapest ones are €40 and more expensive ones are €90. I however used pallet collar's at €5 a piece. You don't even have to screw them together just put them down. For some custom size beds I use free pallets. They do take some work however.
Give them one treatment with linseed oil and you can use them for years. They live longer then the cheap kits and just a bit shorter then expensive ones. (Hardwood probably out life them)
Kits for vegetable gardens are most of the time really overpriced. Raised beds kits, tool kits and so on.
If you want high quality tools buy them of course, but starter kits are most of the time just the cheapest ones at a premium. Want hardwood raised beds, just buy wood and not a kit.
I suggest start on the cheap side, see if it your hobby. Buy cheap tools they already least long enough and if they break you know that you maybe want to invest in a premium one. Because you use that tool really often. (Second hand old tools are sometimes a better option of course)
Cheap/free pallets are used pallets and these have been in contact with so much shit that they should never be used with anything you'll put in your mouth and shouldn't be used indoors either (not relevant to you, just saying)
For this use, maybe add a liner then
Thanks for you comment, didn't think of that.
I bought the used pallet collar's for a company I know and it shipped and stored stainless steel. I'm fine with that. But if someone isn't comfortable with used new pallet collar's are about €15.
The free pallets I used only moved pavement stones once, so I also think it fine. But yeah don't just pick something on the side of the road to grow food in.
A other comment mentioned chemical treatment of pallets. I didn't think of that. Most pallet in the eu are not allowed to use chemicals to treat the wood. Only heat treatment. That covers eur/epal pallets and single use pallets. Basically the only ones that are free or cheap. And it most be printed on the pallet how they are treated.
That being said be careful especially in countries without laws against using chemicals on pallets.
So I'm fine using them also understand other people are not. Then buying new are just wood for the store is always a option.
Just be sure those pallets were not used with toxic stuff. I'm damn sure that those that lay behind food stores are just ok.
Do not use free range pallets for anything that isn't strictly decorative with lots of coating on it. Those things are treated to high heaven with loads of chemicals and you never know what they had on them.
Woods preservatives and methyl bromide are known carcinogens and they're not even recommended to burn, let alone grow food in.
https://aaapalletco.com/are-pallets-safe-to-burn-answers-from-the-experts/
It's forbidden to use chemical treatment on Eur pallet/epal pallets. They are only heat treated. Single use pallet are also forbidden to use chemical treatment, but are normally not heat treated. So for the eu the treatment is not the problem. Of course didn't think of the rest of the world. Sorry for that.
For the stuff that's was on the pallet collar's stored and transported stainless steel and the free pallets I got where form work and shipped some pavement stones.
If you don't feel safe buy/getting for free used. New epal pallet collar's are about €15. They are only heat treated by law.
This is a great one for sure, enjoy the gardening! 🌻
Thanks! 😌
Mr. Clean Magic Erasers.
The "generic" name is melamine sponge. These work exactly the same and cost a fraction of the brand name.
I bought 100 on AliExpress 8 years ago, for like $5. Will take a few years yet to use them all.
There is something similar in germany for removing oil and stuff. Its basically just gasoline in a bottle. Lol.
I once took a cooking class and the teacher was always "it's not necessary to invest in expensive oils, the cheapest oil will always do for cooking".
"These fries taste like used motor oil?!"
"Thanks for noticing. I took a class."
Ooo there's a great video on Minute Food about vanilla extract vs synthetic vanilla. It basically comes down to: if you cook the vanilla, synthetic will taste the exact same, if you never heat up the vanilla it might be worth getting the real stuff.
I assume the same is probably true of most oils, if you use EVOO for salad dressings it might be worth it, but if you're using it to saute you might as well use sunflower oil and save some money.
-Any clothing/toys for children can be bought second hand, we have a very good site for that in Norway. For example, we bought 8kg of Legos, very reasonable price. Re-use is very popular in Norway.
-If you change food you eat often, it's very important to do some reaserch on the nutrition and sugar.
-Any locally grown food should be supported by bying, if possible.
-Much electronics can also be bought second hand in Norway, since we have strong consumer protection laws. Breakdown on electronic can be repaired within 5 years, usually. But, only if the seller has the receipt.
-Jewelry and stuff isn't nessesary, but buying cheap can be a nagging feeling and perhaps just buy something else for the person you love. Like an experience, trip to the massage/restaurant/etc. Spending time together is much more romantic anyways.
-Don't cheap out on the bed/mattress, you spend about 1/3 of you life there.
Yeah, definitely don't overspend on kid's clothes. First, they don't really care that much and they're going to end up ruining them anyway. And second, they grow out of them so quickly, you're buying new clothes in 6 months anyway.
For example, we bought 8kg of Legos, very reasonable price.
That's like a kilo of cocaine's worth.
Just checked, 7,5kg for about 120$. I have no idea about cocaine price, though... https://www.finn.no/bap/forsale/ad.html?finnkode=337960167
Adult second hand clothes are fine too even if you'll wear them longer than a child. There are many people who give away clothes in perfect state just because they don't wear them as much. I've had similar luck with brand new 40€ jeans and second hand 5€ jeans.
Several years ago, we were given clothes by a woman whose husband had died. I still wear some of them, and we refer to one of the shirts as "the dead guy shirt".
I had to sleep on the floor on a shitty mattress this week and it was hell. The only thing making sleeping somewhat comfortable were 2 additional yoga mats stacked on top of it.
I want 8kg of Legos so much.
Some experiences/adventures can be had for little money. Not for free. But I'd prefer a walk through nature, or a visit to an Irish village at the coast over an expensive guided tour through Dublin.
Guided tours are in most cases the worst.. Especially those in towns. No idea why people spend so much money on that when you can just go explore yourself, each to their own I guess 🙃
It depends heavily on the tour and the tour guide. Wife and I took a Ripper tour in London last year and the guide made it really fun and memorable.
It's not usually an either/or.
I like guided tours because the guide knows the area, will provide local context in an entertaining manner, and will probably take you to the highlights. Best of all, they can answer questions (they might even be right!). Relative to the cost of getting to the place, the price is usually insignificant.
But I also enjoy walking around by myself. I can focus on stuff I'm interested in, take photos, and read plaques.
Decorations, jeweleries, basically any nonfunctional items, things that you can live without it, things that you don't have to "use".
I'm not sure I'd call this "cheaping out" but unless you can't even afford that or you have a specific reason you need a more expensive one, you should buy mid-range ($200 - $400) phones. The early '10s are over and mid-range is more than adequate for the average phone user. Plus quite a few mid-ranges still have expandable storage and/or headphone jacks.
Honestly, most mid range phones are not built to last. When I spend hundreds of dollars on a phone, it needs to last for years and years.
The difference between a 300-400€ phone and a 1000+€ phone is mostly just a faster cpu and a better camera. My 360€ phone even has a 120hz screen.
And the cameras on phones these days can lose orders of magnitude of quality and still blow any photography setup the CIA owned in 1995 out of the water.
How do I make sure the phone is clean, not stuck with a rootkit or something?
Left Samsung's ever more expensive Note and Galaxy S lines for Motorola's cheap ass G series like three or four years ago and haven't looked back. I buy a new phone once a year on my tax return for like $200-250. I gift my previous device to my younger cousins, nieces, nephews, and mother. Keeps everyone from having to pay off devices on their phone plans and the phones are still running rather well year over year. The only hold out, claiming to "need" the latest and greatest, is my older sister who insists she needs the new iPhone every two years.
Poorly Google Pixels arent very cheap. You can soon get a Pixel 8 used for like 500€ but yeah that is not cheap at all.
All the other devices you should NOT cheap out on. They have no security updates, and you are the product.
Buying expensive Samsung stuff on the other hand makes no sense, because you are simply premium spied on.
GrapheneOS is really the only Android one should use. Everything else is a tracking platform or insecure, often both.
Buying previous generation products. I got something like a Braun series 5 instead of the newest series 9, as there isn't that much difference.
If you want a good printer, look for an ex-lease laser printer. It may not be suitable for a whole department to use any more, but good enough for an individual.
Ex lease laptops and monitors are also often very good deals!
The monitors often come with very well adjustable stands that are much more ergonomic. The laptops are often very high build quality and perfect for regular home office use.
I don't think that off-ease laptops are very good as they are sold. The batteries are often on their way out and so that's an additional expense (and some, like Macs, are very expensive to replace).
There are some incredible deals on off-lease desktops, though. Most modern computers are way overpowered for what the average user needs. You can get a perfectly serviceable machine for doing email, serving the web, and office work, for $100 or less. Just don't expect to play any games released within the last five or more years.
That's a neat tip, thanks 🌻
Sunglasses. There's very little difference in terms of UV protection between cheap and expensive glasses and at the rate I scratch or break them it would be idiotic to spend a lot of money on them.
I learned early that there is a direct relation from how much I spend to how long I will keep them without breaking them, loosing them, or somehow destroying them in creative ways. I have a 10€ pair that has, so far, has lasted 2 years.
it's silly.
Glasses in general too, the frames are often 5-10x the cost of the lenses. You do not need Dior frames.
Just got 4 pairs with prescription lenses for ~$80. I use eyebuydirect, but I'm sure there's other vendors like it
Decent T-shirts can be had cheap from craft shops. If bought on sale, can be less than $4 each. They come in the normal variations, and one can get various weights online. They also come in a wide variety of colors. Additionally, they don't have visible logos.
I like the Next Level 3600, the 3601 is the long sleeve with a similar cut. Bella Canvas 3001 is the same fit as well with different color options. Gildian is probably what most people are already used to, boxy fit usually used for band shirts. That’s fine if that’s your thing, but I prefer something a bit more form fitting.
That’s a perfect entry into a capsule wardrobe. If you get 100% cotton shirts of solid colors – wash on delicate in cold or warm water and hang dry them, they’ll be wrinkle free and last a long time. When they’re beat, cut them up to use as rags.
First: Thanks for the great suggestions!
Second: Shop around folks! A quick search shows that these T’s go for around $5, but Amazon has them for almost double the price.
Third: If you have both minibyte can you confirm that the Bella Canvas has a shorter sleeve length than the Next Level? The pictures seems to show that but then again that depends on the model.
Next level shirts are almost perfect
I wear tall sizes which makes finding shirts a pain. Old Navy has tall sizes and their t shirts are on sale for $6 a few times a year. And they're very soft and comfortable! I buy like 5 every couple of years.
Alcohol that you are supplying at an event. You should always have a good case of beer or wine, or spirits, or the appropriate refreshment for your honored guests, but anything beyond 1st/2nd round should be the cheapest hooch on the planet and it should run out fast. Every social gathering seems to attract booze hounds that will suck you dry, no need to pay premium dollar for their habit.
Yay, toxic alcohol culture!
Try growing up in the late '70s early '80s, when adult behavior at social gatherings was almost a contest to see who could get the most obliterated-drunk, both men and women, and "one for the road" wasn't just an expression.
I'm of the children of that generation, and when we were young we modeled our socializing after that, going out for the night involved getting hammered, didn't matter who you were.
I've become quite relieved to see that in a last decade or so, the drinking culture of social gatherings is largely gone Even in people of my age range.
Of course, there's always one or two out of 20 people that are 9 drinks deep within a couple hours and not realizing that nobody else is consuming.
The plan is in place not for toxic drinking culture, but to deal with those people. Once the precise amount budgeted for the first few quality drinks is gone, that's when you bring out the low-bottom budget cans of expired beer, still on the plastic ring but with 2 missing and they are only basement cold.
Buy used stuff and learn by doing. Computer upgrades, smartphone repairs, cars to some extent and a ton of other stuff
One of the big ones for me is non denim pants. I went through a phase where I got into somewhat more expensive clothes for a bit. Not like flashy stuff, but like just like presumably high quality stuff that wasn't so mass produced and in many cases, specifically made in the the US.
Well for some reason or another a bunch of the pants I bought in that period of time just did not hold up at all. Lots of various problems including buttons falling off, seams splitting, holes in pockets. And not just from one brand either.
Well I buy pants from places like H&M now and they all last me a long time. I've got pants I've owned for 5+ years and worn quite a lot and they're still in great condition. And I paid like $30 for them.
Maybe I had bad luck with the nice pants back then, idk. But the price/value equation does not work out for me whatsoever. I've had somewhat similar experiences with casual button down shirts. My Uniqlo shirts have held up a lot longer than shirts I've spent like 3-5x the money for. But it hasn't been as extreme as my experience with nicer pants.
Stuff like shoes and jackets on the other hand, I prefer to spend a little more for quality.
Most things. Clothes, cookware, phones, TV's, etc.
I would say only spend money to buy things you're passionate about. I love cooking and have spent some money on quality ingredients. Buy good spices and pans, erc. But I hardly spend money on clothing or vehicles or phones, etc.
Odd comment - you say don't spend on cookware, yet you spent money on good pans? I also love cooking, and spent money on good pans and knives :-)
That was just an example haha. I spend money on buy it for life cookware, buy it honestly hasn't been a lot. Cast iron is actually fairly cheap if you can find a deal. Plus, I visit estate sales and often find quality on the cheap.
Soap of any kind. It’s fine if you want a certain smell, but at the end of the day it all works the same. Goes for hand soap, shampoo, detergent, body wash, etc.
I agree with all of that, but shampoo. A bad shampoo will absolutely destroy your hair, particularly if you have long hair.
There is only one shampoo in the US that I have found that doesn't make my hair insanely oily and split. The shampoo "etc" stuff is insanely wrong.
A lot of people seem to agree with you, so I’ll reassess my stance on the shampoo.
As a person with a short cut, every run of the mill shampoo has done its job. But of course your hair needs to last longer when you grow it out; so adverse effects have more time to pile up.
My sensitive, eczema-prone skin say, "No."
Yeah... I have something similar to eczema (serrobhreic dermatitis, I just have Google autocorrect it for me when I need to put it on a medical form.) All the beauty blogs and subreddits say "stay away from salicylic acid" so I tried all the alternatives in the literature, up to and including literal tar shampoo. Brackish, sticky, thick, smelly tar. Nothing in the medical literature works anywhere near as good as salicylic acid, and I have one brand (shampoo) that works for my face and scalp that's more moisturizing, and another (bar soap) that works for my body. If I skip showering for 1-2 days, my red scaly oily skin starts to return and I get face acne and bacne.. It's not fun. But as long as I keep my regimen (which also includes a specific lotion and a specific cleanser) and get enough sun (tanning in winter months) you wouldn't even know I had a skin condition.
It took me many years (including over a month using NO products as many suggested the products were the issues) to find this regimen. So I'm sticking to it.
Not true. Most soap series my skin, and the nice soap I buy doubles as shampoo. Normal shampoo destroys my scalp and I get crazy flaking. And I love the texture on my skin from this soap. Definitely worth the 5 bucks a bar
Which soap? I've been using Dove for everything for the past few years. Apart from the fact that it's really handy for travelling I've never had any issues with using it as both shampoo and normal soap but maybe I'm doing it wrong and I should have dedicated conditioner and shampoo
I recently tried the cheapest dishwasher tablets and my dishes come out dirty
Agreed on all soaps... except shampoo. My hair gets crazy damaged by the cheap stuff.
I buy 10 bars of Irish spring for $5. It works great. I shave my head, so it functions as shampoo too. Unlike a lot of the expensive soaps it isn't like lotion, which is a plus for my oily skin.
Free computer operating systems are great these days.
I regularly spend hours designing electronics to be cheaper. Not worse -- just cheaper. Electronic components sometimes vary in price by two orders of magnitude for the same performance, so it's worth cramming datasheets in your head as a professional or hobbyist.
For tools, I've found good midrange Chinese brands, and stuck to them. I could never afford things like Tektronix and so on.
I don't strictly require clothing to be cheap, but I do require it to be fungible -- this works out similarly though. When I find something that's good value for money and looks good, I buy a bunch and rotate them. That way I don't have to think about what to wear, and it always looks decent.
I also prefer cheap laptops. I don't need a supercomputer to work. When I do need a supercomputer, I rent one from google cloud for a few dollars an hour.
I also prefer cheap laptops. I don't need a supercomputer to work.
I've been feeling this one lately. I recently had a very large, super heavy laptop stolen, and I've been wondering why I even had such a mammoth to begin with.
I have a desktop with all the overhead I need for large tasks, any laptop I get basically just needs to run remote desktop with decent latency.
Yup, I do the same -- although my remote desktop is just SSH, so even truly ancient stuff is completely fine. I've been looking at getting a portable terminal as an alternative to even a laptop, which is a bit of a pain to lug around if I'm on vacation.
This technique failed disastrously one time though. A billing dispute between the person renting me office space and the building owner meant my AI workstation got seized for a year once. That was a real pain -- I never expected to see it again. Thankfully it did return to my possession. Eventually.
Mascara. I’ve spent $20+ dollars a few times for some high-end Sephora brands, but I’ve never thought they were any better than the $8 Maybelline I can get at the grocery store.
Maybe you’re born with it.
Drug store nail polish too. $7-9 at Walgreens or CVS and I'm good.
From my experience so far most things in life can be found cheap, moderate price and expensively priced. However there’s a point of diminishing returns on your investment ie after that point you could spend loads for marginal gains. Find this point see where on the graph you can afford it.
Somebody on lemmy shared this and opened my eyes: https://youtu.be/_rBO8neWw04
TLDW; buy detergent power for your dish washer and fill both holes. Cheaper and wayyyy better cleaning prowess.
Here is an alternative Piped link(s):
https://piped.video/_rBO8neWw04
Piped is a privacy-respecting open-source alternative frontend to YouTube.
I'm open-source; check me out at GitHub.
First date. If you just want to get laid, go lavish, no problem.
But if you want to find a long-term partner, take her on a cheap first date. Like, coffee and a walk through the park.
I realise it's the opposite of what you're asking, but:
Honestly it doesn't really matter what it is, if it's something you are going to rely on, don't cheap out on it if you can afford not to.
Pretty much every non-consumable product category has a low end of cheap shit that is not worth anyone's money.
Also, and this only really applies to big electrical items: if you can be bothered, find someone who repairs the kind of thing you're trying to buy and ask them what the best made brands and models are. They are the people that will know better than anyone else what is built to last and what is built to be replaced when the warranty expires.
Honestly it doesn’t really matter what it is, if it’s something you are going to rely on, don’t cheap out on it if you can afford not to.
But that's the whole point of this post. Pointing out situations where this logic doesn't hold up. And there are for sure situations where it doesn't. The expensive version of some things really aren't worth the extra money at all.
There's a price to quality/value/utility bell curve to be identified for everything basically and even if some expensive (for example 3x priced) thing is higher quality than the cheap version that costs 1/3 the price, it very well may not at all by any measure be 3x as good/reliable/etc.
Oh yeah, I'm not saying always go for the high end, mid range is often perfectly fine. I'll highlight I'm talking about non-consumable products which you will rely on.
If it's something consumable, the low-mid range often has minimal practical variation due to market forces. If it's not something you're going to rely on, you don't need to care too much if it's gonna break itself or whatever you're using it for.
Excuse the tautology, but anything you're relying on, needs to be reliable. If the low end is reliable enough for that, market forces unfortunately dictate that a worse version must be made for cheaper, because that it-doesn't-need-to-be-reliable demographic is not currently being saturated.
It's kinda away from my original point, but it's also very important—if we can afford it, we should be buying the longest lasting versions of everything we need, we generate an unreasonable amount of waste currently due to the proliferation of planned obsolescence and disposable consumerism. It's not a bargain in the long term if we turn the planet into an oven.
Kind of a "duh" thing but, only buy used cars.
Always have a trusted mechanic who doesn't work for the dealer look it over before you buy. Usually new car dealerships are reputable and are looking to move their trade-in inventory, especially at the end of the year when they need to clear the lot for the next year's models. You can even find deals on vehicles that are only a year or two old like a returned lease, with a moderate number of miles on them and little to no wear and tear. Those are usually just as good as new but so much cheaper.
Be super cautious of the used car dealer chains, like Drivetime and Carvana, they have loads of customer complaints and legal problems in a couple of states (basically, if it seems too good to be true, it is). Do not ever buy a former rental car, unless it's true love at first sight or you're desperate... even then think about how people, who've only paid like $10-20 for rental insurance, have probably treated that vehicle and reconsider.
The newest and most expensive car I ever bought was a previous model year's dealer demo. A dealer demo is what it sounds like, it's the car the dealership displayed in the show room, used for test drives with unsure buyers, running office errands, and showing off at the mall or in parades. Cons: There's only a few of them, they'll have a couple hundred miles on the odometer, and you don't get to pick the color or options. Pros: They're usually at a decent trim level, in an agreeable color, and well maintained... for thousands less than brand new because they've already left the lot a whole bunch.
See I drove my last car 16 years, always went to the dealer I bought it from for maintenance, and they were always forthright every time. He finally told me the last time I took it in for service that he was really starting to cross his fingers when he put it on the hoist, and that it might be time to stop throwing good money after bad. I never felt pressured.
Well, what I meant was don't just take a dealership's word for the maintenance of a car they're trying to sell you. But yeah, dealer mechanic shops can be some of the best out there especially for their particular brand.
I've bought a couple former rental cars and they were fine. While people might drive a bot more aggressive in them, if it didn't have body work done it's likely still fine. The big plus for rental cars is they generally get proper maintenance so they are mechanically solid.
I rented a corolla to do Uber in, and I ran that car like a motherfucker. I don’t drive like an idiot, (optimizing for rider experience, which overlaps a lot with minimizing car wear) but I did push the car in a way I wouldn’t push my own.
I've often wondered, how were the economics of renting a car to drive for a service? Did you usually make back your money for renting and fuel, etc?
expensive clothing brands
Buying designer gear from outlets is something you should definitely cheap out on. 'Fast fashion' prices with designer quality. I'm not at all convinced the designer gear was ever worth the official price tag but I am very sure that it'll last longer because you can't sell a pair of leggings for £75 if they're going to fall apart or bag out instantly (or at least, you won't get away with it for very long). Getting those same leggings for a tenner is the way to go.
Sad to say, they still use the same sweatshops as fast fashion brands, they just pay more for the quality control. So you still need to care about how the brands conduct themselves.
I like the cheap Ferraris
Oh, you mean the new mid-engine Corvettes?
If you live in an area with a store like a dollar store/tree/general, getting snack foods from there is cheaper than going to a normal grocery store like Walmart. At least it is where I live.
I don't know if it's changed prices in other places with these types of stores, but at $1.25 for generic thin mint cookies, that isn't a terrible deal at all if you ask me.
I remember reading that they purposely shrinkflate packages specifically for those stores so you end up paying more in the end. Maybe it was just an isolated thing though.
I wouldn't know since the snacks I'm usually getting there are things I've never seen at any big chain store like Walmart.
Dollar stores are almost never cheaper than any alternative.
feel OK to cheap out on?
This can by anything from items such as: expensive clothing
??
Nonstick pan for eggs. Get the cheapest. Only use for eggs. Replace if coating damaged.
Does not apply to any other cooking ware tho
I'm gonna disagree. Cheap nonstick pans are horrible and just contribute to unnecessary waste plus you have no idea what's in that coating. Carbon steel or cast iron, when properly seasoned, are just as non stick as a "non stick" coated pan and will literally last forever. They're also WAY more useful than a nonstick since you can use them with almost any heat source and any temperature.
I've never had a nonstick pan I've personally owned go bad, because I use it for the right things. Low heat only, hands wash, and only use silicone utensils. Whenever I see other people with shitty non sticks it's because they abuse them horribly. Searing things and using metal utensils and throwing them in the dishwasher or scrubbing the hell out of them. I love cast iron too, but I can never get them to not stick with low heat.
Can even toss em in the oven if you want. Love my cast irons. I specifically got my partner a baby cast iron for eggs since she loves eggs.
Do people really buy pans for just eggs though? I've always used my regular pans for cooking eggs and if I'm storing them in my home I'd want them to cook more than just eggs.
Some people do, yeah. I've always used stainless steel cause it's what I had. Takes a little practice to get it to not stick, but after that it's fine. I heat the empty pan on medium, medium high until it's pretty hot. If you add a drop of water, it should bead up and roll. Then add the oil, wait until it shimmers, and add the eggs.
Enameled cast iron is nice too. It's non-stick and not as heavy as a regular cast iron.
This is horrible advice. Cheap nonstick flakes nasty teflon chemicals into your food. Shitty advice
Cheap nonstick flakes nasty teflon chemicals into your food.
All Teflon coatings will degrade if abused. Getting expensive nonstick just makes you want to use it longer than you should (sunk cost), and abuse it because it's "more durable".
So get a cheap T-fal, be very careful with it, always handwash, never use metal utensils, dispose if damaged at all, and only use for eggs.
Lastly, If you can't use a nonstick pan carefully every time, just don't use nonstick at all.
RE: office chairs…. You could spend a shit ton of money or…. You could totes cheap out and replace them every 4-6 months.
I WFH and use my office for other things as well. My ass is in that chair 60-70 hours a week, in a weird position that’s comfy to me but no chair is designed to support.
The padding isn’t the issue. I can always throw a pillow too thin to sleep on under my butt. The hydraulic cylinder is the issue.
Give me a hard chair that stays at a constant fucking height with no effort any day. Padding I can fix, but if I’m constantly at weird and non ergonomic levels with little control that’s a real problem.
Context, I’m actively typing much of my day on the kb directly in front of me, and jumping back to the keyboard at around 45 degrees to the left any chance I get.
If you have a metal cut-off saw, and you only like your chair at or consistently above a specific height, you can force this minimum height despite that stupid hydraulic cylinder. This technique also helps once that cylinder breaks down after 12-24 months and you get this constant sinking feeling that puts your knees up under your chin within 15 minutes of any height adjustment.
Measure the outer diameter of the largest part of your chair’s central shaft. Measure the perfect minimum height between the bottom of the chair (where the shaft emerges) and where the shaft ends down at the rollers. For example, if you always like your chair at max height, put it there (without sitting in it) and then measure that distance.
Go to your hardware store and find a piece of metal pipe, min. ½mm in thickness, ideally steel. Copper might be too soft (go at least 1mm), iron piping might be too brittle.
This pipe will have to have an inner diameter slightly larger than the shaft, and be at least as long as the ideal height distance you measured.
If you get a pre-made piece of pipe (sink drain downspout, for example) that is longer than what you need, you will need that metal cut-off saw to tailor that length to the correct amount.
Take the shaft of the chair apart. The vast majority of chairs literally just sit on that hydraulic cylinder, they don’t even click into a locked-in position much less have any fasteners. Although if you have been using it for a while you may need a rubber mallet to convince the seat to separate from that hydraulic cylinder.
Put your metal pipe over the shaft, put the seat back onto the gas cylinder.
Ergo, you now have a height-defined chair that won’t descend beyond a defined point. You still need the cylinder to connect the chair to the bottom half, but that hydraulic cylinder could be completely dead (with a max height pipe), and it wouldn’t matter one bit.
computer keyboards i will never understand paying more than 20 bucks for one
Then you should avoid going down the rabbit hole of mechanical keyboards.
My nice mechanical keyboard is 13 years old. They last, and if you're going to have something for decades, why not have a nice one?
I'm not sure if it's still the case but even in cheap keyboards if you pay a bit more you they will have better controller that will let you press more keys at once which is important for gaming. I got my mechanical keyboard couple years ago and overnight I stopped making so many typos and I can type much faster. My plan was to check the keyboard out for a week, write a ton of documentation for work and send it back but now I don't regret paying extra for it, in fact I think it's the second most important component of you computer after the fastest hard drive you can get.
the fastest hard drive you can get.
I'm assuming that by "hard drive", you mean "don't actually use a hard drive unless you need extra storage". You'd want an SSD for speed.
If you can't tell the difference between a super cheap keyboard and a well built one, fair enough.
If you like one of the things you use for a considerable portion of the day to feel nice to use and last more than two years, spend more. I spent an absurd amount on a keyboard about a year ago (like a week's pay kind of absurd) and I haven't regretted it for a second.
I have tried 3 different mechanical keyboards, two of them in the three digits. I went back to rubber dome because I couldn't care less about cherry switches.
I agree in principle, but knowing what people pay for a kb that doesn't even have a numpad I would raise the usefulness cutoff to around 100.
More helpful advice is don't spend money on gaming anything. It's 10x more expensive and it's fucking shit. The industry sees gamers are marks and will absolutely fleece you on overpriced and horrible quality 'gaming' products which are cheaply made and planned obsolesce to shit.
You can get a way more comfortable experience at a way lower cost by buying office equipment instead. I have a logitech wireless headset that has been in use for 2 years, and in storage for another 2. I plugged it in and it still fucking works. The literal foam on the ears has dusted away but everything else about it is just as good as when I bought it. The same can't be said for my crappy gaming headset which was uncomfortable out of the box, hardly lasted a full year before deteriorating, and is now all but inoperable. Not user serviceable, either.
My Logitech g35 gaming headset worked for near 15 years before crapping the bed. With near daily use for several hours at a time.