Living in 2025 can be quite expensive for the average person, no matter where you’re located. This reality calls for affected individuals to adopt smarter money habits to ensure that they can withstand the tides of a ruthless economy.
Fortunately, there are a few tactics that these individuals can adopt to keep their costs low. These habits are often overlooked as well, making their adoption into daily life quite a simple task.
With these minor optimisations, you can cut costs without compromising your lifestyle. If you still want to eat out with your group of friends or indulge yourself in hobbies, you can do so without compromise.
Without further ado, let’s take a look at eight fairly unexpected ways you can cut costs in this day and age while still keeping your lifestyle standards high.
1. Use an Offset Account
Do you have any existing home loans that you’re paying off at the end of each month? If so, then you may benefit greatly by having an offset account.
This transaction account can be linked to your home loan, allowing the balance to offset the portion of your loan that accrues interest. This essentially reduces the total interest you have to pay for the loan.
For example, if your loan is $500,000 and you have $20,000 in your offset account, you’ll only be charged interest for $480,000. This can increase your savings and speed up loan payments without much consequence. And if you’re curious, it’s indeed possible to withdraw money from your offset account at any given time.
An offset account may not amount to much in the short term, but over multiple years, you could be saving thousands of dollars in interest by putting money in this account. If you want to learn more about this type of bank account, click here.
2. Switch to Generic Brands
Another way to cut costs is by changing your loyalty to generic brands when grocery shopping.
Generic, store-bought brands are often cheaper than products made by branded manufacturers. In some cases, these products are produced by branded manufacturers but are just packaged differently. This is often the case for fast-moving products like cleaning supplies, toiletries, and generic medicine.
Opting for these generic products can lead to more affordable grocery runs, allowing you to save up significantly over time. You’re not compromising on quality either, as many of these generic goods offer exactly what they advertise in a similar level of quality to their branded counterparts.
3. Cancel Unnecessary Subscriptions
Another way to reduce your monthly spending is by cancelling any running subscriptions that don’t provide value to you anymore.
Many costs can slip by our fingers without us realising. From monthly game subscriptions to fitness class passes that don’t get used, these monthly charges can quietly pile up and reduce your savings.
If you want to cut on spending, review your monthly expenses and subscriptions and let go of the ones that you no longer use. For instance, you can easily remove subscriptions for games that you no longer play.
You can also consider removing subscriptions for non-value-adding products like streaming services or apps you no longer use. By cancelling unused or underutilised subscription plans, you can save a chunk of your money and put the savings to good use. And since you’re not using them in the first place, your lifestyle won’t be affected much at all.
4. Buy More Secondhand Goods
Opting for secondhand items is a smart way to save money without sacrificing quality. While the idea of buying used things can seem like a downgrade in one’s lifestyle, there are actually benefits to opting to buy things used.
For one, thrifting for clothes is a great way to elevate your sense of style and make yourself stand out. That’s because these clothes are often vintage pieces you won’t find in your everyday fast fashion stores.
The same goes for furniture and decorative pieces. Going to antique stores to shop for secondhand goods can reveal charming trinkets and treasures that you may otherwise miss. All at a cheaper price too!
Besides saving on costs, secondhand shopping can also be a sustainable way to get hold of key household items. With online marketplaces like Facebook Marketplace and physical stores like flea markets thriving in Australia, you have no shortage of stylish material goods to keep you happy.
5. Cook in Batches
Another neat trick that can help you save on costs and time is by meal prepping.
This method of cooking is an effective way of alleviating food-related expenses. It involves cooking one large meal and separating it by the tub for later consumption. Freezing these meals can help make them last for about a week, and all you have to do is simply reheat each tub and dig in.
This can help cut costs by reducing the temptation for you to eat out and spend more than you should. It also helps you adopt a stricter and more efficient budgeting process when grocery shopping.
Moreover, cooking by batches also helps you stay mindful of the food you’re consuming. This directly influences your health, and we all know that avoiding medical bills is the best way to keep a budgetarian happy.
6. Share Tools and Appliances
If you rarely find yourself in situations where you need tools and appliances, then consider sharing them with your neighbour or family.
While this method’s success depends on your relationship and proximity with the person, receiving a helping hand from these people can help reduce clutter in your home while still keeping your lifestyle in balance.
That said, once you find yourself in a good financial standing, it’s always better to have these tools near you just in case of emergencies. But if you want to save costs in the short term, then sharing appliances and tools until you use them regularly can be an effective way to cut on the cost of buying one outright.
7. Use Public Amenities More Often
We all want to spend our free time doing the things we like to do. That said, many hobbies can be quite expensive, like buying new books or buying a monthly gym subscription.
If cutting costs is a priority, have you considered the free alternatives? Instead of buying the latest novel, consider browsing through your local library and looking for a book to read there instead. You can even borrow online books at no cost with Libby if your local library is eligible.
You can also consider using public parks for jogging or outdoor bodybuilding instead of opting for a gym membership. These spaces are free for the public to use, making them great ways to stay fit for free.
In any case, there are many low-cost ways to spend time. You just have to be proactive in your search for them and open your perspective to considering these activities over the ones you’re used to doing.
8. Use Credit Card Rewards and Coupons
Another way to save costs is by taking advantage of rewards offered by your bank provider and retailers.
Many credit card providers offer a reward system that allows users to convert points for rewards like cashback, groceries, discounts, and travel perks. Take advantage of these benefits by maximising your credit card usage and paying it all on time.
Constant CC usage can help you accumulate points; you can use these points to redeem things you would’ve otherwise spent real money on.
Another similar way to cut costs is by using coupons and vouchers that retailers may give you. Many large-scale stores and supermarkets have loyalty programs that reward loyal customers with coupons and discounts. If you find yourself needing a particular item that has a discount voucher attached to it, use it to save on costs.
By taking advantage of your retailer’s reward system, you can find yourself saving hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars over the year. And you’re definitely not making any sacrifices in your lifestyle here—just being smart and strategic with your spending.
We hope these tips will help you keep your finances under control. Happy saving!