Have you noticed that everything seems to cost more lately? That’s because they do and prices are still going up. Watching it happen can make you feel like there’s nothing you can do. There is! These 75 ways to beat rising prices can help!
Things are getting to be so expensive and with the recent announcements of Coke, P&G and Kimberly Clark, that isn’t likely to change anytime soon. Frankly, it is getting downright hard to live for a whole lot of people and that is never a good thing.
So the question then becomes, how do I fight things like rising gas prices or grocery prices going up? How do I fight rising meat prices? How do I afford to live with rising housing prices? At this point in 2021, even the price of lumber has risen drastically and the price of used cars is through the roof.
For people who were making it before the rising prices it spells bad juju. For people who were living paycheck to paycheck before prices started going up, it could easily spell doom.
The answer is pretty simple even though it may not seem possible at the moment; you fight rising prices with fire. You do what you can to save money wherever you can.
How to Save on Transportation When Gas Prices are Rising
Saving money on gas with rising gas prices might seem hard to do, but it doesn’t have to be. There are more than a few ways to save money on gasoline. Otherwise, you may end up spending far more than you need to spend. Instead, use these tips to help cut how much you’re spending at the pump.
- Earn Free Gas Cards with Swagbucks. Get free points to get you started when you sign up HERE.
2. Use a Fuel Rewards Program Like BpMe. Right now they’re offering up to $0.50 off per gallon for new members. It’s even free to sign up when you download the BP Mobile app.
3.Use store fuel points to save up to $1,000 per year on fill ups.
4. Bike or walk more often so you can drive less.
5. Keep your tires properly inflated. If you don’t already have one, carrying a tire gauge in your car can help with this.
6. Keep your engine well maintained. A properly maintained engine gets better gas mileage.
7. Slow down. Speeding or doing above 55 mph can cause your car to get lower gas mileage.
How to Save Money With Grocery Prices Going Up
Saving money on groceries might get harder with grocery prices going up but there are always ways to save money on food. The tips below will help.
8. Buy less and make more – Here are 30 ideas to get you started.
9. Learn to Fish for Your Food. Here is how much you can save.
10. Buy your food in bulk. Sam’s Club currently is offering a $45.00 gift card back when you sign up for their $45.00 membership. But before you shop, make sure buying in bulk will actually save you money.
11. Forage for your food. Morel Mushrooms are a great place to start. Dandelions are also a great wild edible for beginners to start with.
12. Buy meat only on clearance. Just be sure to freeze it immediately to reduce food waste.
13. Use a cashback rebate app. Ibotta is the one I personally use.
14. Use coupons whenever you buy something. Here are a few places to find coupons to get you started:
- Coupons.com
- Smartsource.com
- Huggies Coupons
- P&G Coupons
- On the product
- The Sunday Newspaper
- On store shelves
- In the store sales ad
15. Learn How to Preserve Foods – Learning how to can foods and how to dehydrate foods is a great way to buy on sale and preserve for later.
16. Shop grocery store sale cycles and stock up when things are on sale.
17. Stop throwing things away. Finding ways to reduce food waste is a surefire way to save money on groceries even if pries are going up.
18. Grow your own fruits and vegetables using one of the 3 most common types of gardens. Then make your own raised beds to save even more.
19. Make Use of Leftovers as lunches or meals for the following day.
20. Make your meals stretch farther by learning how to stretch meals.
21. Cook from your pantry with these pantry meals that stretch.
22. Build a frugal pantry using a few frugal pantry staples like these. Every pantry should have them.
22. Reduce the amount you’re using to stretch everything. Most people use far more than is needed.
23. Shop the sale ads and buy where things are cheapest. This is called comparison shopping.
24. Shop loss leaders and clearance finds. Stock up when you find them.
25. Ditch disposables. They are expensive and a waste of money. Move to these reusable swaps to make instead.
26. Look for Meat Combo Packs, but be sure to compare per pound price so you’re certain it’s a good deal.
27. Buy Cheaper Cuts of Meat and dress them up so no one will know.
28. Eat a meatless meal at least once a week. Eating more vegetables is healthier and will cost you just a slight bit less in meat costs.
29. Learn to Make a Menu Plan using a printable menu planner such as THIS. Stick to it once it’s made.
30. Keep a running freezer and pantry inventory using printable inventory sheets like THESE. Keep it updated weekly so you never buy something you do not need.
How to Save Money on Your Utilities When Prices are Rising
When the prices of everything else goes up, you can be that utility prices will as well. This can include your electric, natural gas, and water bills. These areas can be a bit harder to save on but it is not impossible to do. The important thing to note here is that if you do not learn how to save money on your utilities, you could very easily rack up a bill you cannot pay. Here are a few tips to help with this area of your budget.
31. Make Your Home Smart by installing smart plugs and using either a Google Home or an Echo Dot with Amazon Alexa to help you easily turn the power off to things.
32. Be mindful of phantom electric and make sure things are unplugged when not in use.
33. Take baths not showers since showers use far more water than a bath does.
34. Wash laundry later in the evening when the cost of using your power is cheaper.
35. Turn off ceiling fans when you’re not in the room. They do not cool a room when you are not in it.
36. Turn your thermostat up in the summer and down in the winter by 2°. You likely won’t notice the difference.
37. Change old thermostats out for a programmable thermostat like this one. Be sure to lock the program so others can’t play with it.
38. Time showers if you take them so water is not wasted.
39. Wash dishes only when you have a full load.
40. Only run the dishwasher when power is cheaper and be sure to use a DIY dishwasher detergent such as this one or DIY dishwasher detergent tablets like these to save even more.
41. Shut Off Lights When You Leave a Room and use a small nightlight if you desperately need a light in each room.
42. Fix leaky pipes and faucets to stop water waste.
43. Replace toilet parts if they have worn out and run constantly. The parts are fairly cheap.
44. Upgrade appliances if they are older and not Energy Star certified.
45. Get a better rate if your state allows you to choose who your electric or natural gas provider is.
Other Ways to Save Money and Beat Rising Prices
One great way to beat rising prices is by saving money in other areas of your life. Doing so will give you extra money to use in the areas that costs have gone up. If you’re having trouble making ends meet, this is a great way to free up money to go toward things like groceries and utilities.
46. Earn Free Gift Cards and use those to pay for groceries and other expenses. Here are my two favorites:
47. Slim Down Your Streaming Services to ones you actually use. In other words, don’t pay for TV and movies you are not watching. Find out how I get Hulu & Netflix Free here.
48. Get Your Spending Under Control with a program such as Simplifi Money by Quicken. Try Simplifi Money FREE for 30 days HERE.
49. Have a Yard sale to Make Extra Money. Be sure to check out my best yard sale tips HERE first though.
50. Find Expenses You Have Forgotten About by using a financial program like Tiller Money. Try Tiller Money for 30-days FREE HERE.
51. Downsize if you can to save money on your housing costs. See how I personally downsized to live in an extended stay hotel a few years ago HERE.
52 . Work to Get Your Credit Under Control so you can refinance loans you carry for a better rate. Self is a great way to do this without going broke. Check them out HERE.
53. Learn how to be prepared for an emergency so you don’t end up in a situation like I did earlier this year.
54. Reuse everything you possible can so you can avoid buying something new. Here are a few ideas to get you started:
- Ways to Reuse Old Towels
- Ways to Reuse Old Sheets
- Ways to Reuse Empty Milk Jugs
- Ways to Reuse Empty Bottles and Jars
- 36 Things You Can Reuse to Save Money
- 52 More Things You Can Reuse to Save Money
55. Find a New Way to Use Something so you can avoid buying something new. Here are a few to get you started:
- 52 Uses for Fels-Naptha Soap
- Uses for WD-40
- Uses for Clean Cat Litter
- Uses for Diatomaceous Earth
- Uses for Dawn Dish Soap
- 22 Ways to Use Kitchen Scraps
- 47 Ways to Use Old Blue Jeans
- Over 50 Ways to Use Orange and Lemon Peels
- Over 20 Ways to Use Coffee Mugs
- Over 20 Ways to Use Coffee Filters
56. Find Ways You’re Wasting Money even if you don’t realize it. Start with these 29 wasteful expenses.
57. Go without something unless it is absolutely necessary.
58. Teach Yourself Want vs. Need and buy nothing that is not a need. If you are unsure what this means, take a look at THIS post.
59. Get Extreme About Frugality with these 33 Extreme Frugality tips.
60. Start a Side Business to bring in extra money. HERE are a few ideas to get you started.
61. Learn to Barter for what you need instead of paying for it. HERE are my best tips on bartering.
62. Learn to be More Self Reliant so you are able to do for yourself and your family. Frugality and self reliance go hand in hand together as I explain HERE.
63. Raise More of What You Eat if you have room. Even backyard chickens can eventually save you money.
64. Learn to Sew your own clothes so you can avoid paying high clothing prices.
65. Repair Before You Buy New if something breaks. If you don’t know how to repair it yourself, learn.
66. Learn to Do Without more often. This is different than want vs. need. This is making the choice to do without.
67. Learn to Like New Things; especially when it comes to food, clothing and so on. You’ll have far more options for saving money if you do.
68. Purposely Live Beneath Your Means instead of trying to compete with the neighbors everyday.
69. Borrow an item you need from a family member or neighbor instead of buying a new one. Just be sure to return it in the same condition you received it in. This does not mean borrow money.
70. Have an actual budget if you don’t already. If you’re new to budgeting, HERE is a simple way to create one.
71. Don’t forget to prepare for emergencies by learning how to create a crisis budget.
72. Skip paying for entertainment and use free options such as your local park and the library instead.
73. Stop Using Your Dryer since it is the most expensive appliance you own. Drying your clothes on a clothesline is better for them anyway. If you don’t have room for a line, use a portable clothes drying rack instead.
74. Order Free Samples When You Can Find Them. It may not seem like it but they will help save you money so you can beat rising prices as they happen.
75. Always Get Cash Back for Shopping Online with cash back programs such as Rakuten (Formerly Rakuten). Not only will they give you cash back for shopping, but they’ll give you up to $10.00 in FREE cash when you shop the first time and spend $25.00! Check out Rakuten HERE.
