10 things to buy that will save you money
It sounds counter-intuitive but even when you’re doing your best to be frugal and save, the most efficient thing to do is spend money — on quality everyday items. Here are 10 things to buy that will save you money in the future.
A simple coffee maker
If your local barista charges you $4 for a skinny cap, tell ’em you’re dreaming. Coffea Coffee sells $33 Bialetti espresso makers online — this means you could be saving hundreds of dollars each year by making your own coffees at home. Plus you won’t be tempted by those white chocolate and raspberry muffins anymore.
A travel mug
Giving up your [twice] daily skinny caps may be a bit of stretch but saving money on them, and the environment with them, doesn’t have to be.
Investing in a reusable coffee cup will set you back as little as $14, and with all the cafes offering discounts of up to 50c per hot bev in metro cities, you’ll have it paid off within the month, and can even save yourself up to $100 a year if you’re a regular coffee drinker.
A bike
Public transport prices in Australia are nothing short of an abomination. If you caught PT to and from work every weekday in Melbourne for 48 weeks ($8.10 return each day), you’d rack up a total spend of $1,944 a year (that’s excluding all those weekend shopping trips to Melbourne Central).
If you purchased a brand new mid-range road bike for $299, you’d save yourself a whopping $1,645 a year and pay it off in only eight working weeks, plus you’d be doing your body a world of good.
Phone screen protector
The best thing you can ever do for your wallet is slap a quality screen protector on your phone. These days a screen replacement on an iPhone 7 will cost you at least $169, and that’s if the LCD screen is still working. Unfortunately, with every new iPhone release, the screens become more flimsy and fragile. There’s basically a 99.99% chance that you will drop your phone at some point, without a $19 tempered glass screen protector, that glass is going to shatter faster than a plate at a Greek wedding.
A clothes horse
It’s no secret that Australia has the highest power prices in the world, which means using less of it is a pretty obvious hot tip, but it could save you buckets nonetheless. One way you can throw your next power bill to the curb this month is by investing in a clothes horse. These genius devices will set you back $6 a pop at Kmart and last for years, which means you could be saving multiple years worth of clothes dryer running costs.
A quality water bottle with an inbuilt filter
With bottled water up around $4 dollars a pop and inbuilt filter bottles at as little as $19, you can literally pay it off in less than five instances of you popping into 7Eleven for a Pump Water. Better yet, Bobble’s $19 bottle equates to 300 bottles of water which, after paying off your bottle, means you can save up to $1,180.
A book that teaches you about budgeting
Now this one is priceless. A book like Scott Pape’s Barefoot Investor can see you save tens of thousands of dollars over the course of a single meal. His book has saved heaps of Australians a bucketload through tips on getting rid of debt, earning more from your banks and growing your wealth through investing. At $21.93, this book could save you a tonne in the long run.
Light efficient bulbs
Getting back to doing your bit for the environment, regular light bulbs are another item that are happy to help, in addition to skyrocketing your power bills. Light efficient bulbs are an eco-friendly alternative that cost a little more upfront than incandescent light bulbs but are more durable, longer lasting and less draining on your power bill. LED lights use 85% less energy and can last for up to twenty years.
A battery recharger
Unsurprisingly, there are a lot of things in your home (and your home office) that use batteries — TV remotes, alarm clocks, keyboards, cameras, electric toothbrushes and torches, just to name a few. Fortunately, you can avoid paying the steep price for replacement batteries each time by instead getting your money’s worth from your batteries and investing in a wall socket charger.
A desk stash
Finally, office workers can save a bucketload by keeping a snack stash in their desk drawer during the week. Next time you’re doing the weekly supermarket shop, pick out a few treats (some healthy and wholesome, some not so much) and tuck them away at your desk at work. What costs you $20 upfront on a Sunday night could end up saving you a heap during the week.
Already own all of these everyday cash savers? Here are 10 things to cut from your budget every week that’ll save you even more money.
Originally published at Clover Blog.
