How to Shop cheaper.

Shopping, save money on bills, clear your debts.
Saving money on your shopping.

How to shop cheaper: Always check the price labels.

How to shop cheaper.

When shopping, always check the price labels on products. Bulk packs of beans or cereals, for example, are not always cheaper than buying them separately so Always check the labels. Especially the price to weight ratio which can usually be found on the shelf below the product. If it's not there take the item to the till point and ask for them to be checked. Alternatively, you can price check it yourself on the self-serve tills which now seem to be in most supermarkets.

Shopping: Two for Ones.

Two for ones are another good way to shop cheaper. I know that variety's the spice of life but sacrifices will need to be made. Talk to your friends. If you find you have similar tastes in foods or can adapt your diet you may be able to go halves on the costs thus reducing your weekly shopping bill and feeding two families for the price of one. Some families are now already doing this.

Shop cheaper by always checking the reduced isles.

Check the reduced displays on the ends of some of the aisles, sometimes there are items that you can freeze and use at a later date. Other items you can plan a meal around and use straight away.

If you have the means try bulk buying your frozen foods. Not only is it more economical, but it also saves electricity as a well-stocked freezer uses less energy than a partially stocked one.

Hang on to your shopping bags.

Do not throw away your shopping bags. As most supermarkets now charge for any shopping bags they provide, another great way to shop cheaper is to reuse as many money bags as you can.

Some supermarkets also offer money off fuel depending on what you spend in-store so it might be worthwhile checking some supermarkets out to see who has the best deals and offer the best incentives.

Check out your local market stalls as market traders tend to have fewer overheads, therefore you may be able to buy their produce for less.

Cut down on Waste.

Keep an eye on what you eat and what you waste. Children are notorious for wasting food.

If you find that you throw away food on a regular basis then you can reduce the size of the meals or cut down on your next shopping trip.

Shopping in Charity shops.

Start shopping in charity shops. Believe it or not, you can get some good quality clothing and other bits and pieces at a greatly reduced price. Its surprising what some people give to charity shops. With the advent of eBay, this has become a little more competitive as a lot of people are trying to sell their unwanted items themselves for pocket change or to subsidise their income. You will need to find out on what days the charity shops receive and display their new stock or check the shops on a regular basis in order to grab a bargain. Obviously, if you don't live within walking distance of your local charity shops this could be a false economy as you will probably spend more on travel and parking than you actually save.

Shopping on Ebay.

Look on eBay yourself. Ebay is another way to shop cheaper, although I do advise that you spend wisely. There are alot of cheaper products forsale but unfortunately some are not what they seem. We have been using eBay for years to buy clothes and football boots and have seldom been disappointed as most genuine sellers take a pride in what they sell. Always check the seller's feedback and don't be afraid to contact a buyer via email to find out if they were happy with their purchase. Some ignore you, others reply.

I do have to say however that since the postal service altered its charges it is getting a lot harder to grab a bargain on eBay on bulk clothing which we usually purchased, as the postage puts the price right up.

Save money by having a clear out.

With the above said, how about checking your wardrobes and drawers, maybe look in your shed or garage to see if there is anything you don't want any more than you may be able to sell. After all one man's waste is another man's treasure and every little penny helps. Keep your eye on eBay for cheap or bulk listing days. The best time I've found to list on eBay is Thursday evenings around 7:00 pm as this will give you the benefit of two full weekends which is when most people have time to search for things.

We have recently had a clear out of all our old toys, games and junk. My partner wanted to throw most of it out as she saw it as rubbish and was adamant that nobody else would want it.

In total we managed to sell over half of the stuff and raised over £150.00 in the process. Always remember that one man's waste is another man's treasure. eBay does take time when listing your item and can be a little testing and tedious at times but sometimes it is time well spent.

There are also sites similar to eBay that you can use to shop cheaper. Examples such as Preloved, Gumtree, and more recently Shpock the boot sale app, where you can get rid of or get hold of items for free and no CeX.

How to save money when-Shopping and Travelling.

Most, although I appreciate not all of us, own a car. This following section although brief is aimed at those of us who own at least one or two cars.

As mentioned previously fuel prices are allways rising at a ridiculous rate despite the drop in prices we all experienced that was alas all to brief.
In fact having recently been on a long journey with the family I was amazed at the lottery, and I'm afraid that is about the only word I could find in my limited vocabulary, to describe the various prices displayed on garage forecourts for fuel at the moment.

Nowadays it is almost imperative that one, if not both, parents own a car. One of us, if not both, have to work in order to provide an income to support our families. Its estimated that the average annual mileage per car in the UK is around 20,000. That's a lot of fuel we have to pay for and so its imperative that we travel as economically as we can. With this in mind here are a few ideas to help lower the cost of running your car.

If you can afford it, get your car serviced.

Save money by regularly checking your tyre pressures.

Keep a regular check on your tyres and tyre pressures, correctly inflated tyres will reduce fuel consumption.

Check oil levels, washer fluid, your air filter ( make sure it's clean) and the overall performance of your car. Small repairs are normally cheaper to fix than big ones. Although with most modern cars you will need to take it to a garage if there is a problem.

When taking your car to the garage make sure you check their labour charges first. Small family run business's can charge up to half of an established dealer. From my own experience I took the family car to a certain well-known car manufacturers dealership for an MOT. I was then stunned when I was charged over £25-00 to change a light bulb that cost £0-65p. When I complained they informed me that they charged £75-00ph were as the garage my parents used only charged £40-00ph and do just as good a job.

How to shop cheaper.

Using your car.

Get in your car, start it up and drive away immediately.

Watch your speed!! It's so easy to speed. Half the time we don't even realise we're speeding until we receive the notification through our letter box. Its alot to pay out when your on a tight budget. Not to mention the 3 points you could find on your driving  license. If you choose not to take the option of taking a day off work to visit your local driving centre for a refresher course on how to drive safely.

When stuck in traffic put your car in neutral and keep the engine revs down, or switch off.

Avoid braking suddenly and pull away smoothly and try not to over-rev the engine. You could reduce your fuel consumption by up to 30%

Avoid driving flat out in all gears. This greatly increases fuel consumption.

If your cars fitted with air conditioning, try to only use it when you really need it. Using the air conditioning can increase fuel consumption by up to 14%

Check your boot. If its full of junk empty it as extra weight means extra fuel.

Save money on the motorway.

If you do a lot of Motorway driving try dropping your speed by 10mph. Doing this could save you up to £0-40p for every 10 miles you drive.

If your cars fitted with cruise control start using it on long journeys.

Keep your windows closed when driving over 40mph, as drag costs fuel.

Try to keep your travelling to a minimum by avoiding any unnecessary trips. If your just popping down the road why not walk?

Shop for cheaper car insurance. Spend a little time seeking out the best car insurance deals, there are plenty out there if you look.

Also when insuring your kids to drive you can reduce the cost by naming yourself as a driver.