Being smart with our money just makes sense. However, are we doing the best we can. Many of us don’t realize that there are ways to save on just about everything. Sadly, many still pay full price when there are simple ways you can save!
Check out these 20 things for which you should never pay full price!
1. Magazines. Never purchase a magazine from the store and pay the retail price. You can use a site such as Discount Mags (use the code PENNYPINCH to save 20% more off of any title).
If you can’t find a deal on the title you want to renew, don’t sign up when they send the notice. Wait until they reach out at least 2 – 3 times as they will start to discount the cost – just to get you to sign up once again!
2. Clothes. The trick to getting the best deal on your clothes is to shop off-season. Purchase your clothes when they go on clearance. For instance, spring clothes hit stores in January of each year, so you can pick up those few winter items at deep discounts.
Make sure you also sign up at the store’s website as they will often send out coupons and/or coupon codes. You will be able to use these either in the store or on-line.
One final way to find great deals on clothes is to shop consignment stores. You might be surprised at the items that end up on the shelves — sometimes with the price tag still attached!
3. Books. We all know about the library for checking out books, but you can often find them for FREE for your e-reader (such as a Kindle). There are always thousands of titles available for free.
If you have an Amazon Prime membership, you also have access to the lending library, which allows you to borrow books – right on your Kindle (or the Kindle app).
Read more: 10 Ways to Get Free or Cheap Books.
4. Groceries. You can easily use coupons towards the purchase of items you need to buy (but don’t buy something simply because you have a coupon). You can also watch for clearance items (yes, even grocery stores offer food on clearance).
Make sure you are signed up for your store’s rewards card as they may send out member exclusive offers as well, which increases your savings even further.
5. Dinner out. There are some simple ways to save on your next meal. You can sign up at the restaurant’s website and often get coupons or offers sent to you. You can also purchase discounted certificates online at Restaurant.com or vouchers at sites such as GroupOn.
6. Tickets. Don’t run to the box office to purchase your next set of concert or sporting event tickets. Check out a site such as StubHub to find tickets at a discount. Be very careful about people selling them on sites such as Craigslist, as those could be fakes.
7. Gift Cards. Never run right to the retailer to purchase gift cards. Instead, check out online discount sites, such as Raise.com. You can find high value cards and vouchers at discounted prices.
8. Toothbrushes. This may sound crazy, but it’s true! There are so many deals on them all of the time that you can usually score a great deal. Or, just continue with a six month check up with your dentist and you’ll get a new free toothbrush each and every visit.
9. Flowers. If you the type of person who loves fresh flowers (to give or even to just have in your home), you might want to grow your own garden. For the cost of a few seeds, you can have fresh flowers whenever you would like. If you want to send them to someone, try to go local and don’t go online to send them. Also, if you stick to one type of flower instead of several varieties, you might also knock a bit off of the purchase price.
10. Vacation/Travel. Don’t run to a travel agent to book your vacation. Do the work yourself. For instance, check out HomeAway for a discount on lodging and PriceLine to find the best deal on your hotel. You can also find discount admission tickets to venues and attractions when you use GroupOn.
11. Movie rentals. As much as on demand is great, you do pay more than you would if you got up and drove to your nearest RedBox location. You can even score free movies by checking them out at your local library. Of course, the library will not have the newest release, but watching old movies can be fun (especially when introducing some of your favorites to your kids).
12. Vehicles. Don’t ever walk up to a car salesman without having first done your homework. Do your research on KBB.com to know the value of the car. Don’t be afraid to negotiate and be willing to walk away if the deal doesn’t work for you. I once told a salesman I was leaving over a payment which was $5 above the maximum I wanted to spend. Let’s just say that I was able to drive that car for years!
13. Furniture. What many people do not realize is that you can sometimes negotiate the price of furniture. It may not always happen, but it is worth asking. My #1 tip for this is to make sure you have cold hard cash, as that seems to help sway them to want to work with you even more.
14. Car insurance. Take a minute and make a few calls and you might be able to lower your rates. If you like your current provider, go in for an insurance audit. This will ensure that you have the right amount of coverage and they may be able to even find you a discount. We recently did this and with our increased credit score, we moved into a preferred platform, which saved us hundreds of dollars each year.
15. Sports gear. No need to buy new (especially if it is for your child). Check out used equipment on sites such as Craigslist or LetGo. You can also visit stores such as PlayItAgainSports as they sell used equipment (and will also purchase items you might have).
Learn how to make our sports gear box for storing your favorite items.
16. Appliances. The trick here, can be to purchase at the right time. Our When To Buy Everything list can help you know when to plan for your purchase. The trick can be to purchase your appliances at the time the newer models are coming out, as that means the prior year will be sold at a discount. Make sure you ask if they have any scratch and dent models as those can be sold at steep discounts. Finally, do your homework and see if your store will price match in order to get you to buy from them instead of a competitor.
17. Video Games. Unless you are one of those “I need to have it now” video gamers, you can usually wait for a while to play the newest game. Check out stores such as GameStop where you can buy and sell video games.
18. Technology. While it is fun to own the latest gadgets, they do come at quite a cost. One simple way to always save is to purchase refurbished. Refurbished just means someone purchase and then returned it to the store. It doesn’t mean used. Make sure you pass on the warranty and you might look into even selling your old gadgets for money!
19. Water. You already pay for water to come into your home. Instead of paying for bottles, just fill up your own reusable bottles yourself! You can even fill several and keep them in your refrigerator so they are chilled when you need that cool drink.
20. Car rentals. Don’t run right to the rental company website when you need to book at car. Instead, book online with a coupon code or discount. One of my favorite ways to save on these is with RetailMeNot. They have thousands of codes available at your finger tips. Make sure you check out out other ways to save money when renting at car.
20 Things For Which You Should Never Pay Full Price
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