Save That Money: How to Save Money Fast and Automate It

Saving money can be hard and sometimes it feels like you’ll never get ahead. But saving money doesn’t have to be hard. We will show you how to save money fast and automate it to make the process easier and less painful.

Most of us want to save money fast, and we know how to do it. But there are ways to make saving money faster and easier.

First Thing’s First

You can’t effectively save money fast without a budget. If you don’t know how much is going out each month, you don’t know where your spending leaks are. So if you want to know how to save money fast, setting up a budget is the first step.

Some of us have several dozen spending categories to account for each month, from gym memberships to magazine subscriptions, and even those smaller expenses can add up.

That’s why having a budget is crucial. Without one, you won’t know how much you’re spending, and you’ll have an even tougher time identifying opportunities to cut back. On the other hand, if you list all of your expenses line by line and total them up, the numbers won’t lie.

“You’ll see exactly where your money is going, and from there, you can find ways to free up cash to increase your savings.”

Here’s an updated version of your sentence to reflect the information:

Go to Monarch Money and create an account. It’s easy to use, and while there’s a free trial period, a subscription is required after the trial ends. Once you have at least a month’s worth of data in your account, take a look and see where you are bleeding money.

The Nuclear Option

Monarch Money is a fantastic tool for managing your finances, but it won’t prevent overspending on its own. If you’re using Monarch Money for budgeting and still find yourself going over your limits, it might be time to consider a more aggressive budgeting strategy that could better suit your financial needs.

The envelope system can help you save money fast when other budgeting methods have failed you. The envelope system is straightforward.

For any budget category where cash can be used, label an envelope with the category name. While this approach won’t work for fixed expenses like rent, mortgage, or utilities, these aren’t typically the areas where overspending happens.

You allocate a certain amount of money for each category for the week or the month. Take the total amount of money out in cash and divide it between the envelopes. So if your food budget for the month is $100, you put $100 in the “Food” envelope. You put $50 in the “Gas” envelope and so on.

When an envelope is empty of cash, you are done spending in that category for the month. That’s it.

This method may not be ideal as a long-term solution since spending cash removes the protections offered by credit and debit cards. Additionally, if cash is lost, there’s no way to recover it. However, when it comes to building discipline and staying within budget, the envelope method is highly effective.

Want to get your money under control?

This is our guide to budgeting simply and effectively. We walk you through exactly how to use Mint, what your budget should be, and how to monitor your spending automatically.

Get the Course

Cutting Spending

Once you see your monthly transactions, there are some easy things you can do to cut spending. Whether it’s at the grocery or around the house, if you want to save money fast, you have to cut down on spending.

The Usual Suspects:

These are common areas where overspending occurs. Fortunately, they are also among the easiest categories to reduce spending.

Food

This is a big one. Most of us spend way more than we need to for food whether it’s groceries or eating out. You can quickly cut down your grocery budget by meal planning, using a slow cooker to batch cook, and eating everything in your kitchen before bringing any more food into the house.

Everyone has miscellaneous items around the house that haven’t been used. By entering a few ingredients into SuperCook, you can receive recipe suggestions based on what’s available. Alternatively, turn it into a fun, chopped-style challenge and create a dish using your imagination.

Bring your lunch to work. Cook a double batch at dinner and bring the leftovers, buy frozen dinners when they are on sale, and leave them in your office kitchen. Even a loaf of bread and a jar of peanut butter on your desk is a start.

Of course, you are going to want to go out to eat once in a while, and we want you to. Remember, this is supposed to be how to save money fast and painlessly. So the next time you want to eat out, go to Seated and make a reservation.

When you complete a reservation through the Seated app and meet the required minimum spend, you can earn an e-gift card valued between $10 and $50. These rewards can be redeemed at places like Amazon, Lyft, or Starbucks. If you choose the Amazon gift card, you can even use it to order ingredients for your next meal directly from Amazon.

Drinks

Having a drink while dining out definitely adds to the fun, but bar tabs can get pricey fast. One of the best ways to save on drinks is by hitting up BYOB (Bring Your Own Beverage) spots. These restaurants let you bring your own drinks, helping you skip the inflated bar prices.

Plus, you can always search for drink specials or happy hour deals at other places to keep things affordable. BYOB restaurants are a great way to enjoy a full night out without blowing your budget on the bar bill.

If it’s coffee or sugary drinks you are spending money on; you know the drill.

Make coffee at home, and buy a coffee pot for your office, if your office has coffee, but you don’t like it, buy coffee you do like and brew it. Doing that is still cheaper than buying it out once or twice a day.

If you drink sodas, don’t buy them individually. Buy them in cases which is cheaper and keep them in the fridge at work. Or better yet, drink water!

Your Phone

Turns out you don’t need to overpay for cell service—it’s time to slash your phone bill. Ting offers affordable plans on major carrier networks like T-Mobile and Verizon, providing the same coverage as the big carriers but with a much lower price tag. With plans starting at $10/month, the average Ting bill is around $26 per phone, making it an excellent option for saving on mobile costs without sacrificing quality service.

Shopping

Getting automated refund checks is an easy way to get back money that stores often owe but won’t give unless requested. Stores frequently adjust prices or offer refunds, so staying on top of your purchases and policies can help you claim these refunds and save money.

When you join Swagbucks, you can get cash back when you buy online from more than 1,500 retailers including places you probably already shop like Amazon, Target, and Starbucks. You earn points for each dollar you spend and also get special coupons and deals exclusive to their shoppers.

Nearly 80% of Americans shop online and the majority cite cost as a more significant reason than convenience. If it’s already cheaper to shop online, why not make it even cheaper?

When you do have to buy something, consider buying it used. Of course, you don’t want to buy things like mattresses or underwear used, but there is nothing wrong with buying used appliances, tools, dishes, books, and a million other things you can find at thrift stores and yard sales.

Subscriptions

Cushion helps track and manage recurring charges like gym memberships and subscription services, but it doesn’t automatically cancel them for you. Instead, it identifies these charges from your linked bank accounts and credit cards, listing them for review. You can then decide which subscriptions to cancel manually.

Cushion also offers features to help avoid fees, track bills, and manage payments, but cancellation actions must be handled by you.

Services

You’re likely overpaying for services like cable, internet, and cell phone plans, but negotiating for a better price can be time-consuming and frustrating. Comparison shopping is a hassle, and spending time on hold to negotiate can be even worse.

Many people avoid this process altogether, even though they could save significantly by shopping around or negotiating better deals. Fortunately, tools and services like bill negotiation apps can take the hassle out of this process, helping you lower your bills without spending hours on the phone.

With Rocket Money, you don’t have to deal with negotiating bills yourself. They handle it for you, and if they save you money, you pay a small fee based on your savings. Simple and hassle-free!

Debt

Interest is one of the biggest costs in life. To save money quickly, focus on lowering interest rates on your debt through refinancing, consolidation, or negotiating better terms with lenders.

Student Loan Debt

If you have student loan debt, chances are you could lower your interest rate by refinancing. Credible can show you new; lower interest rate offers in just a few minutes.

Credit Card Debt

Credit card debt is really putting a crimp in your ability to save money fast because the interest rate is so high, typically in the mid-teens but sometimes going into the 20s.

If your credit score is strong enough, you can be approved for a balance transfer card with a 0% APR period, which can last up to 21 months. Cards like the Citi Simplicity® Card and Wells Fargo Reflect® Card offer this extended period, giving you ample time to pay down your debt without accruing interest.

Just be sure to watch for balance transfer fees, which typically range from 3% to 5% of the amount transferred. This can be a smart strategy to save on interest and pay off debt faster.

Make sure to pay off the balance before the 0% APR period ends. If you don’t, the remaining balance will be charged the regular interest rate, which could be higher than the rate on your old card. This can lead to unexpected costs if you’re not careful.

If your credit score isn’t good enough to be approved for a balance transfer card, call up your credit card companies and ask for a lower interest rate. If you get a “No,” wait a day or two and try again. You’re not going to get the same rep twice.

The company may never agree, but it’s worth the two-minute phone call to find out.

Around the House

We have covered a ton of ways you can save money around the house.

It’s expensive to run the AC all summer. These are some ways to stay cool without getting a triple-digit electric bill.

You don’t need to buy a hundred different expensive, not to mention toxic, products to keep your house clean and smelling nice.

If something in your home breaks down, you might be able to fix it yourself instead of paying for an expensive repair or buying a replacement. For example, if your dishwasher is leaking, try Googling “leaking dishwasher” to diagnose the issue. Once you’ve identified the problem, check YouTube for a step-by-step tutorial to guide you through the repair.

It’s worth a try, as many small fixes can be done without professional help. While some issues will still need a professional or a replacement, attempting a DIY fix first could save you time and money. Just be sure to assess the situation carefully and know when it’s best to call in the pros.

Fun Stuff

Saving money doesn’t mean you never get to do anything fun. But you do have to be more creative when planning outings. Lots of us fall back on dinner and drinks when we want to socialize, which can get expensive.

Dates

You don’t have to spend a lot of money to woo your significant other. We have you covered with these fun, cheap date ideas. These are all fun things to do with a friend too.

Valentine’s Day

Don’t let this Hallmark Holiday bust your savings goals. We found a lot of inexpensive ways to celebrate.

Christmas

You probably have a long list of people you have to buy presents for. We’ve found some DIY gifts that you can make yourself inexpensively. And they are cute, not something like macaroni noodles glued to construction paper.

These are things people will use and enjoy receiving.

Get a Hobby

Got some free time and don’t want to spend money? Pick up a cheap hobby! Try filling out surveys on Survey Junkie — it’s a fun way to pass the time and even make a bit of extra cash.

The answer is a hobby, something you enjoy doing and that doesn’t cost much to fill your time. Fill out surveys at Survey Junkie which will not only give you something to do but make you a little money too!

Start a blog about a subject you’re interested in. There isn’t much start-up cost to do so, it’s fun and who knows? Your blog might earn you a few bucks (or more!).

lasso ref=”survey-junkie” id=”49605″]

Automating Saving

We all have good intentions when it comes to saving money, but we don’t always follow through. That’s why automating saving is so important; it takes the decision out of your hands. The system is in place to help you save money, so you don’t have to think about it. Make it easy on yourself with these ways to automate saving.

M1 Finance

If you’re struggling to save money, you’re probably not investing either, but it’s important to start. The earlier you invest, the more time your money has to grow, and there’s no way to make up for lost time. Even small contributions can have a big impact over time.

M1 Finance’s Smart Transfers program offers flexibility in automating your savings and investments. You can set up rules to automatically transfer extra money from your checking account into your investment account whenever your balance exceeds a set amount.

For example, you could cut unnecessary expenses from your budget and then set Smart Transfers to invest that extra money automatically. This way, your savings grow effortlessly, and you’re constantly putting your money to work without needing to manage transfers manually.

Acorns

Acorns is an app that automates your saving by investing your spare change. You connect your credit cards, they give you portfolio recommendations, and each time you spend, Acorns rounds up to the nearest dollar and invests that amount for you. Simple!

Oportun

If you’re looking for an easy way to save, Oportun (formerly Digit) makes it simple by automatically setting aside small amounts of money based on your financial habits. It analyzes your income, spending, and bills, then transfers extra money to your savings account when it determines you can afford it. The exact transfer amounts vary depending on your personal finances, ensuring the process fits your lifestyle.

The money is stored in an FDIC-insured account, protecting your savings up to $250,000. Keep in mind that there is a $5 monthly fee after the trial period, but for many, the ease of automated savings makes it worth the cost.

401k

For many people, a 401k is their first experience with investing, and it’s an easy way to save (if your employer offers one). Contributions come straight out of your paycheck before you even see the money, so you’re saving automatically. Plus, if your employer matches your contributions, that’s extra money going toward your retirement.

What you don’t see, you can’t spend, making automatic 401k contributions a smart move. But be mindful of the fees in your 401k, as high fees can eat into your savings. Use tools like Empower’s fee analyzer to check your plan. Ideally, fees should be under 1%; anything higher can significantly impact your long-term savings. Keep your retirement on track by regularly reviewing and optimizing your plan.

The Right Card

When you choose the right credit card, it can help automate your savings. A cashback card gives you a small percentage back on every dollar you spend. The Blue Cash Everyday® Card from American Express is a great option for groceries, offering 3% cash back on purchases at U.S. supermarkets, up to $6,000 per year. After that, you still earn 1% cashback. It’s a simple way to save money on everyday purchases.

The PenFed Platinum Rewards Visa Signature® Card is an excellent choice for earning rewards on gas. You get 5x points on gas purchases, making it ideal for frequent drivers. Additionally, you earn 3x points at supermarkets, including Target, Walmart, and restaurants, plus 1x points on other purchases. With no annual fee and a 15,000-point bonus after spending $1,500 in the first 90 days, this card is perfect for maximizing everyday rewards.

The Fidelity Rewards Visa Signature® Card offers 2% cash back on all purchases when deposited into an eligible Fidelity account, like a brokerage, IRA, or 529 plan. With no annual fee, caps, or category restrictions, it’s a smart way to automate saving and investing through your everyday spending, making it ideal for those already using Fidelity for financial g

It’s Not Easy, But it is Simple

Saving money isn’t rocket science. You just need to spend less, simple but not easy. With all of the technology available to us, it’s easier than ever. We don’t have to clip coupons or call up our cable company and ask for a better deal.

Technology has made saving money easier than ever. You can automate savings, track spending, and set up transfers without ever going to the bank. It’s fast, painless, and all done from your phone or computer, making saving effortless.

You don’t need a stockbroker to invest anymore. With tools like M1 Finance, you can easily manage and automate your investments on your own, and it’s cost-effective. If you want to save and invest quickly, just log in and set everything up in minutes.

Show Notes

ZipCar:  Don’t have a car? Don’t want a car? Join this awesome car-sharing service.

Groupon & Living Social: Group buying coupon site. Get random stuff for at least half off, like restaurants.

Netflix & Hulu: Online movies and TV shows for just $8 a month each. Ditch cable and get one or both these packages.