There are a lot of practical and simple ways to save money every single day.

1. Coupons. BUT, only cut out coupons for products that you use, and toss the ones for junk food, you don't need them and that is just a manufacturers ploy to get you to spend money on something you don't need. This also goes for other products that you don't need and won't use. Keep the money in your pocket instead of putting a useless product in the cabinet.

2. Make grocery lists and stick to it. Too often we end up with stuff that's not on our list. Which brings me to...

3. Avoid impulse buying. You know those displays of candy and chips in the grocery aisles? And worse those candy bars at the checkout. Even the price of a candy bar adds up.

4. Go to the store once a week and make all your purchases at once. This helps in two ways, you won't end up buying things you don't need, and you will use less gas.

5. Use grocery club cards, it only takes a view minutes to fill out a form and it's free, and adds up to savings on your grocery bill.

6. Check cards are a wonderful thing, and most banks now have reward points, if you use a check card, sign up for the reward points, again it's free and those points add up to dollars.

7. Buy generic or store brand items. A little known fact, most 'off' brands are manufactured by the same companies as name brands.

8. Buy in bulk when you can, most items are cheaper per pound when you buy more.

9. Don't bounce checks. One check usually turns into a dominoe effect and at bank fees these days that turns into big bucks out of your pocket.

10. Pay more than the minimum amount due on credit, even five dollars a month extra reduces what you pay out in interest and finance charges.

11. Better yet, don't use credit, especially for grocery or health and beauty aids, otherwise any money you saved using coupons or buying sale items gets eaten up by interest and finance charges.

12. Look for free samples, manufacturers often offer free samples to get you to try their products.

13. Maintain vehicles to avoid costly repairs down the line. Regular oil changes and maintainance can save you a lot of money.

14. Maintain home appliances. Vacuum dust and dirt off of electrical elements, they will run more efficiently and last longer.

15. The same goes for your computer, remove the cover and blow out the dust and debris that has a tendency to collect inside.

16. When you write checks for bills, round up the change to the next dollar amount in your ledger, these pennies add up at the end of the year.

17. Instead of buying books, take advantage of the library. If you must buy books, search out flea markets and used book stores, where you can get books at a fraction of the cost. Some used book stores even take books in trade for 'new' books.

18. When looking for certain items to purchase, look online and compare with in store prices. I recently bought a new camera online and saved $110.00 dollars by purchasing it online .

There are many other ways to save money everyday, it just takes some thought and common sense.

Learn more about this author, D. Begole.
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