Frugal people share their best money-saving tips that worked for them in 2025
"We really trimmed the grocery bill this year doing this. It really helped."
Frugal people share the 23 ways they saved money in 2025.
Saving money in 2025 was no easy feat. With rising home and grocery prices, everyday life became increasingly expensive.
But frugal people made it work. They used their savvy, money-saving skills to cut heating costs, grocery bills, and more.
In a discussion on Reddit, frugal people shared how they managed to save boatloads of money in 2025. These are 23 of the most effective ways they saved money.
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"Mine was just bringing my own food to work. I didn't think it would matter that much, but not buying lunch out every day saved way more than I expected." - salamagogo
"Meal planning prioritizing what I have in my fridge that will go bad in the next few days. My food waste is way down once I started doing this." - danedori
"It's a great year for savin money. I completely stopped ordering takeout and drive-thru. Air fryer and rice cooker for the win! Brought all my own lunches. Best bonus, lost some weight, and brought down my blood pressure a couple digits." - garlicnaughts
"Biggest change that will pay dividends (eventually) that I made was upping my mortgage repayments. About 2 years in at what started as a 30-year, I am now on pace to be done in another 15. If I can shave off a couple more in the coming years and just be done in 15 years all in, would be pretty happy. Gonna save me hundreds of thousands in interest over the life of the loan." - dinkygoat
"Track my spending daily and aim for 13-18 no spend days a month. I'm ending this year with 60% No spend days and added over $1k/month to savings." - justanother1014
"I also have a list in my reminders app for upcoming bills. It's kept me home so much this month to see that I have $500 in car repairs next week so no, I don't need to go out shopping right now." - justanother1014
"Also: not logging into Amazon 😄 those little purchases really add up!" - Rowland_rowboat
"I mix black beans in with my ground beef. I use this in almost any recipe with ground beef, but mostly Mexican food which my family loves. It's wayyy cheaper and healthier. And you still get the taste of meat. You could do pinto beans or white beans as well. Also, my investment in an instant pot was great because in other beans (cheap!) and can have them ready to go in an hour." - Liza_Jane_
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"Finally got a bidet this year. Shortly after, I switched to bidet cloths. I don't even think about toilet paper anymore, though I keep a couple rolls on hand for guests. Wish I'd done it sooner." - after_tomorrow
"I signed up for a few store delivery services, two with half price specials, and a subsidized ride share program for seniors, which allowed us to go to one car. We save more money not having the second car vs. paying for the other services. Walmart+ ships free and does free return pickup, plus includes a free streaming channel, so that has been an especially nice time and money saver." - bob49877
"I bought more produce saver containers and washable silicone food storage bags so we use very few Ziploc kind of bags anymore." - bob49877
"I've started making baked potatoes from Sam's in the crockpot, just put on high for 4 hours, keeping extra in the fridge for reheating for meals for a few days. Ten pound bag, two days worth of calories, for only $3.77." - bob49877
"I switched to loose teas I use with metal tea strainers to save money and avoid plastics from regular tea bags." - bob49877
"I put as many electronic devices as feasible on power strips and reduced the electric bill by $25 a month." - bob49877
"I bought a used Kindle and ended up spending $0 on books this year thanks to Libby." - agoraphobiai
"Surprisingly, it was getting one of those budget tracking apps. I didn't think it would do much but it really shifted my mentality when I saw that I was spending 200+ on eating out everyday, and much more on entertainment than I thought." - Exotic_Caregiver_179
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"Don't accumulate clutter- a huge time and money saver. No storage lockers lingering away, no stacks of boxes in the basement. Yard sale that stuff or give it away." - Due-Kale3412
"Also- Smartphone coupons. I worked at a big corporate retail store and noticed how popular these are with younger shoppers. If a coupon is offered, use it. Some stores are all about it (Menard's, Kohl's) others won't mention them but a verifiable coupon will be honored." - Due-Kale3412
"Selling on fb marketplace. It's slow, it can be frustrating but you just keep stuff going and it can be nice." - emeraldead
"Last week of every month we do an eat down of the pantry/freezer. I will only buy absolute essentials (fresh milk, fruit) that week and get creative with everything else. It's basically cut our grocery costs by 20%." - playhookie
"Shopping at Aldi really helped my grocery budget. My budget is 250.00 every two weeks and ordering online at Kroger, it kept creeping up steadily and not leaving any room for produce or forgotten items. Now I can get a full cart of groceries at Aldi for 100-150.00 and just get my specialty items from Kroger. My fridge and pantry are definitely fuller now. We really trimmed the grocery bill this year doing this. It really helped." - LeighofMar, Rowland_rowboat
"Going out for special dates only, more expensive, less often, much more memorable, and much less average eating out." - SoggyBottomTorrija
"Making soup. Soup is pretty cheap and easy to make. I usually cook a pot each week. This week's was broccoli cheddar soup. The week before that was chicken noodle and the week before that was butternut squash soup. It's something we really enjoy and it helps save us money. Having soup in the fridge means we always have something to eat. Especially when we don't feel like cooking. So we may have it for lunch or supper or even breakfast if we don't feel like making something else." - Euphoric_War_2195