10 Experts Share Their Tips to Reduce Your Monthly Outgoings

If you’ve been looking for ways to make your money go further each month, a good tactic is to first take a look at your current expenses. Earning more money is, of course, a guaranteed way to have more each month – but what if you could free up some extra cash in your budget just by cutting down on your outgoings?

MoneyTransfers.com asked a range of personal finance experts their top tips to reducing your monthly outgoings to save more money. Here’s what they said:

1. Buy Generic Brand Alternatives

Forrest McCall, personal finance expert and owner of the finance blog Don’t Work Another Day, advises that “one of the fastest and easiest ways to save money on your grocery bill is by buying generic alternatives. These products often cost around 15% to 20% less than their name brand counterparts and are of similar quality (often manufactured in the same plants).”

That means buying supermarket’s own-brand products (from pasta to biscuits) instead of the beloved brands we often see in adverts. When it all boils down to it, the product itself is almost identical.

2. Plan Your Meals

Carl Jenson, financial and Management consultant and the founder of Money Mow, says “preparing my meals is far less expensive than ordering takeout or eating out. I save money on food by making wise judgments at the grocery store.”

It can be a good idea to develop a grocery list and design your meals so you can buy bargain items in bulk and cut rising food bills this way. Jenson adds, “I make sure I utilise all of my groceries once I’ve purchased them. Make your breakfast, pack a lunch for the day, and prepare your own dinner. 

Make use of your freezer and store unwanted food inside before it spoils, reducing waste and allowing you to save food for future meals. Meal planning ahead of time might help you save money on groceries each month.”

3. Reduce Your Energy Consumption

Michael Ryan, financial planner and owner of Michael Ryan Money suggests that “one way to save money is to be more mindful of your energy consumption. This can be as simple as turning off lights when you leave a room or making sure to unplug appliances when they’re not in use. You can also save on your energy bill by making sure your home is well insulated.”

With energy bills rising higher than ever right now, this is a point to be especially mindful of – even small changes can make a big difference to your  bills. Make sure you’re aware of the most expensive appliances in your home to avoid big bills.

4. Cut Down Food Waste

Kari Lorz, a Certified Financial Education Instructor, and founder at MoneyfortheMamas.com advises people to “have a plan for older fruit. Freezing fruit that is just a tad past its prime is a great way to reduce food waste and get a healthy smoothie later on. Think of bananas, berries, mangos, pears, peaches, etc,” she says.

To add some perspective, approximately 108 billion pounds of food is estimated to be wasted in the United States alone – equating to more than $408bn in food waste and over 130 billion meals sent straight into the bin each year.  

Lorz also suggests looking at food expiration dates. She adds, “look at the item at the front of the shelf, and at the item at the back of the shelf. You can gain 5-10 days of use by using this one trick before it goes bad.”

5. Cancel Unnecessary Subscriptions

Forgotten subscriptions can be a huge drain on your monthly outgoings. How many free trials have you signed up for only to forget and end up paying the monthly subscription for a service you barely use? Johannes, Founder & CEO at Financer.com, recommends ending all the unnecessary subscriptions. 

He advises looking at services such as “extra cable services, Wifi services at home when you’re actually spending 8+ hours in the office, and any other type of subscription which doesn’t add any value to your life!”

6. Prioritise Social Outings And Events

Lars Koch, Finance Specialist at Kredit Finanz Check, advises people looking to save money each month to “rank your most important events and outings this year. Detail the cost. List the pros and cons of doing each activity. Choose only the one or two things that mean the most to you. Keep the others on a bucket list for next year. Things will get better, but right now inflation has everyone staying close to home.”

7. Take Advantage Of Discounts

Samantha Hawrylack, personal finance expert and co-founder of How To FIRE, suggests utilising the different discounts available to you when shopping. 

She comments, “are you an educator? Government worker or contractor? Belong to a specific organisation? If so, you may be able to reap the benefits of discounts. Research places that offer discounts and plan to make a stop there!”

8. Audit Current Expenses

Kevin Martin from WealthPursuits.com, says that when cutting down his monthly outgoings, he always starts by auditing his existing expenses. “I look at all of my expenses and start categorising them as necessary or unnecessary. For “unnecessary” expenses, I either eliminate them entirely or reduce the overall spend for a category,” he says.

For example, if you discover you’re paying $50 for a certain service, he says, you might consider bringing down that expense to something more within your budget.

9. Consider Using Cash

Spending cash to reduce your outgoings may sound counterintuitive, but as Chris Panteli from LifeUpswing.com advises, “the more you use plastic, the more you spend. When you are in a shop and you have cash you will probably be more careful, weighing whether you can afford it, whereas with plastic, it feels like it’s free. If you are paid cash you will be able to see where the money is going and you will be able to prioritise between the things you need and the things that you want.”

A popular budgeting method that relates to this is creating envelope wallets – each envelope containing the specific amount of cash you are setting aside for certain expenses each month. These expense categories could cover bills, rent, debt repayments, transport costs, eating out, and entertainment – all divided out into separate envelopes for the month.

10. Use the Best Money Transfer Provider

If a part of your monthly outgoings includes sending money internationally (for example, as remittance payments to family abroad or perhaps to pay for services from a global company), you may be losing a significant portion of your money to transfer fees and high exchange rates.

Our comparison engine helps you to find the very best transfer provider for your needs, taking price, speed, payment options, reviews, and more into the equation tailored specifically to your needs.