Reduce Expenses and Have Fun

We found 10 simple ways to reduce expenses that helped us pay off $51,000 in credit card debt in less than three years. If they worked for us, they’d work for you.

Note: This article contains affiliate links. This means we’ll receive a small commission at no cost to you if you buy items through these links. We only recommend products that we use or have thoroughly vetted and would recommend to our moms.

We had no choice but to reduce expenses

When we had our “Come to Jesus” moment and realized we were on a collision course to bankruptcy, we knew we needed to reduce expenses. As John always said, “We gotta stop the bleeding.”

We wanted our lives to still be fun, though. Duh! Instead of cutting out all our fun, we tried to reduce expenses in few categories, some big some small. We thought we were stiff curmudgeons. If we can make these changes, you can make these changes. If you can make these changes, too, you can also become debt free like us.

Reduce expenses, like wine

We love wine! We hosted a game night recently, and our friends brought a few bottles of excellent wine. After we had finished them, we were tempted to tap into our wine collection for more expensive better wine.

Cooler heads prevailed, though. We opened our not-so-expensive (NSE) Bota Box of Zinfandel (a.k.a. Cardboardeaux). We had a great time and didn’t give into our vice. This story is a simple example of how better decisions to reduce expenses lead to better savings.

Our top 10 tips to reduce expenses

How can you reduce expenses? Here ya go:

1. Brand Name Products – We were the kings of brand name, but it turns out that’s bullshit. Mom was right; store brands are as good as name brands in many cases. Shop at The Dollar Store, Big Lots or other similar stores for basics like dish detergent, soaps, shampoos, household cleaners, kitchen supplies and more.
2. Cable – One of our first steps to reduce expenses was to cut the cord. With Hulu and Netflix, you can easily reduce month-to-month expenses. Even going from a premier to a basic cable package with Comcast saves $50 a month or $600 a year. If you can’t stomach losing sports, because football and soccer players are hot, try Hulu Live TV where you can stream ESPN and other sporting events for as low as $40 a month along with a host of other cable networks.
3. Entertainment – The internet is full of free or cheap entertainment to reduce expenses. If you’re lucky, your city or state is like Denver Colorado and lists online free and cheap things to do. Not all of it is free or cheap, but you can find what fits your budget. We build a calendar and plan activities around free or cheap events to reduce expenses.
4. Movies – Will Smith for free? Yes, please! A 3D IMAX movie costs $16 a ticket. For an $8 per month subscription to Netflix, you can watch an unlimited number of movies. It’s cheaper spending $65 on a third-generation Apple TV and renting a newish movie for $5 then taking the family to the movies.
5. Phones – If you’re cutting back, reduce expenses by getting a free phone with a cheap plan and save $100+ net. We delayed upgrading our phones for two years when we were getting out of debt and saved ourselves $30 a month. We could all probably benefit from a Tumblr break.
6. Credit Cards – If you’re not of the rare breed that religiously pays off credit card balances monthly, not using your credit cards will save thousands of dollars a year. Considering that most credit card interest rates are 10% – 18%, you’re paying 10% – 18% more for all your shit. If you’re buried in debt, lower your interest rate costs and get on a month-to-month payment plan to pay off your debt faster. 
7. Groceries – Create a weekly grocery list and menu and buy what’s on sale or for what you have a coupon. We spend an additional $30 – $50 a week if we go to the store without a grocery list. That’s $1,560-$2,600 annually! Investing $1,560 annually into a retirement account for 10 years at 6% yields $24,590. That’s better than overeating.
8. Coffee – Brew coffee at home or at work with a French Press. Starbucks sucks and is expensive. Most places have at least one coffee shop that sells locally roasted coffee. A pound of coffee yields 45, eight-ounce cups of coffee. If that pound costs $12, that’s $0.27 a cup. That reduces expenses by $4.73 a cup. If you’re hitting Starbucks three times a week, you’d save $737.88 a year with a French Press.
9. Prepared Food – Americans spend a ton on prepared food. Take popcorn, for example. A 10-serving box of Pop Secret Homestyle Microwave Popcorn costs $4.98 at Walmart. That’s $0.498 a serving. Also for $4.98, Walmart sells a 3.2-pound container of Orville Redenbacher un-popped popcorn that yields 32 servings. That’s $0.156 a serving. Popping popcorn reduces expenses by $0.342 a serving. That’s $10.94 of savings with each container of Orville.
10. Books – If you’re still buying books, you’re paying too much for books. Your local library has free books and you can’t beat free to reduce expenses. If that’s not you, buy eBooks. Used Kindles sell for less than $50. Amazon offers close to 3 million free eBooks. That’s $0.00! After reading eight to ten books, you’re Kindle paid for itself.

These are just ten ways to reduce expenses that saved us enough money to pay off $51,000 in credit card debt in two and a half years and become debt free.

Bonus #11. Reduce your expenses by lowering your interest rates and pay off your debt faster.

Note: This article contains affiliate links. This means we’ll receive a small commission at no cost to you if you buy items through these links. We only recommend products that we use or have thoroughly vetted and would recommend to our moms.

Other ways to help reduce expenses and become debt free:

• The Debt Lasso Method Is The Fastest Way To Pay Off Debt
• Our Superfast, 4-Step Plan to Become Debt Free
• 3 Simple Tips to Eliminate Debt ASAP!