7 Hacks to Save You Money!
Happy Wednesday! Some Small Things here with 7 hacks to save you money.
I often have a chuckle at how everyone is hacking everything these days. It’s one of those words like resonate and super and amazing.
But truth be told, I like “hacks.” Like I like writing “omg” in texts. And the simple smile emoticon. 🙂
They achieve something. Efficiently.
Anyway. Getting to it!
Pet Food
Order from Chewy on a recurring auto-shipment?
My sweet Isidore’s food costs nearly the same as ours. And it just went up by $30! So I called Chewy and asked them if they could help.
They refunded me 10% (after the shipment had been sent and paid for) and told me to call each subsequent month before the auto-ship to request the 10% discount.
Wow!
Then I tried it in month #2. It worked again. And I even called after my order shipped a second time (I forgot), and they still refunded me the 10%.
Sushi
Sushi Hack #1
Love sushi but find it too much of a splurge?
This isn’t life altering, but why not order the lunch special (which usually comes at a hefty discount), pick it up instead of getting it delivered, and then refrigerate until dinner?
Sushi Hack #2
During my “debt free journey” days when Dave Ramsey took up permanent residence in my ear and screamed in it 24/7, I couldn’t bring myself to eat out.
But I craved sushi.
What worked? Buying a frozen bag of edamame and dipping it in soy sauce. It’s only $3, and the salt and act of dipping satiated my desire.
Gas
Looking for the cheapest gas? Download the Gas Buddy app to your phone, and it’ll locate the cheapest station near you. I think this might be widely known, but it sure blew my mind once I learned about it.
Just one quick note: Don’t be fooled by Sam’s Club like I was. I did a sad walk of shame in front of a line of cars after learning a Sam’s Club membership is required to use its gas station.
Travel
Use miles and travel points?
Try booking a commonly traveled route (say New York to London) with points and then paying for a ticket on a regional airline (say Easyjet to Budapest) to your destination. I’ve saved so many points flying in and out of London. I’ve also done this “hack” with trains and buses.
Credit Card
Did you know that many credit cards have cash-back offers?
At the bottom of my credit card app — in print so small it requires reading glasses — I discovered about 75 offers. Maybe 10 of them at a given time are useful. Look at the bottom of your app!
Recent cash-back includes BP, Shell, Wegmans, CVS, Rite Aid, and more.
And don’t forget to use Rakuten for extra cash back. I have a post about using Rakuten here.
Perfume
Love the $200+ perfume but can’t afford the price and don’t need the whole bottle? Purchase a smaller size from a decanter site. Decanters rebottle perfume so you can buy less at a fraction of the price.
My choices are Surrender to Chance and Lucky Scent.
I’ve been using these sites for about a year now — mostly to buy samples. Occasionally I love a sample and want more.
Santal 33 cost me about $30 for a 5ml roll-on. The 100ml bottle is $310.
I write about decanter sites here and here.
Two samples I’m loving this week: Diptyque Eau Rose. The rose ends with fruit, and I’m wearing it to sleep and spraying it in my car. And Poesie Library Ghost smells like the Rose Reading Room of the NYPL.
Thanks for reading 7 hacks to save you money! 🙂
What are your best “hacks”? Were any of mine useful, or did you already know about them?
Oh, and here's my latest product inspired by What's That Thing on the Car?
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