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With incomes depleted, unemployment soaring and many people struggling to get by, careful money management is going to become even more of a priority in a post-COVID world. With that in mind, we’ve put together this list of four money-saving tips to help you prioritise your spending when the bars, shops and businesses are back up and running.
Waste less food
The tightened budgets of lockdown have taught many people the importance of frugality. One area where we simply throw money away is in wasted food. Buying too much, not checking use by dates and failing to plan meals properly is costing the average family with children an estimated £700 a year in wasted food. However, new habits have formed during lockdown, including making smaller meals, throwing away less food and caring less about best before dates. This is one habit that people can easily continue when everything is back to normal.
Spend less on commuting
Another important change brought about by the lockdown is the realisation for many employers that their staff are just as productive, and in many cases even more productive, when working from home. Commuting costs are one of the biggest expenses for many households. If office workers are allowed to spend more time working from home after the outbreak, they could save money and help to protect the planet.
Think outside the box with money saving
There is scope to pinch pennies in just about every avenue of life. Small changes across this spectrum add up to significant changes at the end of the month. Check out this huge guide of 40 creative money saving tips that will help you save cash across your work, home and social life.
Prioritise your memberships and subscriptions
The inability to live our lives as we normally would during the lockdown has helped to focus our minds on the memberships and subscriptions we really need, and those we can quite happily live without. For example, if you have become a regular park runner during the outbreak, perhaps you can cancel that expensive gym membership? Or, if your subscription to a newspaper, magazine or streaming service has helped to keep you sane, maybe that’s an expense you should keep?
Rethink those nice-to-haves
Another potential benefit of the lockdown has been the opportunity to have a break from our usual spending habits and to view them with a renewed perspective and clarity. If you have been dining out once a week, spending significant amounts on entertainment or regularly buying new clothes or the latest tech, the lockdown might have shown you that your spending was more out of habit than enjoyment. By cutting down on those nice-to-haves, you could save more of your income to help you achieve your long-term financial goals.
What money-saving lessons has the lockdown taught you? Are you going to change your spending habits once the restrictions are lifted? Please share your thoughts in the comments below.
