I've been saving money eating only top ramen.

[Saybrooke]

What are your best money saving tips?

Beside only eating top ramen way too salty!

[Draven]

Basically yours; top romen and the cup of noodles. It gets real old REAL quick even if you use soy sauce and other condiments to spice it up. Um..also I don't know if you have one in your area but where I live we have a place called a "Canned food store", that basically sells dented, but good canned foodstuffs. You wouldn't believe the mark down some of these things get just because of a teeny little dent.

[JayHawk]

I could make some depraved comment about earning your bus fare... but....

When i wanna save cash, i look around at what i have already paid for that is entertaining. Like if I have cable... then use it instead of going out to do something, go hiking instead of clubbing... stuff like that.

The other thing I have done when times have really gotten tough is to look at what I pay for that doesn't sustain life. Then i cut according to need. Like I could never loose a internet connection BUT do I need cable tv channels--nope. if you have a phone plan lower the minutes or get rid of unlimited texting -- but then stay in your bounds so it doesn't end up costing you more...

Something I did just recently was call both those services and told them I was thinking about shifting to Time Warner and sprint... they magically found multiple discounts.

I dont know your situation so i cant say...

Like what are you wearing...? Wait that is a creepy thread post.. :P

[G-Lexington]

Wouldn't bottom ramen be even cheaper?

Lex

[zoltanspawn]

Bicycle.

[Dejavudoo]

Your best money saving tip is awareness. MOST budgets are lost for lack of existence. You cannot manage, cut back, or master budgets that don't exist.

Track your spending. Account for it. Do you make $500 per week take home pay? $100? $200?

What do you spend each week on rent, food, bus fare, gas, entertainment, loans, credit cards, utilities, clothes, pet food, and whatnot?

Once you've looked at the income and outflow, and been honest about tracking it, you will be able to create priorities, changes, and goals.

There is no magic bullet, and it will be different for different people. But, until you look at your own habits, you won't do better, no matter how much more or less you make.

[Axxess]

Don't spend money.

It really depends on how frugal you want (or need) to be. Whenever you're about to buy something ask yourself a few questions:
Do I really need this, or do I want it?
Is this the lowest price I can find?
Does another store carry this item for a lower price?
Is there an off-brand version of this item for a lower price?
Do I want to become one of those people that has a shoebox full of coupons at the register?
Did I turn off the bathroom light before coming to the store today?

[HunterM]

When i wanna save cash, i look around at what i have already paid for that is entertaining. Like if I have cable... then use it instead of going out to do something, go hiking instead of clubbing... stuff like that.

^ He knows what he is talking about! Sex in the woods is way more exciting than in a club's bathroom stall.

[Saybrooke]

^ Personal experience? ;p

[eastofeden]

The 99 cents ONLY store except I think they are only in CA, TX and AZ. They have organic produce at the one down the street from my shop. The whole grocery store has nothing over 99 cents.

[Paws]

way too salty!

^ that. Think of your health, too much salt isn't good. Ramen noodles contain up to 80% of your recommended daily intake of salt. Add lunch or dinner (in a bad case even more preprocessed food) and you're way over it.

[Scealle]

I love ramen but just strictly eating them can cause health problems in the long run. Which eventually may cost even more i.e the medical fees and doctor fees etc. Usually I don't save on food as that's the only thing I spend more on. If you spend more money on healthy food, your chances of getting sick lessens and so does your visit to the doctors. I have friends who skip 2 main meals and only eat one heavy meal, and at cheap unclean restaurants. End up getting food poisoned and had to stay in the hospital. Which actually cost more than the food money that he saved.

You can cut down on buying unnecessary things. Toys/comics etc. For books if your classmate or friend has them maybe you can borrow from them. I think E-book sell for a lot cheaper. Only buy the stuff that you really absolutely need I don't buy papers or notebooks anymore because I draw with PC mostly. Did't buy toilet papers either because I usually shower+poop+brush teeth+ shave together. (Sorry tmi lol) If there are stores that sell food or stuff cheaper than the nearby stores but at a walk-able distance then I'd recommend taking the walk and buy at there Saving little by little day by day and you'd get a lot

[dpnice]

The only way to save money is to budget and stick to it. Deduct all the essential charges, rent, commodites, tax, etc which leaves you with the amount you can spend each month. Then decide how much to save, nevermind if it is miniscule save it anyway.

It really is cheaper to prepare your own food. You have to shop around for the cheapest and then prepare two or three meals in one, freezing the surplus. Never throw food away put it in an omlette or with pasta to make another meal.

Stopping buying prepared meals is the best money saver and health advancement you can make.

PS you do have to plan out a menu for the week as well; so you need to think in advance.

[dpnice]

Forgot to ask. What is top ramen?

[Str8Top14701]

Between the incredibly high saturated fat content, and the ton of MSG, you'll need that money your saving for medical bills and prescriptions.

[loki81]

I have 2 bank accounts... the first is my primary checking/savings account that I use for 99.9% of my transactions, and the other is a savings account at a different bank. I automatically have 5% of my paycheck sent there (in addition, any time I get OT, I usually manually transfer that money there).

currently, that savings account is my new car fund. I don't know when I'll need a new car, but when I do, I'd like to be able to pay as much in cash as possible to avoid interest/finance charges.

[loki81]

Between the incredibly high saturated fat content, and the ton of MSG, you'll need that money your saving for medical bills and prescriptions.

I think you can do ramen healthy... when I was a poor college student, I'd get ramen, whatever meat was on sale, and whatever vegetables were on sale. cook, throw them all in a pot, and enjoy some ghetto stew

[dpnice]

Forgot to ask. What is top ramen?

OK I will Google.

[DigitalFudge]

I don't prepare my own meals

[zoltanspawn]

Forgot to ask. What is top ramen?

Sorry for the delay, Nice. It's a pack of instant dried noodles, reconstituted with boiling water. Little dehydrated vegetables and a super-salty package make it edible. Top Ramen is cheap, so college students and people short on cash eat them. Like, ten packs for a dollar or so...

While Top Ramen isn't that good, there are actually instant-noodle packs from Korea, China and elsewhere in Asia that are pretty tasty for a quick meal. Once or twice a year I gravitate to the instant-noodle aisle at my local pan-Asian market and buy some.

[JockBoy87]

I never get sick of ramen. I can't afford expensive foods like fresh vegetables and meat unless I go shopping with my sugar bf.

[She Wants Revenge]

I'm a coupon whore. If I can find a coupon, then I'm using it and my Kroger Plus Card is always in my wallet ready for use. I pull out that Kroger card like I'm pulling out a magic wand. For a lunch, snack or desert it's straight to the dollar store fro me, for dinner I head to Subway, their 5 dollar foot longs are on point, healthy and filling. Ramen and maybe a little sandwich on the side is a nice meal, but can not live off of that.

[palbert]

Stick any $5 bill you get in a cookie jar. You'd be surprised how little you use or miss a $5.

For books, the used book store.

[Vannie]

You can drain half or more of the high sodium broth off of the noodles,when they are done cooking.Your noodles will still be tasty,and you will get rid of 50% or more of the salt.The amount of salt in those little seasoning packets is not good for anyone.The other thing you can do,is add some mixed vegetables and a scrambled egg or two.Store brand (frozen)mixed vegetables are about a dollar for 10 ounce box,and eggs are still economical.That will give you a lot more nutritional value as well.Any leftover chicken tossed in....even better.

[crimsonpaine]

I stopped going into Walmart every other day. Trying to buy something only that I need, instead of everything I want and is shiny and catches my eye.

Buying something only if I can justify buying by actually using instead of it just sitting around.

Saving 5% of my gross paycheck every payday into one savings account and after bills put as much as I am comfortable with into my main savings account.

Coupons for things I use and or would actually buy without a coupon

[maxpowr9]

I have over 100k in my bank account and it's not a trust fund account. If you have no budget to slash, you aren't going to save any money either. This is where my libertarianism sprung up; doing things for myself. Cook your own meals, sparingly go out drinking, buying in bulk etc. I could read off a long list of stupid things you can do but they are obviously self-evident that you shouldn't like hiring a cleaning person.

[zoltanspawn]

Ramen is convenient, but on the bottom shelf I'm going to vote for beans-and-rice. It's just as cheap, but healthier and depending on your skill, more delicious.

By the way, dpnice, what are the super-cheap meals in your hood? (A friend recently brought back some yummy little tins of anchoiade from Marseille that were the bomb. Which doesn't have to do with anything. Except I want to eat some good Frenchy food right now.)

[maxpowr9]

If you want to really live on the cheap food wise, by a rice cooker and make stir fry every night. You can add whatever vegetables, meats and sauces you want to it and you can change it up for variety.

[star-warrior]

It really is cheaper to prepare your own food. You have to shop around for the cheapest and then prepare two or three meals in one, freezing the surplus. Never throw food away put it in an omlette or with pasta to make another meal.

Stopping buying prepared meals is the best money saver and health advancement you can make.

PS you do have to plan out a menu for the week as well; so you need to think in advance.

^ This. I wholeheartedly agree with this.

I think the OP should steer away from ramen, and consider it a treat rather than something to thrive on. Consider expanding your larder with rice, pasta, and the humble potato if you need a starch fix.

When buying meat, go for large joint pieces which you can bring home to cut into portions. If you buy a kilo of meat, you can cut that into four large or five reasonable sized pieces. Use cling film or clear wrap and individually pack each piece before freezing. Put into a labelled bag with the date and what meat it is named on the side. You can defrost it to use later. With bone, you can make a stock for later use, or make a soup or broth with.

Buy chicken whole on the bone, it is much cheaper than cut chicken fillets, or portions. Its a very versatile meat to cook with and cheaper than red meat in some places.

If you like red meat, there are expensive cuts of meat and cheaper ones. The more expensive ones tend to be more tender or leaner or both. Tougher meat is cheaper but requires longer cooking to make it tender, and less expensive cuts include those with more gristle or fat or both.

When meat goes bad, the safest option is to throw it away. Smell is one indicator. Vacuum sealed stuff if hard to tell, but look for discolouration - if it's red meat, why does it look greyish blue? If it's white meat poultry say, why is there little white spots on it, and is there a kinda faint flourescent sheen to the meat, or what's that pale yellowy stuff on the skin? These are all indications of bacteria, and decomposition. Often smell of rotten eggs - the sulphur compounds indicates the meat is bad. If you have meat that's sticky - run your fore finger over it, and with your thumb tap the forefinger and lift up to see if you have a stringy sticky mess between your fingers - that's slime on the meat. Chuck away, and wash your hands thoroughly with soapy water.

WRT vegetables, you could always try your hand at growing beans or salads veg. If you buy in veg, and you haven't used it within the sell by date, look at it first and check if there is mold on it first - these should be chucked. For green it's just a little wrinkled or wilted, has the green leaves turned yellowy - these should be removed, any inner leaves still looking vibrant can be still used. Are your carrots soft? So long as it isn't slimy, you can still peel the outer dry skin to reveal the inside - these can still be used in cooked dishes, say as part of shepherds pie say. Are your potatoes wrinkly? Peel the skin off and if the flesh is ok, you can still make mash potatoes with them. Tomatoes get slightly translucent and feel soft when very ripe. They're great for cooking in sauces. Beans on the other hand as they become dry, they get tougher. Although mostly edible, they become somewhat stringy. If you don't mind the stringiness they are still ok to eat once cooked. Leeks tend to bolt when they get a bit old, however, removing the outer discoloured layers and cutting off the dry end and root end still leaves you with something edible. When we have wilted veg, we just chop the lot up into smaller pieces, and boil in stock and blitz for a nourishing soup.

Fruit gets cheaper as it gets riper. At least that's true in the outdoor markets. You can buy fairly good ready to eat fruit cheaply there as opposed to size and long shelf life expensive supermarket stuff. In soft fruit, look for dry patches on strawberries - these can still be cut off. Mold is an obvious no-no. If you like grapes, look for the ones with stems that are still green and not dry. You can buy bananas green and let them ripen. When bananas ripen, they smell aromatic, and there is often brown spots on it. If your banana is very ripe, you can make freeze the flesh and make banana icecream with it. For old apples, pears, peaches and plums, you can make tasty puddings such by peeling, slicing and adding a bit of sugar and maybe some lemon juice, and top it with a crumble mixture and bake in the oven. If you have a load of fruit that's on its sell buy date, you can pick out the good ones and make a fruit salad. No need to chuck out stuff unless its bad.

If you're going to eat frugal, be inventive and eat sensible. Know how to recognise spoil, and throw away and consume wisely.

[kindabikindagay]

Decide exactly how much money you need to save and then keep that somewhere safe and make yourself believe you completely forgot about it.. then give yourself a budget and go crazy (within your budget... don't go buying a yacht or something)

also you can change a bunch of different parts of your life to reduce many spent..

for example.. food, it's always smarter to cook than to eat out.. especially since it's a lot cheaper + it puts food in your fridge for a few days..
here are a bunch of great recipes under 10 bucks.. http://www.rachaelray.com/food/collections/budget/


also you can try selling some things you don't need (unless it's something you love too much..)

[comefood]

Sweet heart you don't have to. I can teach you how to make 拉面(RAMEN)

[EJMichaels]

Besides doing some of the specific things already mentioned (like making almost all of our meals), I've started using Skype for long-distance calls - only $3 a month for unlimited domestic calls to any phones. I used to use my cell phone for that, but I no longer have a decent signal indoors. I don't spend the money on a data plan since I'm home a lot and use the computer for email and texting. My land line is on a cheap plan that doesn't include outgoing calls except toll-free numbers. A friend just switched to using her smartphone as a router to get an internet connection for her PC. Or something like that. Whatever it was, she was able to cancel her internet service and her total cost for phone and internet is now much less.

[star-warrior]

Sweet heart you don't have to. I can teach you how to make 拉面(RAMEN)

[Vannie]

star warrior post#29....Martha Stewart would be proud