With consumer prices up 0.4% in August 2025 — and a total of 2.9% over the past 12 months — people across the country are seeking ways to save money.
Check Out: 8 Frugal Habits Americans Are Ridiculed for — and Why You Shouldn’t Care
Read Next: Here's the Minimum Salary Required To Be Considered Upper Class in 2025
We’ve all heard the old standbys like “skip your daily latte.” And while these tips may work, the times call for a tougher strategy, even if you grumble and grouch along the way. Once you see these savings adding up in your bank account, you’ll thank your former self for doing the work.
Here are six money-saving hacks that may not be as Instagrammable as coffee at home, but they get results.
1. Buy Gift Cards for Basics
Using gift cards to purchase essentials, such as gas and food, can help you stay within your budget. For example, if you’ve budgeted $200 for groceries, buy two $100 gift cards for the store you frequent. You can also use prepaid Mastercard or Visa cards if you visit multiple stores but keep them in an envelope labeled “groceries” and use them exclusively for that purpose.
Explore More: 8 Smart Ways Frugal People Are Living Like There’s Already a Recession
2. Cancel All of Your Subscriptions
Yes, you read that right. Cancel every single one of them, including the ones you want to keep. With many services, including streaming platforms like Hulu and Spotify Premium, you’ll still have access until the next billing period. When this period ends, you’ll need to manually re-enroll, and the hassle of renewing will reveal which subscriptions you truly value.
3. Shop Around for Services
For services you can’t realistically cancel, such as phone service and insurance, shopping for a better deal can save you hundreds of dollars. Between 2019 and 2024, for example, consumers who switched car insurers saved a median of $416 per year.
Cellphone service is another place to save. You can get unlimited data, text and voice for as little as $10 a month with a mobile virtual network operator, or MVNO — a type of carrier that piggybacks on the infrastructure of big-name networks. The MVNO saves on overhead and passes the savings on to you.
4. Swap Meat for Beans
If you love beans, this one might involve less grumbling. If not, now could be the perfect time to develop a taste. Check out the prices of beans compared to standard meat options:
| Protein source | Cost per pound | Change in price over the last year |
| Dried beans | $1.55 | Down 9.6% |
| Ground beef | $6.63 | Up 13% |
| Pork chops | $4.30 | Down 2.4% |
| Chicken breast | $4.21 | Up 6.6% |
You read that right. Chicken and pork are more than twice as expensive per pound as dried beans. Ground beef is more than quadruple the price of beans, and beef is increasing in price while beans go down.
Replacing just two meat meals a week with beans could save you over $32 a month, which works out to $384 a year. The more you replace, the more you save.
5. Use Cash-Back Apps
If you want to save money but love that instant-gratification dopamine hit, consider a cash-back app like Fetch or Rakuten. Shop smartly and you can get a percentage of your purchase back. But be careful. You’ll defeat the purpose if you spend more money just to get cash back.
Instead, use the app to shop for things you already need. Find out if a participating store offers cash back for your kid’s sneakers or hand soap for the bathroom, then buy from there.
6. Record Every Dollar You Spend
“Keep track of your expenses” may not be a new tip, but it’s time to take that advice to the next level. Every time you buy something, whether it’s $1 or $1,000, write it down. You can use paper and a pencil, but it might be easier to use a spreadsheet or budget-tracking app. For expert-level time savings, record your expenses in the same place you manage your budget.
More From GOBankingRates
- 9 Costco Items Retirees Need To Buy Ahead of Fall
- 5 Ways 'Loud Budgeting' Can Make You Richer, According to Vivian Tu
- 10 Used Cars That Will Last Longer Than the Average New Vehicle
- 7 Luxury SUVs That Will Become Affordable in 2025
This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: 6 Money Hacks You Should Add To Your Daily Routine — Even If Begrudgingly
