9 Little Expenses That Really Cost You More

We’ve all been guilty of making excuses on our cheap purchases because we think it won’t hurt our budget and they often bring us happiness. However, we failed to consider that these seemingly small expenses we pay on a day-to-day basis will add up over time — eventually accumulating to a bigger expense. Aside from this, we often pay bigger bills which can be totally avoided if only we are paying attention to our purchases in the first place.

If you are in the midst of getting your finances in order, take a look at these 9 money-suckers that could be preventing you from saving money.

Eating Out

Eating out occasionally is not bad. But as the saying goes, too much of anything is bad. Frequent eat-outs can bring significant financial burden. Even smaller eating-out trips like grabbing lunch at a nearby fast food place every day at work can put a dent in your budget. In order to save money, bringing lunch to work most of the time and going out once or twice a week will help you in stretching your money a bit further. Also, when eating out, try to drink water instead of ordering drinks because usually, drinks in restaurants are expensive.

Alcoholic Beverages

Going out on the weekend for dinner is one thing, but when you add beer, wine or cocktails into the mix, your bill will have skyrocketed. Drinks can easily add up, especially when you’re enjoying your bonding time with your friends over alcoholic drinks. And, during times like this, you shouldn’t expect to only have one drink.

To help you save money, try to avoid nights out as much as possible especially when your budget doesn’t allow you to have one. If it cannot be avoided, then set aside a budget for it beforehand and stick with the budget you set aside from it. Discipline is the key.

Grocery Impulse Buying

It seems obvious and you’ve probably heard it a thousand times already, but don’t go grocery shopping when you’re hungry. When you shop on an empty stomach, you spend more money on the items you don’t really need. Not only that, hungry grocery shoppers tend to purchase less healthy food. To cut down on your grocery expenses, have a good meal first before heading to the grocery store. Also, be mindful of how much money you spend on groceries by budgeting your money. (READ: 10 Simple Grocery Tips That Can Help You Save Time and Money)

Bank and ATM Charges

You might be paying unnecessary fees depending on your bank and particular account type. There are several banking fees that you may face like balance inquiry and withdrawal charges from a third party bank, below minimum balance charges, monthly maintaining balance fees, etc. These charges can be avoided by being aware of the bank policies and knowing the terms and conditions of your account type.

Credit Card Interest

Most people pay only the minimum fees on their credit cards but what they fail to realize is that lower minimum payments mean deeper debt. Interest rates from credit card are around 2-3.5% per month depending on the credit card package you have. Make sure to know how much is the interest rate of your card so you can expect on how much are you going to pay in interest on your credit card purchases and you can factor that into the price of an item before you buy it. Also, ensure that you set aside a budget for the added interest on the items you purchased via credit cards and try to pay off that debt as quick as you can so you can avoid extra expenses in the future.

Gym memberships

Some people have the mindset of availing gym memberships that will serve as their motivation to exercise more. However, a healthy lifestyle doesn’t need to be costly. If you are on a tight budget, you can do fitness activities like walking, dancing, jogging, running — and all of these can be done for free.

Prescriptions

“Health is wealth” as what they would say and most of the time, this saying is true. Sadly, most people aren’t prioritizing their health that much so when the time comes that they need to seek a doctor for a check-up, they are often surprised with a large medical expense.

While you’ll never know when you may need a check-up, it’s still good to include small extra health expenses into your budget so you’ll have something to get when the need arises. Also, having a healthy lifestyle definitely helps you in limiting doctor visits.

Daily Trips to the Coffee Shop

Getting your daily coffee fix at a nearby coffee shop is one way to burn money. A seemingly “harmless” Php 150.00 worth of coffee a day can accumulate over time, and a daily trip to the coffee shop might cost you more or less Php 54,750* per year!

If you want to save more money, then cut down on your coffee spending by creating your own coffee or buying a cheaper alternative. If you cannot commit to not going to your local coffee shop again, then set aside an amount you can spend on your daily coffee fix.

Subscriptions

Subscriptions are often presented in cheap packages which is why people are enticed to avail subscription to multiple products and services. While a one or two subscriptions doesn’t put a hole on your wallet, if you are not careful then these subscriptions can add up easily. If you already availed a lot of subscriptions, one way to cut costs is to identify which of your current subscriptions do you really need and cancel the rest.

*Php 150 * 365 days