1. Consider SIM Only Mobile Plans
By now, you would most likely have heard of the term SIM only plans. Compared to the usual 2 year mobile contracts which average about $50 monthly, the unique selling point of these SIM only plans is that it offers users with better flexibility, affordable price points and most importantly, more data. Yes you heard that right, paying less for more data. Starting from $20 per month, under a 12 month contract, you will be getting 5GB worth of data and if that is not enough, you have the flexibility of adding more to suit your data needs. Learn more about the various SIM only plans:
2. Cook And Pack Your Own Meals To Work
This may seem like a huge chore at first glance. It requires time, effort and lots of brain juice to think of 5 meals to prepare in a week. For beginners, you might opt to prepare your meals about 1 to 2 times a week. To start off, it might be wise to prepare your meals every Sunday night and leave them in the fridge so you do not have to find yourself fussing over the kitchen after a long day at work. A tip is to prepare a slightly larger portion and divide the meals into smaller portions and either freeze them or leave them in the fridge, depending on when you intend to consume them.
3. Use The Eatigo App When Dining Out
Singaporeans love their food. If the previous option does not appeal to you, how does getting 50% off your meal at a decent café or restaurant sound? Eatigo is an application that allows you to dine in restaurants and offers you discounts ranging from 10% up to 50% off your total bill! This way, both restaurants and users stand to gain as restaurants can gain traction during their off-peak hours and users can get their meals at discounted prices. The application is user friendly and easy to navigate. All you have to do is to select where you wish to dine at from their list of restaurants, choose your preferred timing and discount and wait for their confirmation email and SMS. Just three simple steps and you are on your way to getting a bang for your back when you dine outside.
4. Keep Stock Of Your Spending
Figures speak for themselves. When you actually take control of your spending and see how much you are spending each week, you will then be able to eliminate unwanted spending and have more control over your spending. For starters, you can download a budgeting app on your phone such as the ‘Mint’ budgeting app which offer many features to help you create budgets keep track of your spending. You can also link your credit or debit card to the app where they will be able to automatically categorise your transactions while simultaneously mapping this according to your set budget. With the application readily available on our phones, it makes budgeting much easier and more convenient.
5. Share Your Monthly Subscriptions With Family Or Friends
Your monthly subscriptions to streaming sites like Netflix and Spotify are things you cannot live without. However, spending $9.99 a month on Spotify and $10.98 a month on Netflix, just to name a few, can put quite a strain on our wallets. Think $252 a year solely spent on your Spotify and Netflix subscriptions, not inclusive of other ongoing subscriptions which you might have. A way around this is to hop onto the Spotify family package and share your Netflix subscription with a group of about 2 to 3 family members or friends. Spotify offers a family package at $14.98 per month and you can share this package with up to five people. The best part is that each of you get your own account so you do not have to worry about not being able to listen to your favourite music when someone else is listening simultaneously. Conversely, Netflix does not have the sharing package option. However, if a family member or friend has an ongoing subscription, all you need to do is ask for their login credentials and you will be clicks away from your favourite television shows and movies. Of course, it would be advisable to split this cost with your friend or family member. Now, you will only be spending $92 a year on your Netflix and Spotify subscriptions, compared to a whopping $252 previously.
As they say, a small step goes a long way. These pointers might not seem very significant but as long as you stick to them and watch your spending, rest assured, you are on the right track. Look out for more tips to reduce your monthly expenditure, coming soon!
