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Bills, bills, bills. The cycle of life.
Since a majority of our paychecks go straight to bills, it’s a huge deal if there are any savings to be found.
With recurring bills, it can be hard to notice the “bill creep” as well. This means your bill each year can “creep up” in price without you noticing due to automatic payments.
For instance, your internet could rise by $3 a month. Your cable TV? Another $4 a month. You might not even notice and that’s exactly what companies are hoping for.
But you can prevent that from happening.
That’s why we’ve rounded up 7 ways that anyone can apply immediately to start saving on their monthly bills.
1. Free Gift Cards Just for Going Shopping? Yes, please.
Go on your normal grocery shopping trips. Scan your receipt after. Get points towards gift cards.
No extra fuss. No digital coupons to pre-select or specific stores to go to. It’s perfect for the lazy but smart saver.
And it’s called Fetch Rewards, an app where you can scan ANY grocery receipt to get rewards.
Scan receipts from supermarkets, neighborhood corner shops, wholesale clubs, drugstores, convenience stores, and even liquor stores. Unlike other apps, you’re not restricted to specific stores.
You can start redeeming points for rewards with as little as 3,000 points ($3). Grab a 2,000 points bonus ($2!) when you enter this referral code: REWARD before you scan your first receipt.
Welcome bonus: $2
Average savings a month (depends on purchases): $25
What it could add up to in a year: $302
Additional referral earnings: $2 per referral
2. Affordable Car Insurance Exists – Here’s How You Could Save $610
You’re sharing the same roads with a lot of different people. Distracted people, oblivious people, road-rage people, etc. It’s best to cover yourself with insurance when everyone is operating a giant motor vehicle.
That’s why car insurance exists and is mandatory. You might be overpaying on your current insurance premium since it can be a hassle finding another provider.
However, you can search for quotes easily on EverQuote. They help match you among dozens of regional agencies and insurance carriers to filter the best matches to save on your car insurance.
It takes about 4 minutes to fill out the form and you’ll see a list of matches that show potential online quotes, email, and potential phone quotes.
EverQuote can save drivers $610 a year on average* compared to their current insurance premiums. Once you see your list of potential matches, choose the online ones you want or wait for more information via email or phone.
It’s a pretty simple process, so try it out to see how much you could be saving on the road!
3. Get a Personal Loan Fast Even if You Have Bad Credit
Your credit score is important but sometimes, unfortunate circumstances happen to good people. It’s not always a fair representation of your financial history to be judged by 3 digits.
Even if you have a poor credit score you could still get a personal loan for your short-term financial needs.
OppLoans can help.
Submitting an application doesn’t affect your FICO credit score and you’ll be able to get the best personal loan that you may need for car repairs, medical, family, rent, major purchase, etc.
Here’s who can qualify:
- Residents of AL, GA, NE, WI, AK, AZ, AR, CA, DE, FL, ID, IN, KS, KY, LA, MI, MN, MS, MO, MT, NE,, ND, OH, OK, OR, RI, SC, TN, TX, UT, VA, WA, WY, NC
- Have a minimum monthly income of $1,500 for the states listed above except AL is $3,500, and GA & ID is $3,000
- Employed at your current job for at least 3 months
- 18+ years old (19 if from AL or NE) and cannot be an active duty service member
- A traditional bank account in your name that’s been open for at least 90 days
- You get your paychecks via direct deposit
Qualified borrowers will be able to borrow up to $4,000 depending on their state.
And when monthly payments are made back on the loan, OppLoans will notify the 3 credit bureaus to build up your payment history!
4. Figure Out Where You’re Wasting Money and Stop With This App
Realistic budgets are hard to make, especially if you’re kind of lazy, to begin with. (No judgment, I can be too).
You know you should start, but it just gets put off.
Here’s an easy solution though: Rocket Money
Their simple-to-follow budgeting pulls your historical spending, organizes it, and allows you to clearly see your spending so you can set a target budget with context. (Aka you can see where you’re wasting money on).
It’ll also track budget pacing, which sounds fancy, but it just means you’ll see the percentage of how much you’ve spent so far in each category. Like it’s only the 2nd week of the month, and I’ve already spent 74% of my dining budget? Time to eat out less.
Rocket Money will also alert you if you’re getting a little too spend-happy in your budgeted categories so you know when to curb it.
It’s simple but actionable budgeting that anyone can follow and it’s free to use!
5. You Gotta Eat! Get Up to $240 Cash Back in Grocery Savings
Did you know that it’s 325% more expensive to eat out versus eating at home*? Maybe it’s time to make more trips to the grocery store instead.
You’ll be aware of all the ingredients in your meal, in addition, you’ll get paid just for shopping!
It’s simple. All you have to do is take a picture of your grocery receipt and Ibotta will pay you cash.
Here’s how it works:
Before you go to the store, search for your shopping list items in the Ibotta app. After your store visit, take a photo of your receipt to get cash back.
Ibotta is free to download and you’ll also get up to $20 in Welcome Bonuses when you sign up!
Some offers we found:
- 25 cents back on any item
- $3 – $5 back on various wine
- $2 back on KIND Protein Bars
- 25 cents – $4 back on ice cream
- $2 back on Herbal Essence Haircare
Popular stores are Walmart and Target, but Ibotta also works at restaurants, online shopping sites, and at the bar! On average, active Ibotta users save up to $240 a year or more. What would you do with that extra money?
Welcome Bonus: Up to $20
Average savings a month: $20
What it could add up to in a year: $240
Additional Referral Earnings: $5 per referral
6. Avoid Overdrafting When Paying Bills
Overdraft fees. Sometimes your bank account is low, and you forget about your upcoming Netflix auto-payment. Next thing you know, you’re in the negatives and the bank is emailing you that you’ve been charged a hefty fee.
Skip all the bank fees and apply to Chime, an online bank account with absolutely no hidden fees (yes, seriously) and savings at 2.00% APY.
Their latest feature, SpotMe, lets you continue with a needed transaction even if you overdraft. That extra $20 you needed for groceries? No worries, Chime will spot you up to $200.* When your next deposit arrives, Chime will just apply it to your negative balance.*
No monthly fees, no minimum balance requirement, no foreign transaction fees, and the account is also FDIC-insured up to $250,000. Members can get paid up to 2 days earlier** too since Chime processes your employer’s deposit immediately, giving you access quicker than traditional banks.
Chime is free to use, so why not give it a shot for a while and see how you like it?
7. Let Someone Else Handle Bill Negotiations & Save
Go ahead and hang up the phone. Escape the hours of on-hold music.
If you hate dealing with service provider reps, then let BillSmart handle it all for you. Their team of experts knows all the tricks to get the best prices available on your bill negotiation for cable, wireless, internet, and home phone.
Just upload a current bill or email them at [email protected], and BillSmart will get to work on your behalf to negotiate it down (and will keep doing so regularly).
On average, BillSmart saves its customers $352 on their current service plans (sometimes with free upgrades!)
If there are no savings, there’s no charge. If successful, they’ll just take 25% of the first annual savings and you’ll still come out ahead. Upload a bill, and see how much you could save. Since it’s completely free to try, why not?
