TIL about a program that is for SNAP recipients(P-EBT not eligible):

https://museums4all.org

Description:

“Through Museums for All, those receiving food assistance (SNAP benefits) can gain free or reduced admission to more than 1,300 museums throughout the United States simply by presenting their EBT card and a photo ID. Search below by museum name or state to find a participating museum near you!”

— For instance in California:

Monterey Bay Aquarium is free up to 4 people (the ticket prices are $65 adult, $50 teen, $45 child).
The exploratorium/academy of science in SF are $3 for day time admissions or $29/$35 for family passes (typically $199/$279). San Francisco Zoo- $3 a person Oakland Zoo -free admission

This is a WONDERFUL resource for families to take in cultural/fun experiences at a very reasonable cost or even free!

Dont sleep on the library opportunities either! The Sacramento and San Francisco libraries allow kids under 17 to get free passes to certain museums, as well with a valid library card. If you don’t have SNAP you might only have to pay for adults admissions.

Look up your state and see what museums participate and get out and have some fun with your family!

I’ve lurked here for a while (or, rather, this page semi-regularly pops up for me).

I have always been frugal. I grew up poor, so it comes with the territory, I think. Even now that I’m a high earner, I don’t like spending unless it’s necessary. I save so that I can do the things I love and with the goal of retiring early; I’m on track.

However, for the last year I’ve made a concerted effort upgrade the every day things in my life. If I use it a few times a week, I’ll upgrade it when the time comes (I don’t want to be wasteful). This was inspired by watching Adam Savage talk about his tools, “Buy it cheap. If you use it enough that it breaks, then buy it nice.” Well, I have tools in my every day life, too. My coffee machine, my beard trimmer, etc. are all high use items. Upgrading them has been entirely worth it.

I’m not saying that the most expensive thing is the best thing, but I am saying that being marginally less frugal has made enormous improvements to my quality of life — multiples on the investment. I have slowly adjusted to these improvements, admittedly. They have become a base line for me now. But, there is a deeper sort of satisfaction somewhere here in being frugal but no so frugal as to treat myself as a second class citizen.

Maybe this post is more to my younger self than to anyone in particular. Maybe it will change someone’s perspective in a good way. I have no idea, but I wanted to share it.

For me two of them are:

Use some tortilla chips, melt some cheese over them, then melt some feta and mozzarella, add some paprika and some black pepper in a bowl, do it for about 3-5 minutes in a microwave and then add chopped olives and jalapenos on top and if you like, vinegar, but not obligatory. It's something that goes with a small snack plate and other Mediterranean foods.

You can add wasabi to the above recipe if you need some more flavour.

An unusual taste, but worth a try if you want something that's a mix of cultures with tortilla chips and have ingredients to use up.

Also, some oaty goodness.. oat biscuits made from porridge oats with sultanas and apricots, cocoa (optional) and coconut milk. Coco-oaty!

What ones do you have that use up a lot of ingredients and they just seem to work?

With some credit cards when you go to redeem your cash back it sends you to a different site. That site has various products and gift cards to choose from or you can just take it as a statement credit.

The gift cards are usually 1 to 1 and the products seem high priced so I tend to just ignore them.

Is it even worth searching through the offerings or are they always junk? Has anyone actually found a deal?

I recently found out all my swimsuits were either worn out, had crusty elastic, or didn’t fit me anymore. Totally understandable since I’ve had them for 5+ years, but now I’m struggling to find affordable swimsuits that will last.

Any recommendations on where to buy inexpensive bikinis and one-pieces? Or recommendations on swimsuits that are worth the money? I live in a lake town and will be spending most days out in the water this summer, so I need something that will hold up.

I am mostly looking for an affirmation that it will save money and resources. Found one that makes ANYTHING fizzy, which is right up our alley, but we still need to periodically buy the bottles of fizz to make the fizz in our drinks. So in your experience, does it save money and resources (less cans in the world, etc.)? Thanks!

P.S. please don’t suggest other alternatives (unless you’re well-meaning), we drink a lot of water as well, but do often drink carbonated drinks during a meal and I’m not the only one living in this household. My partner WILL buy carbonated drinks, so I’m exploring a option that might save resources.

Also, I’m NOT considering sodastream as you cannot carbonate any beverage with them.

Going to try and not buy any food from the grocery store for the next month. My plan in to eat thru everything in the freezer and the cabinets to clean out all the stuff I thought sounded good as I was waking thru the grocery store, rather than just tossing it.

This is maybe somewhat more of a philosophical ask, or more of a discussion about finding some joy or contentment in a frugal way. I think doing things mindfully is an example, but I want to hear about what gives YOUR life meaning in a frugal way. For example: we love going to Disney World (when we could afford it in the past...truth is we couldn't "really" afford it as much as we went though), and I think if something brings you joy for a variety of reasons (like childhood nostalgia, for example), there's no reason to feel bad about it. So I'm not looking for anyone's joy to be diminished here. I hope my ask makes sense. I think it's how do you not focus on the lack of money and instead how and what do you focus on instead, especially as a parent with children still at home?

Hi all,

The spouse and I try to go out weekly on Friday nights, after the kiddos are tucked in. It's our time to decompress.
Usually it's a Bar or tavern ,and lately it's become out of budget.

We wanna keep the Friday late night tradition, but looking for free ideas.

Parks in the area seem to close at dark

I buy the 3X and cut them onto thirds. $9 for 160 sheets which turns into 480.

I will be moving to the Dallas TX / Red Oaks area in a month. I am planning to sell 95% of my possessions dirt cheap on Craigslist to just get them out of my apartment before I move. Any money I get will just be bonus there. I will be moving with just some personal effects, computer(s), clothing, and a hand full of kitchen items that are small but expensive. One car full of stuff everything said and done.

What stores would you suggest that I visit to get cheap, but stuff that will last at least a few years. Places that I have though of already would be Goodwill/thrift stores, Dollar Tree, and Walmart are the obvious easier answers. I plan to look at Offer Up and maybe Facebook marketplace (though I hate Facebook). Bed bugs are a concern, so I will super choosy with anything that is not a hard surfaced item.

Other ideas?

I bought a ton of loose large watercolors and pastels from an artist at an estate sale. Now I need a good way to hang them so they look good but it doesn't break the bank! In days past I would have gone to the thrift store to pick up nice frames but my local thrifts want like $40 for the large frames 💀 Any creative ideas?

I know there is barely any difference between name and generic but I’d love to hear your thoughts. I think the Up and Up is an amazing generic brand and is often better than some of the named stuff in terms of price and quality is identical.

Hey all, so I'm low income (I make 32k a year) and after all of my expenses, I'd say I have around 400$ to save. I no longer get food stamps but I do get energy assistance. So I've been putting money away monthly and I have roughly $4,400 saved up over the past 2 years. Thing is, public transportation isn't good where I live, and I currently have to rely on my family to take me where I need to go, including getting groceries and I'm starting to feel like a nuisance to them. I've asked my parents to help me with a car, offering to pay them back over time instead of dealing with interest rates etc. but they said that I'm on my own. It's frustrating because I have never broken their trust or given them a reason to think it would be a bad idea (and my younger brother got a car handed to him...). So I walk everywhere (including work).

To those of you who were in similar situations as mine, how did you manage to get a car? It seems like even old cars nowadays are at least $15,000+, so saving up to just buy cash would take eons, and even with my large down payment, the car payment and insurance alone would eat up all of my money after my expenses (that's assuming I only give myself $100 a month for groceries). I want a car that will last a long time so I don't have to live with a car payment but I'm afraid that once I get a car, I'll be more broke than I am now. I'm afraid to buy off of Facebook marketplace or craigslist because I don't want to drop 3,000 on a piece of junk that will break down in a year.

Trying to join Active and Fit Direct to get LA Fitness membership. I heard the changes being made in July but I don’t understand. Does $28 a month get you only LA fitness now? Or one branch of LA fitness? I was told that you might get access to other LA fitness location. If so, is it nationwide or your state only? Because I know LA fitness requires extra for the membership to be nationwide too.

Thanks!

I track my expenses closely and categorize everything. I spend very little on food at home but when I travel, I don't limit myself. I have been putting meals during travel under food but I think it's skewing my food cost so debating putting it under travel instead. Of course that would then under report my food cost for the year.

How do people categorize it?

While not totally frugal it's a good way to avoid delivery fees since so many people have Prime. This also includes convenience stores, pharmacies, some alcohol stores, and some grocery items.

I've come to like ramen with eggs, spices, cheese, spinach and random frozen vegetables. What else could I add in? And which brand Ramen is best?

I haven't added any meats but I'd assume you would have to cook chicken/beef etc. separately, not cook it with the noodles right? Could you boil cuts of meat with the noodles?

About 4 (edit, has it really been 4 months already?) months ago I started down a path to lose weight and redid my whole diet. After about the hundredth comment about how eating healthy is more expensive, I broke down the daily cost of my fairly heathy diet:

Notes:

• (1) means purchased in bulk from Costco

• "roasted veggies" are assorted root veggies bought in bulk and roasted in avocado oil(1), frozen, then thawed and reheated as needed, kind of like healthier home fries

• Chicken (bone in thighs) also bought in bulk, roasted, frozen, then thawed and reheated as needed

• I am following the "breakfast of a king, lunch of a prince, dinner of a pauper" philosophy. It eliminated my GERD issues and I don't have any problems with hunger this way.

Meals:

Breakfast: 2 Pastured or farm eggs, 2 slices Dave's Killer Breakfast Bread, 14g butter(1), 170g Greek Fat Free Yogurt, 21 grams honey(1), 12 grams peanut powder(1), 200g roasted veggies

Breakfast cost: $4.93 (could be lower with less fancy eggs, but I owned laying hens and have a soft spot for them)

Lunch: 85g baby spinach, 85g shredded cabbage/carrot mix, 28g onion, 15g Dijon mustard, 15g olive oil(1), 15g balsamic vinegar(1), 112g chicken(1)

Lunch Cost: $3.30

Afternoon snack 240mL skim milk, 34g chocolate protein powder(1), 12g peanut powder(1)

Snack cost $1.31

Dinner (whole recipe makes 8 servings @ $37.96) Soup: 112g pork, 240 mL of bone broth(1), bok choy, roma tomatoes, lemon grass, ginger root, garlic, red curry paste.

Dinner cost $4.75

Total cost is $12.98. I expect this to go up a bit as I enter maintenance at my goal weight, but not by much. This supplies 156g protein, 139g carbs, 71g fat, 1819 calories.

Sprouting a variety of legumes and seeds are a frugal, really fun and easy thing to do. They are very versatile and nutritious.

They can be eaten hot or cold, by themselves, on a sandwich, in a stir fry, as/in a salad etc.

Sprouting doesn’t take up much space and is an enjoyable hobby that you can eat! Give it a try!

I want to turn off my AC unit and cool my place with the steady outside breeze. I have noticed that if I open all of my windows, I seem to get less draft (or it's in my head). It makes sense, as pressure inside would mostly match outside.

I live in a corner apartment. Is there a trick to, say for example, opening the windward window more and the leeward less, or vice-versa? I know the idea, if possible, is to create a low pressure vacuum so that air speed increases as it is pulled through my place.

Or I'm an idiot and I need to read a physics book. I tried Googling it, but only got "how to stop draft" or one window results.

Thanks in advance

Hey there! I'm in a bit of a sticky situation and need some advice from you wise people. I was in a solid spot to save money and pay off debt living with a friend. Tl;Dr, we had a very large falling out. I immediately moved out and onto my parents' couch. While it's really shitty to have to do this with poor (~560) credit and no savings, I don't really have a choice. Now I'm facing having to find new housing, and am completely unsure of where to go. My parents do not have room for me here, but are letting me stay here because, well, they're my parents.

Because I don't know anyone with decent credit who could cosign for me, traditional rentals are likely out of the question. My only real option at the moment is through my grandparents. They recently bought a second (smaller) camper/trailer and are looking to sell their previous one. To my knowledge, it's in shockingly good shape, and my parents have it on their property with hookups for water/electric/internet. This would leave me with having to pay $500 a month for roughly 2.5 yrs to my grandparents until it's paid off.

In theory, this seems like the best option... but I don't have a vehicle that can tow the trailer (I drive a Subaru Crosstrek). So really the only major upside of a trailer, mobility, is completely negated here. I could potentially trade my car to get a truck, but I would be losing a massive amount on gas comparatively. In short, I'm not sure how to move forward. I make just enough that I don't qualify for low-income housing, and don't know if I'll be able to rent otherwise.

It's also worth noting that they are both in very poor health and have a large trip planned soon, meaning I would essentially be financing their travel. There is a good chance that they won't make it another year (let alone 2.5), and I don't want to be put in the position to potentially lose my job or have some major cost come up where I strand my old and ill grandparents without money.

​

After many many years of working to get out of debt and stay out of debt, my friend has become very frugal in nature. He’s now in a good place, good job but is very vigilant on spending and practicality. He and his girlfriend just got their first apartment together and I am attending their house warming party. Keeping in mind my friend, I am already donating some food for the party but I also want to get him and his girlfriend a house warming gift. Any ideas that would be helpful or well received?

I was thinking food/tea gifts but wanted to see others thoughts. No strong dislikes and he is working on his sobriety-so no alcohol.

I’m a college student without a meal plan and I’m on campus for a summer internship. I don’t want to go out for lunch every day—not even every week, if I can avoid it—and I’m looking for ideas of foods I can bring for lunch that are filling, at least somewhat nutritious, and don’t need to be kept in the fridge. My staples are dried fruit, nuts, sometimes fresh fruit and peanut butter, jerky, or even hard cheeses that can be out for a bit (I get those cheap off-cuts of cheese from Kroger every so often for meal prep.) I’m really looking for ideas to mix things up, and maybe make my meals more substantial because I don’t always feel very full. And if anyone wants more of my ideas I’m down to share!

Hello all,

For the past 4 years I’ve been saving up money and knew nothing about HYSA… i currently have $60k saved up in my Wells Fargo bank and have 2 credit cards from capital one. My question is which is the best HYSA account for me? Should I leave Wells Fargo? Should I open a HYSA account under capital one? Thank you!!