10 Family Budget Tips for Saving Money in 2024 - Expert Advice

If you’ve got the sinking feeling things are getting more expensive, you’re not alone.

And according to CNN Business, prices for food, transportation, and household furnishings are on the rise.

Supply chain disruptions during the COVID-19 pandemic combined with increased demand for certain goods as more and more people get vaccinated contributed to a notable jump in prices. Mixed with a higher-than-usual unemployment rate, the higher cost of living might have you and your family scrambling for ways to reduce your expenses.

Whether you’re dealing with job loss, stagnant wages, or simply want to save money, there are things you can do to cut your costs and make your family life a little more budget friendly.

Nick Bryant - Published 7 Days Ago

1. MAKE A FAMILY BUDGET TOGETHER

Saving money doesn’t just mean you end up with more in your checking account and savings account. It also gives you a chance to teach your kids valuable personal finance lessons.

One way to help your kids develop financial literacy and know-how is to make budgeting a family affair. Every month or so, sit down as a family and talk about your expenses, income, and savings. You can also talk about debit and credit card use at the meeting.

More important, use the meeting as a time to make a budget for family spending. For example, you can show your kids what’s in the family bank account and talk about the expenses coming up for the month.

You can also work with your kids to help them make a personal budget and set savings goals.

For example, maybe one of your kids wants to save up for the latest video game system or hopes to buy a birthday present for a friend. Teaching them how to budget and the value of being frugal helps instill positive lifelong money habits.

Pro tip: If you don’t have a budget set up, get started with Tiller. They’ll automatically pull all of your monthly transactions into a Google Sheet or Excel document so you can see where your money is going each month.

2. TRIM YOUR FAMILY'S GROCERY BILL

In May 2023, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) estimated the average family of four with two kids under age 5 spent between $599 and $1,169 per month on food at home.

Families with two kids between the ages of 6 and 11 spent between $687.40 and $1370.10 per month on food at home.

Depending on how much you spend at the grocery store each month, there might be significant room for savings. Some of the ways you can trim your spending on food include:

• Making a Shopping List. A shopping list saves money by helping you avoid buying products you don’t need. The simplest way is to track consumables as you use them. Keep a magnetic notepad on the fridge and jot down what you need as you run out. If you’ve got an Apple HomePod or Amazon Echo device, you can also create shopping lists by voice command.

• Reading Sales Flyers. Review each store’s flyer and match what’s on sale with what’s on your list or plan meals around sale items. Or you can download Flipp to see sales flyers and make grocery lists by tapping to add sale items on the flyer to your list. It’s sometimes more cost-effective to visit multiple stores in one week to get the lowest prices possible.

• Using a Cash-Back App. Install a receipt-scanning app such as Fetch Rewards or Ibotta on your smartphone to take advantage of cash-back offers from grocery and discount stores. After grocery shopping, scan your receipts, and the app applies any special offers to your account.

• Starting to Meal-Plan. Meal planning is deciding what you’ll eat for all or most meals for the week so you always have food ready to go. It helps you avoid last-minute fast-food runs, maximize your purchases (so you waste and spend less), and even eat healthier on a budget.

• Avoiding Grocery Shopping When Hungry or Stressed. Hunger and stress can make you do strange things, like buying lots of chocolate or gimmicky processed foods. Plan to go to the store when you’re well-fed and relaxed. That way, you can stick to your list and not overspend on food you don’t need.

• Trying a Pantry Challenge. Part of saving money on groceries is making sure your family consumes everything you purchase. Every month or so, hold a pantry challenge during which you use up as many pantry goods as possible before you shop again. A pantry challenge cuts down on waste and lets you get a sense of how much you’re overbuying.

• Reducing Waste. A 2020 study published in the Nutrition Journal found that the average American spends $1,300 on wasted food each year. Adopting better grocery shopping habits is one way to cut back on wasted food and money. Make a list of everything you throw out without using, such as spoiled leftovers or soggy lettuce, to get a sense of the full scale of the issue.

3. NEVER PAY FULL PRICE ON PRODUCTS AND SERVICES

There’s always a deal to be had if you can wait to buy. So whether you need to purchase new school clothes for your children or a new coffee maker for the kitchen, it pays to shop around.

Apps like Capital One Shopping can even direct you to the stores with great prices.

But you can also do research on your own and keep tabs on the prices of things you frequently buy, such as groceries, using a price book.

It’s even easier when shopping online. Type the brand and product description, such as “Conair hair dryer,” into Google to see what pops up. The shopping feature (in the navigation at the top of the search page) lists retailers selling the same product and the prices each one charges. The thing you want to buy could be available for less at a competing store.

Free browser extensions like Honey, Capital One Shopping, and Rakuten can also let you know if there’s a coupon or better price on something you’re browsing online.

Capital One Shopping compensates us when you get the Capital One Shopping extension using the links we provided.

4. CUT BACK ON SUBSCRIPTIONS

Netflix, Disney+, HBO, Spotify, Audible, OwlCrate: It’s easy to let the number of subscriptions and subscription boxes your family has multiply. While one or two subscription services won’t break the bank, costs start to add up as you add more.

Have a family meeting and talk about your subscriptions. Do you really need to subscribe to every streaming service? Are you using Spotify enough to justify the paid version, or can you survive with the ad-supported free one? Do you need that monthly book club, or can you head to the library once per month instead?

5. NEGOTIATE WITH YOUR SERVICES PROVIDERS

When’s the last time you looked at your cable, Internet, or cellphone bill? If it’s been a while since you signed up for service, there are probably more affordable options out there.

You could get a better deal by calling your service provider and asking if they have any discounts available. Or you could try switching providers to save money.

Also consider whether you’re making full use of the features and services you’re paying for. If you have a lot of streaming subscriptions, do you need to pay for cable TV? Does your family need the fastest Internet speed available, or would you survive on something a bit slower (and cheaper)?

The same is true of your cellphone bill. If you’re paying for unlimited data, review your statement to see how much data you really use.

It could be a lot less than you think, especially if you have access to Wi-Fi or usually go online with a computer. If you aren’t using lots of data monthly, switch to a lower-priced plan that limits your data use.

Pro tip: If you don’t have the time to call each of your service providers, there are several bill negotiating services available that will do all the work for you.

6. SAVE ENERGY AT HOME

Trimming your utility bills is another way to boost your budget and save money.

Some energy-saving options, such as installing new plumbing fixtures or upgrading your HVAC system, cost a lot upfront. But there are also plenty of low-cost or free ways to lower your family’s energy use.

Some energy-saving habits to teach your family include:

• Turning Off the Water. Teach your kids to turn off the water when they’re brushing their teeth or washing dishes rather than letting it run. You can make it easy for them to remember by putting little stickers on the wall or mirrors near the sinks.

• Switching Off Lights and Devices. Another way to lower energy costs is to turn things off when no one’s using them. For example, turn off lights and televisions when they’re not in use. Put little notes by light switches to remind your kids (and adults) to flip the switch as they leave a room.

• Adjusting the Thermostat. Teach your children the value of putting on a sweater when it’s cold out and wearing shorts and T-shirts when it’s warm. You can also set thermostat rules to ensure no one turns it up or down too much. A smart thermostat learns your family’s habits and can start to adjust itself, saving you money on bills. You can also program the thermostat to save even more. You can find models for less than $100.

7. BUY REUSABLE GOODS

Buying products you can reuse repeatedly isn’t just good for your family’s budget. It’s also good for the planet.

For example, buying Stasher bags can help you cut back on or eliminate the use of single-use zip-close plastic bags. The bags cost more than a box of plastic baggies upfront, but you only need to buy them once.

Other reusable products that can help you cut down on single-use plastic and throw-away products include:

• Metal reusable water bottles

• Beeswax wrap

• Dishcloths

• Cloth napkins

• Diapers

In some cases, you don’t even have to purchase reusable goods. For example, empty jam and salsa jars make convenient leftover storage, drinking glasses, or vases.

8. GO THRIFTING

There’s so much stuff already out there that there’s very little need to buy anything brand new. That’s good news for your family budget, as purchases at thrift stores or secondhand stores tend to cost a lot less than new merchandise.

To save money on kids clothing and shoes, buying secondhand just makes sense. It’s likely your 4-year-old will outgrow a pricey pair of brand-new sneakers before the second wear, so why pay full price?

Clothes and shoes aren’t the only things it makes sense to buy secondhand. You can easily find things like books, kitchen gear, toys, furniture, and tools in good condition for less if you buy used.

If you’re looking for something specific and don’t want to spend hours digging through local thrift stores or consignment shops, you can try online shopping. For example, eBay is a good source for pretty much anything, while Amazon is a safe bet for used books, movies and TV, and music.

Also, your family’s unwanted belongings can earn you extra cash. For example, take your kids’ clothing to a consignment store when they outgrow them or hold a yard sale to sell clothing and household goods you no longer need.

9. HOLD A SWAP

If you’ve got kids, you probably know other families with children. And those families are likely looking to start saving money too. You can all make your saving efforts a little more community-focused by holding a clothing or stuff swap.

The rules of a swap are simple. Nothing is for sale, and everyone has to bring something. They can take home what they need.

You can focus the swap on kids’ items only, such as back-to-school supplies or toys. Or you can open it up and let parents swap stuff they want too, such as adult clothing, kitchen and dining necessities, and home decor.

10. GET STUFF FOR FREE

If you can’t find enough people to hold a swap, another way to get what you need while saving a ton of money is to join a local free group or buy-nothing group.

You can post what you need to the group, and if someone has it, they can let you know. Or if you have things you want to give away, you can share details about those with the group, and someone who needs them can take them off your hands.

Along with joining a free group, you can usually find people giving away free stuff on Nextdoor, Freecycle, or Facebook Marketplace.

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