Who doesn't love a good bargain? Getting a good deal always
feels great, and there are some things you can almost always get at a discount.
Here are 10 things you can avoid ever paying full price for.
Of course, with the right timing, coupons,
and haggling
skills, you can pretty much go through life never paying full price
for anything—and that's awesome. But there are some things that are so easy to
get cheaply that it's silly to pay full price. This is a list of those things.
A bit of planning can save you a ton of money when it comes
to buying throughout the year. Here's your comprehensive, always up-to-date
guide on … Read…
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ensure… Read…
Some people love to haggle, while others don't (or they just
don't know how). Founder of Get Rich Slowly J.D. Roth explains why he loves… Read…
10. Furniture
New furniture is almost always more expensive than it needs
to be. You can easily get cheaper furniture without sacrificing quality—it's
all about knowing where to look. Places like Craigslist, thrift stores, and
consignment shops are great
bets, but if you want
something a little fresher, you can still save money by waiting
until furniture goes on sale—most often in January
and July.
If it's office furniture you're looking for, you'll probably have even better
luck searching Craigslist for lightly used items, but you can also find sales
in-store in May
and August.
Photo by Frank Jania.
9. Clothing
Whether you need a new wardrobe for your job or you're just trying to
dress a little better, we all need new clothes from time to time.
But if you're willing to wait a bit and monitor the stuff you want, you can
almost always get it for much cheaper. At almost any store, clothing will go on
sale at the end of a given season—sometimes as much as 60 or 70% off. Find what
you like and monitor it until you get closer to the end of the season—just make
sure they still have your size in stock (outlet malls are great for this, too).
Of course, you can also shop for used
clothes, which is particularly handy for kids' clothing. Kids grow
so fast that they only end up wearing things a few times before they grow out
of them, so it's a good idea to shop thrift or consignment stores. Photo by Gabriela
Pinto.
This works if they carry your size: if not, then tough luck.
Shops like TJ Maxx and ROSS and a dozen others depending on
your locale are great places to go if you care about name brands but aren't an
idiot who pays full prices / needs to be on the cutting edge of the current
fashion season. I work at home, and occasionally I have to fly in to the office
a few times a year and wear dress clothes. Since my size can fluctuate, and
sometimes I've just let my dress clothes go to donations, it's a cheap way to
pick up something that looks expensive to make a good impression in the office.
Dear Lifehacker,I admit that I'm not the snappiest dresser.
I know how to keep my clothes clean and ironed and whatnot, but I don't always…
Read…
The Get Rich Slowly blog rounds up 18 tips for buying used
clothing, something that's becoming increasingly palatable to many looking to
stretch … Read…
8. Appliances
Appliances follow many of the same rules as the other items
on this list. Buy them at
the right time, when new models come out and the old models get discounted.
Haggle if you
can, and skip the extended warranty (or see if you can get one for
free). Wise Bread also has a bunch of other tips for saving, like
watching out for scratch-and-dent discounts. Often, you can get a huge discount
if something has a cosmetic flaw, even if you wouldn't be able to see that flaw
once you installed it in your home. Plus, lots of stores price match, so do your research before heading
out and you should be able to get a pretty good deal. Photo by KOMUnews.
If you are in a big city, there are often appliance
refurbish / 2nd hand stores. Mythbusters (in San Francisco!) went to one such
on Cesar Chavez st. for their "spin cycle of death" myth.
7. Books and
Magazines
Books and magazines aren't particularly expensive items, but
they're things you can almost always get cheaper than you find them new on the
shelves. Used books are a great buy because books can withstand a lot, and you
can buy almost any book used on Amazon. Alternatively, you can go digital and find ebooks
for free or cheap too. If you read any magazines, it's often significantly
cheaper to subscribe, even if you only read two or three issues a year! And no
matter what you're reading—books or magazines—you can often find them for free
or cheap from your local library (among many, many
other things). Photo by Johanna
Billingskog.
Amazon unveiled their Kindle Lending Library for Amazon
Prime members last week, but even if you're a Prime member, the new Lending
Library only … Read…
In ancient times, there were buildings in local communities
that contain a collection of books that people could borrow for free. You may
not realize … Read…
6. Video Games
Unless you're getting a game on launch day because you absolutely
have to play it right now—a feeling we're very familiar with—there's no reason
to get a video game at full price. You can often find used console games at
nice discounts. Certain places like Amazon have sales every once in awhile too.
PC games are even easier—if you've ever shopped during the Steam Summer
Sale, you've probably stopped paying full price entirely, because
you can load up on games once or twice a year for pennies on the dollar and
play those games for the next few months. Just remember there are other places
to get deals besides Steam, too. Of course, you can also save money
by just playing five year old games,
too. Photo by Matt.
Steam's annual Summer Sale is on now, but before you go and
empty your wallet, here are some helpful tips to make sure you get the most for
your … Read…
Steam is easily the best platform out there for PC gamers right
now and when it comes time for the Steam Sales, everyone rejoices. However,
Steam… Read…
5. Groceries
Saving money on groceries is easier than you think—you don't
have to become a crazy coupon clipper that tries to eat on $1 a day. Almost any
grocery store you visit will have a loyalty card that gets you coupons and
discounts every time you shop, so you should absolutely sign up for those at
every store you shop at. From there, it's just a matter of planning your
meals around the deals. Being
flexible in what you buy can help too—especially when it comes to
buying generic brands (and there are certain
things you should always buy generic). Photo by greggavedon.com.
For somewhat more exotic ingredients Asian groceries may (or
may not) have them cheaper. Watch for sales at 99 Ranch or similar Asian
supermarkets to stock up. Also, many people find Chinatown to be cheaper for
just vegetables, ginger, and such items.
As much of a privacy freak that I am, this doesn't sit well
with me.
Everyone could stand to save a little money on groceries,
but doing it while still eating good food is a challenge--to say the least. It
doesn't … Read…
Many of us don't think too much about what we throw into our
grocery carts—or how much it all costs. After all, we have to eat! But for
most… Read…
Dear Lifehacker, Your article on brand loyalty got me
thinking: I spend a lot of money on brand name stuff all the time, with no real
reason behind… Read…
4. Cars
You've probably already heard that you should never pay
sticker price for a car, and it's entirely true. Haggling helps, though you
should also know which fees to
avoid, what a dealer
pays for the car, and—of course—the best time
to buy (which is at the end of the month, anytime during the fall
after new models have come out). You might also consider buying used, since
most cars lose a ton of value as soon as you drive them off the lot—even a
barely used car will net you serious savings. Photo by Alden Jewell.
Don't forget partial ownership possibilities such as ZipCar
or CityCarShare. If you're in a city with bad parking situation it may NOT be
logical to OWN a car.
3. Restaurant
Dining out can get expensive, but it's really easy to save
money. Obviously you can search the newspaper or coupon books for discounts,
but daily deal sites like Restaurants.com,
Groupon, and others are
also great ways to get cheaper meals. Some restaurants even have loyalty
programs that can save you money. Check out our guide to
saving money on restaurants for more (and make sure you eat
healthily while you're there). Photo by Steven Depolo.
Eating out is one of the many pleasures of life and a great
convenience when you're too tired or swamped to cook, but it's also one of the…
Read…
Eating at a restaurant and eating healthy are rarely
complementary activities. In fact, eating out is often cited as the primary
reason for an… Read…
2. Vacations
It's amazing how much you can save on a vacation with a
little research. You probably already know a lot of tips, like searching for
airfare and hotels on travel
booking sites like Kayak or Hipmunk or using travel-based
rewards credit cards. You can do a lot of other things, too—like we
mentioned in #3, daily deal sites like Groupon are great for restaurants and activities. You can also
save a ton of
money by volunteering on your trip—which is actually a lot more fun
than it sounds. If you really want a taste of what you can do, check out
Matthew Kepnes' guide to
pulling off a 10-day overseas vacation for $700. You'd be shocked at
what you can do. Photo by Moyan Brenn.
If you're thinking about getting away from home for a little
vacation, or you're planning a big summer trip for you and the family, odds… Read…
Any good rewards card will promise you points that you can
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even cash in … Read…
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tickets, vacations are an expensive undertaking. Sure, with careful planning,
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1. Technology
Being a technophile gets expensive after awhile—those
gadgets aren't cheap! Luckily, it's actually really easy to save money if you
know what you're doing. Buying
refurbished is the easiest way to instantly save money, and knowing what
you actually need can go a long way too. We also recommend skipping the
extended warranty and selling your
old gadgets for as much as possible. Check out our top 10
money-saving tech tips for more info on how to squeeze every dollar
out of your gadget habit.
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