7 Best Money-Saving Tips You Can Apply in 2021

In less than two weeks, we'll be heading to a new year, where it gives us more hopes than ever after what happened in 2020.

If you've been affected by the pandemic, there are certain things you can do to get yourself back on track financially so you'll have a better year in 2021.

1. Pay off Your Credit Cards

Most people don't intentionally pay off their credit card debt but if you want to save more money, first you need to take massive actions to pay them off.

For so long I didn't do anything with my credit cards (yes, I had more than one) other than paying the minimum fee every month because I thought it's something that I can pay off later. But the more I put it off, the less peace and freedom I had. So not only I couldn't save any money but I also had to stay in a job that I hated.

2. Cut off Unnecessary Subscriptions

The Netflix subscription you pay every month but never get time to watch any shows? Cut it off. The Instagram planner you've subscribed to a long time ago but never use? Let it go.

You may not realize how much you can save from this type of activity that seems small. But when you calculate it for the whole year, you'll then think to use that money for something else instead. Something that gives more meaning in your life.

3. Open a Separate Saving Account

It's harder to save your money in one bank account that you use for getting grocery every week as well, to avoid it gets mixed up and ends up not saving money at all, try to open a new one dedicated only for the saving purpose. 

I personally found this approach to be very helpful. It lets me know specifically how much money I have in my saving account every the of the month.

4. Adopt a Minimalist Lifestyle

Have you ever wondered why more and more people nowadays are trying to be a minimalist? If you didn't know yet, there are more benefits you can reap aside from, of course, an aesthetic look.

Adopting the minimalist lifestyle means you'll tend to spend less on clothes, electronics, and other stuff. You'll learn how to be enough and use what you have instead and when you do want to purchase something, you know it's the thing that you truly need.

5. Track Your Expenses Daily

Money tracker like Mint which I currently use can help you track every single penny that goes out from your wallet so next time you do budgeting, you know what you truly need instead of buying new things for the sake of it. 

This one activity literally doesn't take you more than 10 minutes to log in and track your expenses at the end of the day. Yet it'll help you allocate your money to better places for the upcoming months.

6. Be More Mindful with What You Eat

Food can be your biggest expense especially if you are a food hunter like me. But I found it easier to reduce the spending by changing the mindset about how healthy actually certain food for us, rather than just cutting out everything at all once.

Instead of eating out every day, try to cook or maybe even try to plant your own food. There are hundreds of guides you can watch on YouTube on how to adopt a plant-based lifestyle. One of them is the Pick Up Limes channel by Sadia that you may want to check out. 

7. Spend Less Time on Social Media

It's not surprising that social media can affect our wants because of what we see other people use or have. So to avoid unnecessary purchases, reduce the time you spend there, and focus on what you truly need in a day to day life instead. 

Those are 7 saving-money tips that if applied properly, there's a higher chance that you'll close the end of 2021 strong and more financially secured than ever.