The leaves are turning brown, everyone’s raving about pumpkin-spiced coffees, and the days are shorter. That means Christmas is just around the corner, and many of us will be preparing for the most expensive time of the year. Combine that with the larger-than-usual increases to the cost of fuel and food that many of us in the UK are seeing right now, and it's easy to see why many of us are feeling the pinch.
Shopping savings image credit unsplash
Thankfully, there are some simple ways to save money on many of the essentials you’ll be purchasing in the coming months.
Groceries
We all need to eat, but the price of food is on the up at the moment. Thankfully, there are a number of things we can do to cut the cost of grocery shopping.
Firstly, do an audit of your cupboards since you’ll likely find plenty of unused jars, tins, and packets that you can use to rustle up some tasty dishes. Also, check your freezer as there’s bound to be stuff in there you can use up.
Next, create a meal plan. Incorporate the things you already have and work out what you need to buy. This will help to prevent you from buying things you don’t end up using.
Also, remember to use store loyalty cards and consider taking advantage of supermarket Christmas savings schemes for a little cash boost.
Contact Lenses
If you fall into the 75% of the population that need some form of vision correction, chances are, you probably wear contact lenses for at least some of the time. Contacts can look better and be more comfortable, furthermore don't mist up when you go from the cold outdoors to the warm indoors, or while you're drinking a coffee.
However, buying contacts from traditional high street opticians can be a costly ordeal. Thankfully, like with many other products and services, the internet can help you cut down on this expense.
Just by ordering cheap contact lenses online, you can save as much as 45% and have the convenience of them being delivered right to your door. If you've never done it before, it can be a little daunting but leading online contact retailers stock all the brands you're familiar with, including Acuvue, Clariti, and Dailies so you can trust the quality you'll receive.
Petrol
Almost all of us have access to a car, even if we don’t own one. It’s how most of us commute to work, how we get to the shops, and how we meet our friends. Therefore, buying petrol or diesel is a necessity.
As with food, the prices we pay at the pumps has been climbing and climbing in recent months and doesn’t look like it will abate anytime soon.
Of course, we can reduce the amount we spend on fuel by cutting down on car use, but for most of us, that’s not possible. Instead, you can use the Petrol Prices app which lets you see the prices offered by all of your nearby filling stations. According to its developers, it saves people an average of £200 a year - an amount that’s not to be sniffed at!
Also like with groceries, using store loyalty cards can help to earn a little back on your spending too. Tesco, Morrisons, and Sainsbury’s, as well as several energy companies like Shell, all have reward cards.
You can also reduce the amount of fuel you use while driving by removing any unnecessary weight from the boot, checking the tyres are pumped up to the right pressure and driving more smoothly so that you accelerate at a slower rate and brake less sharply. According to Money Saving Expert, this can save you up to 20% on fuel costs.