I was recently asked by my friends over at Daily Trade Alert to put together a series of articles on how exactly I live so frugally. See, the secret behind my ability to be in a position to retire in my early 30s has been living well below my means. Can’t invest what you don’t have. And you can’t keep what you’re spending. The more you can save, the more you can invest. And the less you spend, the less passive income you need to cover your lifestyle.
This is the first article in the five-part series. The series focuses on real, actionable ideas to save money. And we’re going way beyond just cutting down on the daily latte here. I hope you enjoy!
I’ve lived extremely frugally for years now.
A thoughtful approach to spending has been a key component to the overall lifestyle that has allowed me to retire decades before most people.
If you’re not familiar with my story, I retired in six years on a $50k salary – going from below broke at 27 years old to retired at 33.
But nothing I did is off limits to you or anyone else.
Everything I did (and still do) to save money can be replicated by anyone.
To prove that point, I’m going to discuss five real-life changes I’ve made over the years to my own spending.
Image courtesy of: Sira Anamwong at FreeDigitalPhotos.net.
I agree that food cost are a large part of my budget. Finding ways to save on food can help out a lot. Just going out to eat cost a lot. When we do eat out, water and dollar tacos are great. And buying in bulk can save a lot, as long as the items do not spoil and get throw away.
DM,
Indeed. Food can be a killer. It’s funny, though, because it just doesn’t take much to satiate us or provide nutritional value.
Thanks for dropping by!
Cheers.
The old staple Peanut Butter and Jam ( or Jelly as most people seem to call it). I ate my share of those lol.
Another cheap meal I do : Boil a 3/4 cup of macaroni and can tomato soup. Mix in enough tomato soup and then but rest of can in fridge covered with tin foil. Have to cook macaroni for each time and you can get 3 to 4 meals out of a can of tomato soup.
Another is to cut back on meat. Restaurants is where you really feel it. Even fast food, for a Big Mac Combo costs like $8.20 CDN here. Seems like a few years ago, it was $4.00 cheaper. Some of the restaurants here charge $50 for a steak.
IP,
Love me some PB&J. 🙂
A Big Mac meal is pretty expensive up that way. I typically do the cheaper fare. I’ll grab, say, a McChicken and substitute honey mustard for mayo. Just a few less calories. When I do the Big Mac, I usually have a coupon. It then ends up being, like, $5.00 or something for the meal. Not too bad. But it’s not something I do all the time.
Thanks for adding that!
Best regards.
love your blog! awesome!
For breakfast I love porridge with fruit and nuts, super-healthy and cheap, I also love spaghetti with roasted onions and lots of grated parmesan cheese 🙂 I cook from scratch, saves me tons of money.
Maxi,
Thanks so much. Really appreciate that!
Sounds like you have a great thing going there. Also love spaghetti. So cheap and tasty. That was one of the meals I highlighted when I was featured on Today a few years back.
Oatmeal is another favorite of mine. You can get massive bags of it. Pretty healthy and cheap. Although, I do like to add a good chunk of sugar or brown sugar. 🙂
Cheers!
Thanks Jason for the ideas. Where do you get your 10 lb bags of rice? I was looking on Amazon myself.
My favorite breakfast is oatmeal & eggs. Can’t go wrong with those. Also eat lots of sweet potatoes and black beans. Those are healthy. The thing that kills me is meat, although I found some decent stuff at Trader Joes for $4.99/lb.
10,
Indeed. Meat can be a killer. If I were a vegetarian or something, I’d probably spend even less on food. As it stands, I’m pretty happy with my food spending. I honestly believe that eating out of the house is what really hurts most people. If you can cut that down and be reasonable with your grocery spending, you’re probably going to be okay.
As for the rice, it’s available at most grocery stores around me. Pretty common. You can also buy the big bags online from any of the major stores (Walmart, Amazon, etc.).
Cheers!
I do the chicken breasts and rice or something similar as well. Easy to cook, and not expensive if you buy in bulk. Eating good doesn’t have to be expensive if you don’t want it to be. If you’re really on a budget, just cook up some beans and rice.
As mentioned above, oatmeal is a great breakfast. Cheap, easy, and you can spice it up easily by adding a little cinnamon, fruit and nuts to make it taste really good and fill you up.
GFY,
Definitely agreed. Eating well doesn’t have to cost a lot of money. I believe it’s eating out of the house that gets most people. If you can limit or eliminate that part of the budget, and be reasonable about your eating at home, you’ll probably be just fine. I actually have a few more tips and tricks that I’ll probably address at a later date. Some of my ideas can be extreme for some, but retiring in your 30s is also extreme. So it all depends on what you want.
Thanks for adding that!
Best regards.
I tend to spend too much on food and what is worse, here in Australia it can get quite expensive for a night out. I try to keep these nights to a minimum. The way I look at it… If I can save $50 from not going out and wasting my money, then that is money I could use to buy shares instead and make me money. All the best.
BHL,
Absolutely. Every dollar not spent is a dollar that can be saved and invested. The more money you can save, the more you can invest. And the less you spend, the less you need to live off of. It all works together. 🙂
Cheers!
I moved to the Philippines and have my gf do the cooking. She cooks rice 3x a day. At an average cost of 92 cents per kilo we get about 8 meals out of one kilo. Total food costs are 11.5 cents per meal that feeds two.
Lobo,
Wow. I don’t think I can match your expenses over there. That’s fantastic!
I was in Thailand not too long ago. It’s super cheap to eat over there, too. I prefer living in the US for overall quality of life concerns, but there’s no doubt that the cost of living in some countries (like the Philippines) is pretty desirable. There’s no doubt in my mind that I could live a pretty decent life on about $750/month in Thailand. Plenty of rice, though. 🙂
Best regards!