It’s time to turn your 2019 saving money goals into reality.
This means, actually going through with your resolution to save more money instead of thinking it’ll happen. (Sorry, but it’s true.)
So don’t overthink it and just start to implement these dead simple ways to save into your life now. $5,294 and more? Achievable.
1. Get Paid for Playing Free Digital Scratch-Offs Anywhere
Don’t bother going to the liquor store to buy physical scratchers (they get expensive too).
Instead, play digital scratchers for free on Lucktastic.
There are a ton of different scratchers you can play, and you can earn both cash and tokens.
Scratched all of them for the day? Don’t worry, there are specific night-time scratchers that are available every night too!
When you want to redeem your earnings, you can choose from:
- Amazon gift cards
- CVS gift cards
- Dunkin’ Donuts gift cards
- Check mailed to you
- Visa gift cards
Lucktastic keeps things free by showing a few ads here and there. It’s so easy, just turn it on the next time you’re binge-watching on Netflix and multi-task!
Bonus: Use tokens to enter the $1 Million Pots of Gold contest from now until March 2019 to win up to $1 million! In addition, they award Amazon gift cards on a daily basis too.
Average savings a year from not spending on lotto tickets/scratchers: $206.69*
2. You Gotta Eat! Get Up to $240 Cash Back in Grocery Savings
It’s simple. All you have to do is take a picture of your grocery receipt and Ibotta will pay you cash.
Here’s how it works:
Before you go to the store, search for your shopping list items in the Ibotta app. After your store visit, take a photo of your receipt to get cash back.
Ibotta is free to download and you’ll also get up to $20 in Welcome Bonuses when you sign up!
Some offers we found:
- 25 cents back on any item
- $3 – $5 back on various wine
- $2 back on KIND Protein Bars
- 25 cents – $4 back on ice cream
- $2 back on Herbal Essence Haircare
Popular stores are Walmart and Target, but Ibotta also works at restaurants, online shopping sites, and at the bar! On average, active Ibotta users save up to $240 a year or more. What would you do with that extra money?
Welcome Bonus: Up to $10
Average savings a month: $20
What it could add up to in a year: $240
Additional Referral Earnings: $5 per referral
3. Stop Paying Full Price on Purchases (Here’s $10 Cash Back)
Everyone buys stuff. But you, you never pay full price. Why, when there are cash back opportunities all around?
Whether you’re a retail therapy or just-the-basics kinda shopper, feel good about your purchases because you can earn some useful money back for them, no matter what you buy.
So who’s been around for 20 years and have over 12 million members because they know what they’re doing?
We love this cash back site for its simplicity and for the fact that you get cash back for the things you’re already purchasing. It’s pretty close to getting free money!
In fact, they’re giving our readers a $10 welcome bonus to anyone that signs up to be a member.
Membership is free and you earn up to 25% cash back at over 2,500+ stores including Amazon, Walmart, Kohl’s, and Sephora. Plus, you’ll find coupons, free shipping codes, and awesome sales.
No need to fill out any rebate forms or redeem points to get your money. You just earn cash and get paid by check or Paypal.
Ebates has pretty sweet sales that will be hard to find anywhere else too. Be sure to sign up now and grab that $10 welcome bonus. Easy!
Welcome bonus: $10
Average savings a month (depends on purchases): $33
What it could add up to in a year: $396
Additional referral earnings: $25 per referral
4. Get the Big Picture – Then Work on Fixing Your Score
Credit Sesame is a free credit monitoring service that helps you improve and maintain your score.
It’s smart to keep an eye on your credit score to make sure it doesn’t fall too much.
Did you know that a low credit score could affect your ability to actually rent an apartment or even get a car? You could also end up paying higher interest on things such as car loans, credit cards, and mortgages. Yea, let’s try to prevent that from happening.
You’ll get an easy-to-read view of your total debt plus everything that is contributing to your current score like credit usage, credit age, inquiries, and payment history. It also comes with personal recommendations to help increase your score.
Credit Sesame alerted me immediately when my score decreased because of a credit card and I was able to fix it right away. It’s free to use so this is definitely a must-have in everyone’s life.
5. Instead of Fake Pennies, Get Real Gift Cards for Your Thoughts
You’ll freely give your opinion but it’s icing on the cake if you get paid for it. Survey Voices is one of the largest market research firms in the world, and are looking for people to share their opinions on global brands, entertainment, advertising and more. You’d be helping companies understand their marketing efforts and even what products should be made.
In exchange, you’ll get paid with Amazon, Starbucks, Target gift cards, Paypal or Visa gift cards after you earn enough points from survey taking. Be sure to confirm your email to get access to surveys!
This will not be the fastest way to earn money, however, it’s as simple as clicking some buttons to earn cash while giving valuable input vs. doing nothing at all.
6. Forget Donating Your Stuff, Make Money Back Instead while Saving at the Same Time
“Does it spark joy?”
If you’ve never read Marie Kondo’s best seller book, perhaps you’ve heard of her Netflix show “Tidying Up with Marie Kondo.”
It’s the cause of all those clothes drawer pictures your friends are posting online with captions like “this show changed my life.” Since its release date, it’s sparked a cleaning frenzy with people donating bags and bags to their local center.
The donations have been so abundant that centers like Goodwill are having trouble accepting them due to lack of space!
So if you’re doing a bit of decluttering too, skip dropping off your unwanted items for free, and sell it to make money on the letgo app instead.
Letgo lets sellers like you post your items for free. You can sell anything from furniture, electronics, clothing, to even cars and handyman services based on your zip code.
You can also peruse as a buyer yourself to save money on secondhand items, and keep an eye on the free items section!
Since sellers and buyers are local, there’s no need to waste money on shipping. Just use the platform to securely communicate and meet up at public places to make the transaction!
So while your home is getting tidied up, recoup some of that money back to your wallet by selling your stuff!
Average earnings in a month: $25 or more depending on your items
What it could add up to in a year: $300
Average savings buying secondhand items: Varies + ability to get free items posted by other sellers
7. Find Reliable Car Insurance That Won’t Break the Bank (And Save $368/Year)
Let’s talk about car insurance.
It’s not a sexy topic, but it’s one of those things you need and is required by your state’s laws.
Plus you’re sharing the same roads with a lot of different people. Distracted people, oblivious people, road-rage people, etc. It’s best to cover yourself when everyone is operating a giant motor vehicle.
And chances are, you’re probably overpaying on your current insurance premium. I know it’s convenient to stick with the same provider because it’s a hassle to deal with finding another. I definitely get it.
However, you can try getting a real-time comparison quote from Solid Quote.
They help match you among 200+ insurance carriers to find the best coverage for your needs.
You’ll also get an Insurability Score in 2 minutes. It’s a neat personalized score between 400-950 that represents your ability to be insured. (Kind of like a credit score but for car insurance and they’ll give tips on how to improve it.)
The higher the score, the more likely you’ll get some pretty awesome rates. (Find out how)
Typically Solid Quote can save drivers up to 15% or more off their current premiums (or $368 a year). Once you see your quote, an Agent will get in touch with you to answer further questions you might have and to finalize it (if you want!).
It’s a pretty simple process, so get a quote to see how much you could be saving on the road.
Average savings a month: $30.66
What it could add up to in a year: $368
8. Most People Forget They Have a Recurring Subscription. Are You Losing Money Too? (Save up to $720/Yr)
They say that 84% of people forget they have a recurring subscription still charging them.
In this case, auto-pay isn’t so great. When you download Truebill, the money management app will display all your current subscriptions (in 2 minutes or less) so you can see it all in one place.
Then you can decide which to cancel, and the app will do it for you! Even that pesky gym membership that’s typically so hard to get out of.
With the app, I realized I still had a very niche streaming service that I haven’t touched in about 7 months. (Thanks, free trial subscription…) I immediately canceled it through Truebill and saved $70 from that sub.
Other things that Truebill can help out on? Their team of experts can help lower your monthly bills by negotiating down rates and even getting you back credit on internet or cable outages.
Average savings a month: $60
What it could add up to in a year: $720
9. Automate Your Current Savings and Save an Average $1,720 a Year
If you’re part of the 80% of Americans that have some sort of savings but could use a little more help, you’re definitely not alone. The key to saving is automation.
You won’t even notice it but Digit will make it happen.
Just link a checking account and their smart algorithm will determine small but safe amounts to withdraw into your separate FDIC-Insured Digit savings account.
Regular savers will get a 1% bonus every three months, netting you some free money!
It’s the perfect set-it-and-forget-it app where the AI will watch your savings back.
You can withdraw your money at any time you need and it’s free to use for the first 30 days. After, it’s just $2.99 a month.
Average savings in a month (varies): $144 or more
What it could add up to in a year: $1,728 or more
Quarterly bonus: 1% on your total savings amount
Additional Referral Earnings: $5 per referral
10. Binge on Food, Entertainment, Health & Tech News TV for Money (Up to $200 a Month)
If you’re a video junkie too, become an Inbox Dollars member where you can watch their TV and Videos section that ranges from Trending News, Entertainment, Food, Health, Tech, and even the latest World News to earn some cash. You’ll also get $5 as a sign-up bonus too!
They set it up in playlists though and they’ll tell you how long it takes as it can range from a few minutes to half an hour. Tip: You can set it to Play, open up another browser tab and let the videos run while you continue doing something else if you’re multi-tasking!
Playlists and earning potential can change, but it’s possible to earn up to $200 a month, watching videos!
Welcome Bonus: $5
Potential earnings a month: Up to $200
What it could add up to in a year: $2,400
Additional Referral Earnings: 10% of your referral’s earnings
*Average lotto savings statistic source: LendEdu.com
*Savings Account performance source: TheHustle.co
