Budget hacks, tips and tricks to get you through to 2023

The current cost of living crisis is concerning for most people and for good reason too, the costs of goods and services are at record-breaking highs. But having icey showers, sitting in the dark and not touching the heating all winter are all unsustainable changes.

Whilst we can’t change what’s going on in the country right now, we thought we’d compile some of our top budget hacks to try and help make this winter a little bit easier for you and your loved ones. Read on for our top hacks, many of which we’ve tried and tested ourselves!

The dreaded energy bill

You can’t go anywhere these days without hearing about the rising energy costs, whether it’s on the news, with your family or on social media. Here are some of our top tips for saving money on your energy bills this winter:

• In case you hadn’t heard already, everyone is getting a £400 discount (which is non repayable) to help with your energy bills this winter. The scheme begins this month so you should have already received your first instalment of it, click here to read more about the discount.
• Use the ‘eco’ mode on your appliances (if you have the option to), this option will typically run your machine on a lower speed and often lower temperature, resulting in the use of less electricity. This option comes on most dishwashers, washing machines and tumble driers.
• If you can, get yourself an air fryer! There’s a reason they have soared in popularity in the later part of this year - they are fast becoming one of the most energy efficient ways to cook your food. Research by Utilita in August 2022 revealed that the annual savings of using an air fryer could be up to £279.66 per year.
• Have you heard of shower timers? These little timers can remind you to take shorter showers and will only set you back a couple of quid but are estimated to save the average UK household £218 a year on average!

Too Good To Go

This app deserves a whole section of its own!

Too Good To Go is designed to help combat food waste and give those who use the app the chance to get their favourite food at a more affordable price. You can choose from places local to you that are signed up to the app and it’s definitely worth a look - your favourite pub, restaurant, takeaway or cafe could be there!

The app will tell you how far away the place is and what the bag of food could contain, so all you need to do is reserve your goodies and go to collect them and pay there. You can bag yourself some serious bargains on this app and get delicious fresh food that would otherwise be thrown away for a fraction of its original price.

Little pots of joy

There’s a couple of different bank accounts that have the option to create little pots to help save money (some banks even offer a cash incentive to join them)!

Monzo is a great example of this, if a friend invites you to the app, they offer £5 for you both! Monzo has a space where you can divide your money into different sections which are called pots.These pots are so useful for saving money, you can create different pots and it’s kind of like having your own online piggy banks.

You can name the pots whatever you want and they will be separate from your main bank account, you can also hide your pots so it’s less tempting to break into them and spend the money. Plus, you can even earn interest on your pot balance by setting up a savings pot!

Free food?

You read right!

So many major food chains now offer FREE food or cheap food (no catch, we’ve tested some of them ourselves) for simply doing the bare minimum and downloading their app or something along those lines. Here are some of our favourite offers that we found, you can thank us later:

• Greggs will give you a free bake and hot drink when you sign up to their app (which is also free).
• Krispy Kreme offers a free doughnut just for signing up to their newsletter! Simply pop in your first and last name along with your email address and you’ve secured your free doughnut.
• Taco Bell will award you with a free crunchy taco when you sign up to their app!

You could qualify for free prescriptions

Right now, in the UK, a prescription will set you back £9.35 but you may qualify for free prescriptions.

There are certain reasons why you may qualify for free healthcare with the NHS, to find out if you are eligible you can use the NHS England Tool to check.

Change your water habits

• If you have a dishwasher - USE IT, switching from handwashing to dishwashing saves 6000L a year. If you stack your dishes correctly and pop it on the eco setting, using your dishwasher can be a cheaper alternative to washing your dishes by hand.
• Stop leaving the tap on when you brush your teeth! It seems simple but you’d be surprised how many people still do this and according to WWF, running taps waste as much as 6 litres of water a minute. Think about how much water you could save over time, just with this one simple change.
• In most UK houses, the kettle is always on. But by filling up the kettle for only what you need saves both water and energy. Plus, a lot of kettles now have indicators which show you how much water you need for each cup.
• If you’re a regular bather then swapping some of those baths for showers instead is an easy way to save money on your water bill!
• United Utilities offer a range of free devices which can help lower your water usage and as a result, save money on your water bill, click here to find out more about them. They also have a handy section on their website called GetWaterFit where it will calculate an estimate of your households water usage. In a matter of clicks, they can tell you all the areas where you’re using too much water and how to make changes to your habits to save money.

Package for Sandy

Morrisons incentive which aims to combat period poverty is called Package for Sandy. This campaign has now been rolled across 497 Morrison stores in the UK.

All you need to do is go up to your local Morrisons customer service desk and ask for a package for ‘Sandy’. The worker will then pass over a discrete package of sanitary products, no questions asked! This campaign is aimed to support those who may be struggling for money and in emergency need of sanitary products.

Period poverty is a real problem and it is estimated that currently over 137,000 children across the UK have missed school days due to period poverty and it is only in recent years (2021) that the controversial ‘tampon tax’ was abolished.

Make use of your gym!

If you’re a member of a gym but you’re only using it to exercise then you might want to rethink that… Imagine how much money you could save if you switched to showering at the gym instead of showering at home, even if just for a few times a week?

Wardrobe clearout?

Most of us have those clothes that are just collecting dust and taking up space in our wardrobe and it may seem obvious but why not sell them and bank some money?

Plus, it’s not just Ebay anymore, there are so many options out there for those who want to sell their unworn clothes and make some extra money on the side! Some of our favourites are Vinted and Depop!

Depop is better for those who have small businesses and Vinted is aimed at those who are casual sellers and with Vinted there are no hidden costs or charges meaning that you keep all of the money you make.

Contacts you may find helpful

If you and your loved ones are seriously struggling due to the effects of the recent cost of living crisis, we know that no amount of hacks can help. Here is a list of useful websites and numbers that could be able to help you:

• Don’t let pride take over, if you’re in need of the extra help, click here to find a food bank near you.
• If you’re struggling with your energy bills, click here for help from National Energy Action.
• If you need help and guidance regarding universal credit, click here.

Keep an eye out for part two of our budget hacks!

*All information contained within this article is correct as of 26/10/2022