15 Common Frugal Tips That Aren’t Great Ideas


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Frugal living is great for your finances. However, thrifty habits shouldn’t rob you of your free time, happiness, and comfort. With this in mind, it’s time you dropped these impractical tips. 

Avoiding Hobbies

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Hobbies are essential in life as they boost your physical, social, and mental health. “Hobbies open up the doors to friends, relationships, and learned skills, not to mention the joy and relaxation they bring,” says a poster. Besides, most hobbies are affordable; therefore, dropping them shouldn’t be an option. 

Making Your Own Laundry Detergent

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“It is only worth it to make in large quantities, but then you have to store it somewhere,” outlines a poster. Besides, the “supplies have a high startup cost and then go bad faster than most people practically use them.”

Unplugging Appliances

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Older adults may insist on this, but it only “saves a couple of pennies a year, takes a ton of time, and wears out the outlets.”

Cutting Kitchen Sponge in Half

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It turns out that doing this reduces the cleaning surface area, taking you longer to clean. 

Buying Off-Brand Products

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Also, compromising on some brand products can waste money, making them an unworthy purchase. Many users avoid off-brand toilet paper, paper towels, ketchup, chocolate, and mustard.

Doing Everything Yourself

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While DIY may save you money, it costs you time and energy, and you may not love the results. So, if you can afford it, hire someone else to do the big jobs. A user says, “I painted two bedrooms on my own. Never again.”

Going to Three Grocery Stores in a Week

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This frugal tip may have worked in the past, but now “it’s a huge waste of time and gas, and wears on your car.”

Buying in Bulk

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This popular frugal tip works best for big families. However, if you are single or have a small family, it is better to buy what you need on a monthly or weekly basis. 

Heavy Couponing

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Heavy couponing is time-consuming, and some stores offer decent deals and sales without demanding a coupon. 

Reusing Tea Bags

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You should always expect an awful taste whenever you reuse a tea bag. So why even consider it? 

Setting the Thermostat Too Low

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This isn’t worth it because the low temperatures force you to wear a fleece jacket, a beanie sweater, or mittens and have a warm blanket on the couch. 

A poster says, “They say, ‘Lowering your thermostat 4 degrees can save you $50 per year in energy costs!’ I hear, ‘For just 14 cents a day, your home can be a comfortable temperature.'” 

Making Bread

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Fresh bread is delicious and nutritious since “most breads in stores are loaded with sugar, among other things.” However, baking is time-consuming and not worth it for most people who don’t find this a hobby. 

Getting Cheap Haircuts

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Most times, cheap haircuts mess up your hair and days and are not worth the risk. “I refuse to cheap out on my haircut. It’s an integral part of my appearance and plays a huge role in my confidence,” a commentator states. 

Reusing Unnecessary Stuff

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It’s also not worth reusing or hoarding unnecessary stuff since they only clutter your home. You can keep items that are “hard to get a hold of are expensive to replace,” but not the broken or worn-out ones you’ll never use. 

Buying Cheap Toilet Paper

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Toilet paper shouldn’t be a frugal option because it’s essential to your hygiene. Nevertheless, you could try using a bidet as it helps “toilet paper last 3 to 4 times longer.”

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