🔎 Disclosure: WE DON’T SELL ANY COURSES. Money Vice is reader-supported. When you buy through our links, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. The ideas presented on this siteare opinions and are presented for entertainment purposes only. We’re not licensed financial advisors. The information presented should not be construed as financial or legal advice. Always do your own due diligence.
1. Hide Your Debit Card for a Week
Have you ever noticed how easy it is to swipe your card without thinking?
One coffee here, one snack there, and boom. Your balance looks like it got mugged overnight.
I once tried leaving my card at home for a week, and honestly, it felt like I was detoxing.
I had to actually decide if walking to the ATM was worth the purchase. Spoiler: most of the time it wasn’t.
Cash makes you feel the pain of spending in a way that a quick swipe never does.
👉 Here's How You'll Do It: Leave your debit card at home and only carry $40 in cash for the week. Track your spending with an app like Rocket Money.
2. Use Cash Jars for Small Daily Expenses
Remember when grandma had cookie jars full of coins? Turns out, she was onto something.
Having a jar for food, coffee, or even “fun money” works like a cheat code.
It’s simple: when the jar’s empty, you’re done spending.
No overdrafts, no accidental “oops, I bought sushi again.”
It feels old-school, but man, it’s powerful.
👉 Here's How You'll Do It: Set up 3 jars labeled food, coffee, and fun. Drop $20 in each at the start of the week and stop spending once they’re empty.
3. Cancel Trials Before They Charge You
Ever sign up for a free trial and forget about it? Yeah, we all have.
That “free” trial ends up costing you more than your Netflix bill.
Companies literally bank on you forgetting, that’s their entire business model.
Here’s the hack: cancel right after signing up. You still get the trial days, but you won’t get caught in the trap.
And if you do forget, apps like Rocket Money will snitch on your subscriptions faster than your nosy neighbor.
👉 Here's How You'll Do It: The moment you start a trial, hit “cancel” in your account settings. Apps like Rocket Money or Truebill help track and cancel forgotten ones automatically.
4. Borrow Tools Instead of Buying
You don’t need to own a power drill unless you’re secretly building a spaceship in your garage.
Most tools sit in a dusty corner, used once every blue moon.
Instead of dropping $80 at Amazon, check if your library lends tools. Yup, some libraries do that now.
And if not, ask your friends. Trust me, they’ll lend it. No one is emotionally attached to a screwdriver.
Why buy something that you’ll only use once when borrowing costs you zero?
👉 Here's How You'll Do It: Check your local library or tool-lending program online, or simply ask a neighbor or friend before buying. Sites like Nextdoor make this super easy.
5. Turn Hobbies Into Money-Saving Skills
That hobby you call “just for fun”? It can save you real cash.
Cooking means fewer takeouts.
Fixing bikes means no repair shop bills.
Even learning to sew can save you from tossing out clothes with a tiny rip.
You don’t need to monetize every hobby. Sometimes, just using it to save money is enough.
And who knows, it could eventually turn into a side hustle.
👉 Here's How You'll Do It: Pick one hobby and use it for savings this month. Try cooking three meals at home using free recipes on YouTube.
Hi! I’m the founder of Money Vice and a passionate personal finance enthusiast. I started this site to help people across America save more with the least difficulty, get rid of debt, and to start putting their money to work (in the easiest way possible).
