Are you spending more money than you want? Often people end up complaining about their spending and fewer savings. Managing income and expense is no joke. It needs some effort, especially when your income is low.

Here are 12 tips to cut spending that could help you save money instead of spending your cash as it comes in.

1. Make a Budget – Living on a budget may seem hard at first, but if you’re having trouble getting spending under control, using a budget to set limits is a good place to start. If you need a lot of help controlling your dollars, an easy option is to give every dollar a count.

2. Use Only Cash for Payment – Allow yourself a certain amount of money every week and spend only that amount. Unless you’re constantly checking your finances, there’s no way you can keep up-to-date with what you’ve really spent if you keep paying with your credit or debit cards.

3. Use Public Transportation/Cycle/Walk – If you have the option to use public transportation or cycle, you can save quite a bit of money on gas, parking, and maintenance. Each time you leave the car behind, you’ll be saving money. If the place you’re going is close, prefer to walk.

4. Avoid Upgrading your phone – We see how often people use to upgrade their mobile phones. Sometimes we see people talking on the phone and discussing changing their phones. Well, if your phone is working fine, then why do you need a new one? In this time of technology, you might feel like getting every mobile piece that has exciting new features, but you really don’t. If you handle the current phone with good care, it should last you at least 4 to 5 years before it stops working.

5. Find a Less Expensive Place – If you are living in a rented house, then your biggest monthly expense is your rent. If your current rent is more than 25% of your take-home pay, then you might need to reconsider finding a cheaper place. If you are willing to sacrifice some facilities to spend a few hundred dollars less each month, then moving to a less expensive place will help you to save a very good amount every year.

6. Cancel Non-Necessarily Club Memberships – Look out for expenses like a gym membership, your membership with a local country club, and so on. Now think how often you really use these services? If you’re using a gym membership once a week or a country club membership less than twice a month, you’re likely throwing away money. Try canceling any membership you’re using very often. It will help you to save a good amount.

7. Reduce Eating Out or Getting Takeout – Take-out and dining out can be a nice luxury and time saver for a busy family, but it costs good money. Instead, look at other options to cook easy and quick food at home. When you cook at home, make some extra and freeze it for future meals. You can also use leftover food and make a new dish out of it. Some people may be uncomfortable with leftover food but there’s nothing wrong with it.

8. Reconsider your Insurance – Whether it’s life, health, or travel insurance, shop around, compare prices, and make sure you’re getting the best deal for the least amount of money. Keep in mind that the cheapest does not always equal the best but finding and comparing the deals might help you to save some money.

9. Talk to Your Cable and Internet Provider and Ask for a Better Deal – Do you know that the more users abandon cable the more competitors get into the market, and so companies want to hang on customers? That means they are always ready to make a deal. Talk to them and find the most suitable and cheaper deal.

10. Do not Shop for Recreation – Often we are tempted to buy things that we don’t plan to buy when we are in stores for shopping. In such a situation, ask yourself if you have a real need or a want. If not, walk away and find a no-cost way to satisfy the craving.

11. Be Careful of Online Purchases – It’s very convenient to shop online in the lazy hours, but that spending can add up. So, unsubscribe from email alerts that urge you to spend. Get yourself off store’s online mailing lists and restrict your online shopping to things you actually need.

12. Use Discount Codes and Coupons – While cutting spending often focuses on reducing shopping, there are still some things you must need to buy. When you shop, your goal should be to ensure they cost as little as possible. Use coupons and look for discount codes.

Working on reducing your financial cost is worthy of a good lifestyle. The harder you try, the more impressive your results will be.

Do you know any such useful tips? Do you plan to follow these tips? We would love to hear about it in the comment section.