10 Quick Tips to Beef Up Your Budget This Month
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Let’s face it: These are unprecedented times. With so much happening in the world, it can be tough to keep your head above water. If you’ve been struggling, it’s time to get creative and search for ways to beef up your budget.
Don’t worry, we’ve done a bunch of the research for you. Here are ten simple ways to save and make extra money without a lot of hassle. Enjoy!
#1) Automate your savings.
We all know saving money is something we should do, but it isn’t always easy. So, here’s a simple way to build your savings without any effort: It is called Qapital.
With a Qapital account, you can set up goals and rules to automatically supercharge your savings. The “Round Up” rule rounds up each purchase you make, then saves the extra in a savings account. Or, you can use the “Set and Forget” feature to make recurring deposits to your Qapital account. The app also includes budgeting help, investment portfolios, and more. Try Qapital and get a $5 bonus here.
#2) Automatically cancel old bills.
Most of us are paying for subscriptions we no longer use,. Things like a gym membership, a monthly product box, or an unused HBO subscription can really eat into our monthly budget. Plus, if we have them on autopay, they are easy to forget.
Trim is a free app that automatically locates these subscriptions and notifies you that you are still paying them. Once you’re notified, simply reply “Cancel” and let Trim do the dirty work for you. By barely lifting a finger, you’ll start saving every month. Get started with Trim here.
#3) Try a 0% balance transfer card.
If you’re like most of us, you’ve probably racked up some credit card debt. Try moving those balances to a balance transfer card to give yourself some breathing room.
By transferring your balances to a card with a 0% APR, you can lower your monthly payments and save on interest — potentially saving you hundreds of dollars a month. Then, you can use the difference to pay off your cards quicker or pocket the difference. Find the best balance transfer cards here.
#4) Become a personal shopper.
With social distancing and stay-at-home orders in place, more people are using grocery delivery services than ever before. If you enjoy grocery shopping, you can take advantage of this need by shopping for Instacart.
As a personal shopper with Instacart, you can earn extra money, set your own schedule, and help others who need it. When a customer orders items off the app, you’ll pick them out at the grocery store, deliver them to their house, and get paid for it. It’s a pretty sweet gig and nice way to pocket some extra cash. Become a personal shopper with Instacart here.
#5) Make extra money from your couch.
Participating in paid surveys is a super simple way to make extra money while relaxing at night. The best survey companies pay real money just for giving your opinion. Some of them even pay you for surfing the internet! Even better, there are dozens of them to choose from. Here are a few of our favorites:
Survey Junkie – Survey Junkie is one of the most popular sites for making money from home. Take surveys for cash and get paid quickly through PayPal.
MyPoints – Earn cash or gift cards for answering surveys, watching videos, shopping online, and more. Plus, you’ll earn a $5 bonus after you take your first five surveys.
Vindale Research – Take online surveys and get paid in cash for each one you complete. Get a $1 bonus when you use the link above to get started!
#6) Renegotiate your bills.
One of the fastest ways to save is to renegotiate your monthly bills. Things like your internet, wireless service, and other bills are almost always negotiable. Doing so could save you gobs of money every month.
Finding time to do this, on the other hand, can be a pain. Billshark is a pretty cool company that can do it for you. (It is also backed by Shark Tank’s Mark Cuban, which is pretty cool too.) Simply open a free account and let them handle negotiating your new rates. Learn how much you can save with Billshark here.
#7) Become a Dasher.
Ordering takeout is a legit lifesaver right now, and having it delivered to your door is even better. Take advantage of the opportunity to earn more by delivering for DoorDash.
After you register, simply turn on the app and use your car, bike, or scooter to start delivering orders from local restaurants. You’ll earn money on each delivery, make even more with tips, and you can even set your own schedule. Start delivering with DoorDash today.
#8) Get automatic refunds on purchases.
Earny is a free app that helps you get refunds when the things you buy go on sale. The app scans your email for receipts, then searches stores like Amazon.com, Boxed, Target, and more for price adjustments. When Earny finds one, it automatically files a either a refund claim or a claim against your credit card’s price protection feature.
Pretty sweet, huh? By barely lifting a finger, you can start saving today! Get started with Earny.
#9) Improve your credit score.
Loans and mortgages aren’t the only thing affected by your credit score. Did you know items like your car insurance may be tied to your credit score too?
Get a free credit score from Credit Karma. The site provides a free monthly credit score, plus it helps monitor your credit for signs of identity theft. It’s super simple to get started and totally free.
#10) Use shopping portals to save and earn cash back.
In the age of social distancing, you’re probably doing a lot of shopping online. If so, why not use shopping portals to get discounts AND earn cash back?
Instead of heading directly to a store’s website, start your search for discounts at Rakuten. Once you’re there, just click on the link to your favorite stores and a discount is automatically applied when you check out. Better yet, you’ll earn cash back on almost every purchase you make by clicking through Rakuten. That could add up to some serious savings!
Get a $10 cash back bonus when you use this link to get started with Rakuten.
UberEATS sounds interesting… I wonder how nice of a vehicle you need to have. I know the regular Uber requires a newer and clean car, but most preexisting food delivery services (such as pizza delivery) don’t require a nice car. In fact, pizza delivery drivers and the like often prefer to use beaters for their delivery vehicles.
You can actually use a scooter or bike in some cities, so the vehicle requirements are much less strict.
Thanks for writing. Worth reading. Liked the inputs. Keep Posting.
Thank you for the pointers! Your blog is a great resource for me as I am also building my own in the same niche. I think I’m going to learn a lot from you.
I really appreciate your time and effort you put into this blog and in-depth information you provide. I am pretty bad about finances. your tips make a lot of things easier for me, so I will definitely start some of these tips. Thank you so much for sharing this wonderful content with us.