Saving money is like going to the gym: we know we should do it, it’s easy to tell ourselves that we’re going to start doing it, but it’s much easier to find excuses for why we don’t do it. In New York City especially, where I can find temptation to spend on nearly every street corner, it can sometimes be a daily struggle trying to reign in my spending.
To cope with this barrage of temptation, I’ve learned to carefully prioritize how I spend my money. This means that I don’t resist every impulsive purchase; instead, I’ve learned which purchases tend to add the most value to my life, and I’m working to cut out the rest. Over the years, I’ve developed a mental list of things that I just don’t (or won’t) spend money on, some of which I’ll be sharing below. These items range from things that I once viewed as necessities to small luxuries that I thought improved my quality of life. In reality, once they were cut from my budget, I hardly missed them; plus, it freed up more money to spend on or save for the things that truly matter to me.
1. Haircuts
Prior to moving to New York, I visited the same barber for pretty much my entire life. He knew exactly what to do with my hair, and, honestly, leaving him was one of the hardest parts of my move. Suddenly, I was in a new city, faced with the prospect of trusting a stranger to help maintain my appearance—and paying them $50+ for the privilege.
Instead of forking over that kind of money for a service I wasn’t even sure I’d find satisfying, I learned to cut my hair myself. Armed with a $25 pair of clippers (purchased with a gift card at Target, because I’m #alwaysfrugal) and the internet, I taught myself how to trim my hair to my liking. It’s been nearly five years since I’ve had a “real” haircut, and, frankly, I don’t know that I’ll ever return.
2. Food Delivery
Getting food delivered is so far off my radar that I often forget it’s even a possibility. This comes as a shock to many of my friends, who often meet my confessions that I’ve never even downloaded Seamless or Uber Eats with wide-eyed amazement. Maybe I’ve just never been hungry and/or lazy enough, but I find paying for food delivery to be the equivalent of throwing money in the garbage.
A New York Times report from earlier this year found that using these apps and services can make your meal up to 91% more expensive than purchasing it directly from the restaurant—and that doesn’t include a tip! Whenever I’m hungry, as far as I’m concerned, I have two options: I can make food myself using whatever’s in my kitchen, or I can go to a restaurant and order from there.
3. Taxis / Rideshares
Much like with food delivery, I’ve never downloaded a rideshare app onto my phone. I can probably count on one hand the number of times I’ve taken a taxi since moving to New York, and I can count on one finger the number of times I’ve actually paid for one. Yes, New Yorkers like to grumble about the MTA (and sometimes it is THE WORST), but if I’m already paying $127 each month for a MetroCard, you’d better believe I’m going to make the most of it.
Sure, I’ve had late nights where I’ve thought about how much easier it would be to simply hop in a cab and be home before I know it, but such a ride could easily cost $30 or more—a nearly 25% increase in my transportation spending! For a single ride! So, I stick to the subway—even if it means I’ll have to wait a little bit longer to reach my final destination.
4. Lottery Tickets
There were a few times growing up that my grandparents would treat me to a cheap, scratch-off lottery ticket, and, I’ll admit, they were a thrill. But the tickets were almost always losers, and the fun was always fleeting—something I try remember in adulthood whenever I daydream about a multimillion dollar jackpot.
I have friends who will occasionally spend one or two or five dollars on a lottery ticket, and I get it. They’re fun, and they often argue that a couple of bucks here and there doesn’t really make a difference. And, in a lot of ways, they’re probably right. But, for me, that couple of bucks can make a difference, and I can think of million things I’d rather spend them on than a piece of paper that will very quickly make its way into the trash.
5. Gym Memberships
Don’t get me wrong: exercise is important, and it’s always crucial that you invest in your health. But that doesn’t mean you need to spend hundreds of dollars on a gym membership, especially when (as I mentioned at the beginning of this article) it’s all too easy to tell yourself that you’ll definitely go to the gym…tomorrow. I’ve known people here in New York who’ve spent over $100 each month on memberships to gyms that they’ve only visited once or twice a week.
Yes, there are more affordable options out there, but even a gym that costs $10/month will cost you $120 every year. Instead, I’ve spent about $20 total on my fitness regime, investing in a yoga mat and some resistance bands that I pair with any number of free videos on YouTube to work up a sweat in the comfort of my own home. And for those days when I want to get out, there are plenty of parks and trails in my neighborhood and all across the city—making it easy to get in a walk, a run, or a bike ride, entirely for free.
Big City, Small Budget 