8 Simple Tips for Frugal Living on One Income

Can you support a family on just one paycheck? Are you frugal living on one income? The truth is that your financial security and quality of life doesn’t depend on how much your family makes, but how much your family spends.

You can be very rich and very miserable, or you can have a simple life that still covers all your basic needs and makes you feel content. Here are simple tips for frugal living on one income – given by real people who have found ways to enjoy what they love even if they have less.

Tips on How to Live on One Income

1. Embrace Smaller Spaces and Minimalist Living

Depending on your neighborhood, as much as 40% of your income can go to rent. But how much space do you really need? Are you paying for a bigger place just to get more storage for all the things you think you can’t live without?

When Todd and Liza moved to a one-bedroom apartment, they had to sell or give away most of their things—and it was the most liberating moment of their lives! “Now we spend less on rent, less time cleaning, and have earned what was really important to us,” said Liza.

2. Cook your Own Food

Takeout is expensive, especially for those of you frugal living on one income! With proper meal planning you can slash your food expenses in half and enjoy better meals. Amanda says that she’s learned to enjoy looking for copycat recipes of her favorite restaurant dishes. She’s even lost weight, especially when she started substituting meat with cheaper (and healthier) ingredients like tofu and lentils.

3. Invest in Moments Over Things

Kathryn and her husband had to drastically reduce expenses after he lost his job, forcing them to survive on just her paycheck. At first, she felt guilty that they could no longer provide their kids with “a good life.”

However, she now sees that her kids aren’t missing anything, even though they are frugal living on one income. They love spending more time with their dad, and they’re just as happy playing in the park as they were going on expensive vacations. The best thing in life is time, not money.

4. Take Control of Expenses (and Your Fears) with A Budget

When you live from one paycheck to the next, every cent counts, especially when you are frugal living on one income. Make a budget and track your expenses in a notebook or app. “I used to feel really anxious when the bills arrived, because I was worried about whether I had enough to pay them,” says Sheila.

Now that she follows a budget, she knows she has covered the most important expenses—and is able to plan for bigger seasonal expenses too. “I just feel more in control of my life.”

5. Be a Coupon Queen

Before, our frugal grandmothers would painstakingly clip coupons from the newspaper. But now, you don’t even need scissors to score the latest deals. You can use a coupon aggregating app, or sign up for a store’s newsletter and have discount codes emailed to your inbox.

For Leslie, looking for online coupons is actually relaxing. “It’s like treasure hunting. You surf the Internet and find a free $20 bill – or in this case, a $20 voucher.”

6. Find a Bargain Buddy

You can get great deals from wholesale stores, but you may end up buying more than what you really need. To get the most out of these bargains (or any buy 1 take 1 deals you find in the supermarket) find someone you can split it with.

Tammy and her friends have a group chat where they post about sales and ask who’s interested in them. It makes so much more sense than figuring out what to do with a 10-kilo sack of potatoes.

7. Swap Instead of Shop

In the same group chat, Tammy and her friends like to hold Seasonal Swaps, which are like virtual rummage sales where they trade instead of buying something new. “It started out with swapping nail polish shades we got sick of, and it took a life of its own,” she said.

Their toy swaps and book swaps were so popular that word spread, and they set up an online swapping site for their neighborhood. “It’s so great to come home with a bag of new things and not spend a single cent.” Reusing things to save money and stop spending may also help.

8. Cover Financial Emergencies with Payday Loans

Frugal living can help you enjoy the good life, even if its frugal living on one income. But financial emergencies can happen to anyone, anytime. Sometimes you need to find cash right away, but payday isn’t until next week! Don’t panic. A payday loan can “spot” you the amount you need. You can borrow from $100 to $500, and just pay it off on your next salary date.

Benefits of Payday Loans

• No credit history required. You can get one even with a low credit score!
• Minimum requirements. Just present your driver’s license or any state-issued ID, the most recent pay stub, and a blank check from the active checking account in your name.
• Fast processing. It takes as little as 30 minutes, and you walk away with money in your pocket.

How to Get Kentucky Payday Loans Near Me

Fast Payday Loans of Kentucky, LLC has one of the fastest and simplest loan application processes.

• Go to the home page and submit the quick cash online form.
• A loan representative will call you to personally answer your questions and explain the process and requirements.
• Go to the branch nearest you! The loan representative will just verify the documents and help you complete the final documents. The whole process takes less than 30 minutes.

Frugal living on one income may stress out one person more than the next, but no matter how stressed you are or not, you still may not be prepared for that emergency that strikes. So, when that happens, a fast payday loan from Fast Payday Loans of Kentucky, LLC can get you the money you need with ease.

Note: The content provided in this article is only for informational purposes, and you should contact your financial advisor about your specific financial situation.