We all have to pay bills. We all hate to pay bills. Unfortunately, month after month, the bills never seem to just disappear.
If your bills are just getting out of control, you’re probably searching for a way to lower, or even cut out entirely your household bills. But it seems so hard and so confusing.
Luckily, we have your back with 10 easy ways you can lower household bills today.
1. Check Out How Many Streaming Services You Use
We all love to stream all of our favorite shows. But after a while, those different streaming services start to stack up.
If you have ten different streaming services that you forgot to cancel that 30-day trial on, now may be the time to take a moment and re-evaluate which services you actually need.
2. Work Out at Home
Let’s be honest here: some of us keep our gym memberships to convince ourselves that this will be the week we start working out every single day. And it very well could be! But working out doesn’t mean you absolutely have to go to the gym.
If you’re not ready to break up with your gym, consider lowering to the basic plan. You probably don’t need to keep that tanning bed add-on.
3. Take a Look at Your Cell Phone Service
We use our cell phones every. Single. Day. So it doesn’t even occur to some of us that we may need to take a closer look at that cell phone bill.
If you notice your bill keeps going up, maybe take a moment to look into other plans or companies that may be more affordable options for you. It can’t hurt to look and it could save you a lot of money.
4. Shop Around for Better Auto Insurance Rates
Another bill that we’re used to blindly auto-paying for is our auto insurance.
Many auto insurance companies actually offer some great discounts for people who work at certain companies, have newer or fuel-efficient cars, and even students at universities. See if any of these discounts can apply to you.
5. Plan Out Your Meals
We know how easy it is to forget about that head of cauliflower you bought for some recipe that you can’t remember and order from a food delivery service. But all of those deliveries really add up.
Prevent overspending on takeout and buying groceries that you let go bad by planning out what meals you want to eat this week. This could help you make healthier choices, too.
6. Try Tracking Your Spending
If you seem to spend your paycheck just in time to get a new one every other week and find yourself baffled as to where all of that money went, try tracking your spending. This can give you a good look at how much money you have to save each month for bills and expenses.
7. Call Between 9 AM and 5 PM
These next ones are useful if you decide you want to try to negotiate your bill to a lower number. Yes, it is possible, you just need to know how to do it.
When you call your company to lower your bill, call during a normal 9-5 workday. This ensures that you won’t be waiting for all of the weekend callers.
8. Say that You Will Cancel Your Service
If you hint at canceling your service to go with a competitor, you’ll be surprised how quickly you can get your phone or internet company to lower your monthly bill.
9. Maintain a Friendly and Positive Attitude
If you do decide to call and negotiate, remember to remain positive and friendly. You won’t get anything by being condescending or mean to the customer service representative you’re talking to.
10. Do Your Research
With all of these methods, you should do some research into negotiation techniques and smart shopping guides.