Inflation is at a four-decade high. Salaries are (for the most part) staying put. That means everything is looking a little more expensive than it did one or two years ago.
You can respond to this in a variety of ways. You can monitor your spending, and you can make more out of the things you already have. Another effective way to save money at the moment is through deals apps and services for not only everyday essentials, but also the little enjoyments in life.
Although the prospect of using deals to save money might seem uncomfortable to some, a variety of platforms make the whole process a lot quicker and easier. There’s no trawling through endless websites to find minor 3% discount tokens. It’s all arranged for you.
Here's our suggestions:
Dusk is designed to connect you with cool bars, pubs, and venues in your area. It offers incentives - like free drinks and discounts - to encourage you to do so.
Since autumn is upon us (our favourite season for evening pub visits), it’s the perfect time to start using the app. You might even find a new favourite local. Or a new favourite tipple, failing that.
We’re all looking for a touch of good karma at the moment. Karma (the Chrome extension) helps you shop online by allowing you to save items you’re interested in. It will then alert you when said item falls beneath a certain price, according to the parameters you set.
Karma even donates $1 to a cause of your choice for every purchase worth over $40. So you’re helping others too.
Too Good To Go is one of the best ways to save money on your food shopping. All you need to do is download the app and choose a bakery, supermarket, or other food outlet to collect a ‘magic bag’ from. It’ll come at a third of its retail price.
Since it’s actually designed to reduce food waste, you’re also helping the planet when you use it.
Honey provides a traditional coupons and discounts service in a modern format. Add its extension to your Chrome browser and wait for a popup when you’re checking out from an online store. It’ll offer you automatic discounts based on its web-wide searches.
VoucherCodes is one of the better traditional deals sites. It provides discount codes and offers from all the biggest retailers and brands on its website. Before buying something, make sure you check its website first. You might come away with a cheeky deal.
One of the most frustrating results of the energy crisis has been the rising cost of holidays. Transport has become more expensive. So have hotel stays and other activities.
Hopper is the deals site for travel. It works in the same way as a travel agency. But you’ll find seriously good savings there for everything related to your holiday.
After housing, food is often the most expensive category in my spending history at the end of the month. That’s why apps like Shopmium can be really helpful. Shopmium offers you discounts on a variety of products in your local area through its app. You can choose which ones you need the most and plan your shopping around those.
Even if the discounts are small, high food costs mean you can end up saving a lot. There are even 100% cashback offers on some products.
