I love to save money! I actually get a little high when I get a truly great deal or can use a coupon for something I would have bought anyway. And when I can save big, well let’s just say this mom right here gets really excited.
There are so many ways out there to save some extra cash. Maybe you are one of those crazy coupon clippers who gets 3 carts full of food at the grocery store for only $5 or maybe you use apps to save some extra dough when you head to specific stores. I am certainly not a coupon addict, but I do look for unique and interesting ways to save money or even make money for doing almost nothing. Minimal effort with big pay back.
So today I wanted to share three of my favorite ways I found over the last year to save and make money. I want everyone to save so I won’t be stingy with the details.
1. Honey
Honey is so easy it is almost crazy not to use it. Download the Honey Chrome extension on your browser and voila! It goes to work for you.
Next time you are shopping online, the Honey extension automatically searches the internet for every deal, coupon and savings possibly and adds the best one to your cart automatically. It’s like magic. And it works in so many places. Not only that, if there is no coupon available, often you can earn Honey Gold which is a percentage you can earn on what you spend in certain stores. When you collect enough you can turn it into a gift card at one of your favorite stores.
Just to give you an idea of what you can save… in the last two weeks I save $10 on my Walmart online grocery order, $15 on an order at Torrid for some super cute new summer sandals, and $20 on flowers I ordered for my mom for mothers day. That is $45 saved on items I would have purchased anyways, but got for less. It’s a total win!
2. Root Insurance
This may be one of the biggest money savers I have found yet and you can earn money just by trying it out!
Root is a little different than most car insurance companies. Instead of basing your rate on your age, the type of car you drive and a million other factors most companies use to jack up their costs, Root using your actual save driving to get you a rate.
Here is how it worked. I downloaded their app on my phone and for about 2.5 weeks the app monitored my driving. Occasionally it would send me alerts letting me know how I was doing and coming along with things like speed, turns, consistency, ect. At the end of the two weeks I was provided a rate and to say I was shocked is an understatement!
I ended up saving $1200 a year and it was the lowest rate I was offered from more than 10 other companies and provided better coverage than what I was being offered. I was floored! It costs nothing to try it out so you have nothing to lose and can even earn $35 just for giving them a try. I have recommended it to several friends who have all switched and saved big bucks on their rates.
3. Digital Reflection Panel
This is a little different and is more about making a little extra cash. I actually started doing this about two years ago and have brought in about $800 extra in the two years since I started it and it is really pretty simple.
Contact the company and ask if they have openings in your area. They send you a box that you connect to your internet modem. You fill out a little information about the devices in your home like phones, tablets, computers, ect. A few clicks here and there and everything is set up.
So how do you earn? First, every month they will send a survey to your email. It takes less than 2 minutes to fill out and you earn $5 each month for that. Second, every quarter they give you another $20 just for being a participant. Once you have at least $50 collected you can turn it into gift card or have it deposited directly into your PayPal account.
They collect data on the internet usage in your home so if you feel like this is an invasion of your privacy then you may not be interested, but I figure if someone wants to know that I am buying books on Amazon or what I might be watching on Netflix I could care less and when I get that extra $50 every few months, I have a little cash to spend.
I hope some of these options will help you save money! What will you save for? What is your goal?
