6 Household Habits That Are Costing You Money — and What To Do Instead

Table of Contents

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You'll be able to begin this week.

Not Properly Meal Planning

If you regularly head to the grocery store without having a clear idea of what you want to cook, you may be throwing a lot of food away.

This totals over $473 billion of food that's thrown away annually in the U.S., an incredible 38% of the country's total food supply.

Plan out what you'll eat for the week before you go to the store. Make sure to include any meals you might be eating outside of the house, so you don't end up with leftover food that goes to waste.

Buying Name-Brand Products

A test of 70 store-brand products found that 76% are just as good as their name-brand counterparts.

Switching to store-brand items could cut your grocery bill by 5% to 72%, based on Consumer Reports. If you're buying all or mostly name-brand products, altering your shopping approach could lead to significant savings.

Adjusting the Thermostat to Feel Extra Comfortable

It's a good idea to set your thermostat to a temperature you like in order to feel comfortable at home. Nevertheless, cranking the heat up in the winter and the air conditioning down in the summer can really add to your energy bill quickly.

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Not Sealing Drafty Windows

If your house is drafty, it's probably allowing cool air to escape in the summer and warm air to escape in the winter. Using caulk and weatherstripping to seal up the gaps is a simple way to reduce your energy bills.

It should take roughly an hour or two and can lead to energy savings of 10-20%.

Paying for Unused Subscriptions

This costs approximately $40.39 per month on average.

Checking your subscriptions closely can lead to significant savings. For instance, if you cancel two monthly subscriptions that cost $10 each, you'll save $240 annually.

Drinking Bottled Water

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It costs approximately $6 and holds a total of 405.6 fluid ounces when bought at Target.

Based on this rate, men would go through a unit approximately every four days, and women would complete a unit roughly every five and a half days.

Costing roughly $40, one month's worth of water costs men about $40, while women typically spend around $60 for a month and a half's worth of water, which is definitely a worthwhile investment.

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6 Household Habits That Are Draining Your Wallet – and How to Break Them