How to save more than $27,000 in a year

There’s no denying that life has become increasingly expensive so any little bit of money you can save or make can make a big difference. With all the tips listed below, there’s potential for your bank account to be fatter by a cool $27,881 this time next year. This is based on hypothetical examples, and you may not be able to check off all 12 steps, but the goal is to inspire you to take a look at what you may be able to do today to boost your pot of gold.

1. Get a better deal on your mortgage

Having the wrong mortgage can cost you tens of thousands in interest. It’s definitely not something you should set and forget. Start by finding out exactly what interest rate you are paying. Then take a good look at your home loan and make sure it is the right one for you.

According to Canstar, at the time of writing, the average advertised variable rate on a $600,000 owner-occupied variable rate loan over 30 years was 6.88%. By switching to a loan with the current lowest advertised rate of 5.89%, you could save $4,668 in repayments over the first year and $5,947 in interest. Make sure you consider any fees associated with refinancing before you make the switch.

Potential savings: $10,615 in the first year

2. Sell, sell, sell

Search your house for things that you no longer want or need. List everything for sale on Facebook Marketplace, Gumtree or eBay.

According to Gumtree’s 2022 Second Hand Economy Report, the average Australian household is sitting on an estimated $6,964 in unused or unwanted items, with the average household holding onto approximately 21 items they no longer want or need.

Potential earnings: $6,964

3. Bring in more dough

More and more Aussies are supplementing their incomes by renting out things such as rooms, storage space, car spaces, caravans and clothes, and offering services such as ride sharing, food delivery and taking on jobs on platforms such as Airtasker and Fiverr.

Here are some of the most in-demand side hustles on Airtasker and the average task price:

• Cleaning: $190
• Gardening/Lawn mowing: $193
• Pick up and delivery: $131
• Furniture assembly: $157

Let’s say you pick up one cleaning job a month, that’s an extra $2,280 in your pocket over a year.

You might also be able to make extra money without having to do extra work. If you have a spare room, garage or shed you’re willing to rent out you could bring home more bacon. According to Spacer, a lock-up garage will rent for about $200-$300 a month on average, you could get about $150 to $200 a month for a spare bedroom and $100 to $150 per month for a shed. If you could make $200 a month from your spare space, that’s a bonus $2,400 a year.

Potential earnings: Up to $2,400 a year

4. Make the most of cashback sites

It’s worth looking into cashback providers that pay you when you shop. Basically, they receive a commission from linked retailers each time you make a purchase through their site or app. Part of this commission is paid back to you. It’s usually a percentage of the purchase price and can range from 1% to 15%.

Platforms such as Cashrewards and ShopBack pay the cashback into your nominated bank account. If you prefer the cashback to go straight into your super fund you can try or Boost Your Super and Grow My Money. Grow My Money also gives you the option of having the money directed to your home loan.

Let’s assume you spend $600 a month using these platforms and earn 3% cashback on average each month, you’d earn $216 cashback over 12 months.

Potential savings: $216 a year

5. Take your lunch to work

No doubt you have heard this one before but taking your lunch to work instead of buying something can be a great way to save. You don’t have to take a packed lunch every day – aim for two or three days to start with. Each time you do this, transfer $15 into a savings account. Assuming you bring your lunch to work at least three days a week over 48 weeks you could save $2,160.

Potential savings: $2,160 a year

6. Do a subscription audit

Netflix, Stan, Foxtel, Audible, Spotify, HelloFresh, your gym membership, magazines – these monthly subscriptions can really add up. Make a list of all your subscriptions and think hard about whether you need them all. Ditch any subscriptions you are no longer getting any real value from. You can potentially save a decent chunk of cash. If you miss them you can always subscribe again. Assuming you ditch a subscription costing you $20 a month, the savings can add up to $240 over the year.

Potential savings: $240 a year

7. Increase the excess on your car and home insurance

If you are looking for ways to save money on your insurance, an easy option is to opt for a higher excess. The excess is the amount you have to pay if you need to make a claim. Generally the higher the excess the lower the premium. You need to take care, though, not to set it too high. You still need to be able to afford to pay it if you need to make a claim.

Just to get a rough idea of how much you could save I got an online quote for car insurance and home and contents insurance using a hypothetical example. With the car insurance, increasing the excess by $250 from $795 to $1,045 reduced the annual premium by about $235.

With the home and contents cover, the annual premium was about $1,705 when the excess was set at $1,000 for the building and $600 for the contents. Upping the excess to $1,500 and $750 reduced the premium by about $168 to $1,537.

Potential savings: $403 a year

8. Start the 52-week challenge

Money-saving challenges can be a fun way to grow your savings. The 52-week challenge is a popular one to start at the beginning of the year but that doesn’t mean you can’t give it a go now. Essentially you save $1 in week one and increase it by $1 each week – so $5 in week five, $20 in week 20, $35 in week 35 and so on. At the end of 52 weeks, you’ll have $1,378 stashed away. There are plenty of free printables online that you can use to track your progress.

Potential savings: $1,378 a year

9. Cut your energy bills

Energy bills certainly account for a big chunk of household spending. One of the simplest ways to save money on your electricity bills is to switch to a cheaper plan. Depending on what state you are in, Canstar Blue estimates you could save between $307 and $480 a year by moving from an ‘average’ priced plan to the cheapest. So, it’s worth shopping around. You might even be able to score a cashback of up to $200 when you sign up to a new provider.

Potential savings: Up to $480 a year

10. Trim your grocery bills

The price of groceries was the top concern for one in five (20%) Australian adults, according to Canstar’s Consumer Pulse Report. One way to potentially reduce how much you’re spending at the supermarket is to give supermarket-branded products a shot. On average, they are 38.8% cheaper than brand-name products.

A family of four spends on average $897 a month on groceries, according to Canstar Blue. Switching just 50% of their grocery spend to supermarket-brand products could cut their grocery bill by $174 a month or $2088 annually.

Potential savings: $2,088 a year

11. Delete one app that is costing you money

Convenience apps such as Uber, Uber Eats, Menulog and Afterpay can come at a cost. They make it just too easy for us to spend. Let’s say you are spending about $50 a month on one of these apps – delete it and you could save $600 a year.

Potential savings: $600 a year

12. Cut your mobile phone bills

Saving money on your mobile phone plan doesn’t mean you have to compromise on data. A quick look at Canstar Blue’s comparison tool shows that prices for a postpaid plan with 20GB of data range from $19.90 a month to $48 – that’s a difference of $28.10 a month. Over one year that comes to $337.20.

Potential savings: $337.20 a year

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