Digital Bonus — 20 More Ways to Save

4. Be solar cautious

Not all roofs are suitable for solar panels, and scammers sell panels that will never offer a return on your investment. To learn whether solar is right for your house, how to find a reputable certified installer and how to finance an installation, check out the Department of Energy’s “Smart Shopping Tips for Solar.”

5. Book your own cruise excursions

Cruise lines often charge high fees for shore excursions. You might be better off planning your shore time yourself. Just be sure to use an excursion company that is sensitive to getting you back to the ship on time but also guarantees to get you to the next port if you miss the boat.

6. Use those credit card reward points you’ve been accumulating.

Booking travel through your credit card’s reward portal is one of the best ways to maximize your points’ value. “A lot of people have been cashing in the accrued travel points they haven’t used for the past three years because they weren’t traveling during COVID,” says Kimberly Palmer, a spokesperson with personal finance website NerdWallet.

7. Subscribe to save on cleaning products

If you’re an Amazon Prime member, you can register for Subscribe & Save, which gets you automatic shipments of wipes, disinfectant sprays and other cleaning products. If you sign up to receive five or more products in a single recurring delivery, you can save up to 15 percent on those items. Check out similar subscription cleaning services, such as Grove Collaborative, MightyFix and Blueland.

8. Consolidate retirement accounts

If decades of employment have left you with multiple workplace retirement plans with former employers, consider rolling them into one account. That will streamline your work (time is money!) and could lead to lower fees. More importantly, you’ll have a better picture of your overall portfolio. “When you have scattered accounts, you have scattered strategies,” says John McCafferty, director of financial planning at Edelman Financial Engines.

9. Buy last year’s model

Electronics, phones and even cars are typically discounted as the newest model comes to market. For example, while the latest Apple Watch may run $400, a tad older version can be had for $270.

10. Join local giveaway groups

Apps such as BuyNothing and Nextdoor allow you to view and claim items your neighbors are giving away. You may find everything from tools, lawn mowers, bed frames, and indoor and outdoor furniture to plants, toys, half-used cans of paint and more. On the flip side, if you are looking to dump goods, post them to these apps instead of paying a service to haul them away.

11. Add Treasury bills

After years of dealing with subpar returns, bond investors are benefiting from high rates, particularly on short-term securities. “Right now, you can buy U.S. Treasury bills, backed with the full faith and credit of the U.S. government, and earn a 5 percent yield that’s free of state and federal income tax,” says Michael Tanney, a senior managing director with Magnus Financial Group. “That’s the freest money I’ve seen in years.” And no broker (or fees) needed: Buy directly from the government for free at Treasury Direct.

12. Vacation when kids are in school

The off-season is pretty much any time that most kids are in the classroom. Airfares, hotel rates, car rentals and everything else are cheaper those weeks. In particular, if you are planning a winter getaway to a warm destination, the cheapest time to travel is the first two weeks of December and all of January.

13. Don’t pay foreign transaction fees

If you’re paying by credit card for an international hotel stay, make sure that the card won’t add a foreign transaction fee to the purchase, which can tack an extra 3 percent on to the cost. If that means you need a new credit card, look for a travel-specific card (most don’t have foreign transaction fees) that offers a sign-on bonus and either doesn’t have an annual fee or will waive it for the first year.

14. Make it a post-weekend trip

Checking in early in the week (Sunday through Tuesday) can slash the cost of a hotel bill by 25 percent per night. Simply skipping a Saturday-night stay can save you $45 per night, on average, according to an analysis by travel app Hopper.

15. Travel lots? Join a club

Private travel clubs include Room Steals and Travel + Leisure Go, which charge for membership, and @hotel on Instagram, which is free. You’ll find lower hotel room rates through private clubs than with public booking sites such as Expedia and Booking.com, which contractually prohibit hotels from publicly lowering room rates below the prices posted on the sites. Some professional organizations also have clubs.

16. Don’t forget tax credits

As the AARP Bulletin reported, the federal government offers lucrative tax credits of up to 30 percent of the cost of installing solar panels, heat pumps, insulation, more efficient water heaters, air conditioners, certain stoves and other systems that lower energy needs. Check out 5 Ways to Save in 2023 With Home Energy Tax Credits from the Department of Energy.

17. Rent that power tool

If you need equipment that you won’t use frequently — say, a rototiller, lawn aerator, power washer, paint sprayer or posthole auger — you can rent it by the hour or day. A typical homeowner’s usage isn’t nearly enough to warrant buying such items.

18. Upgrade your savings

Savings accounts are back. Some high-yield accounts and money market funds pay interest rates upwards of 4 percent. It’s fine to keep a safe amount in a low-interest checking account for daily cash flow needs, but any other liquid cash should be earning at least a few percentage points in interest. “You don’t have to tie your money up in a CD to get better rates,” says financial planner Barbara Pietrangelo, chair of Life Happens.

19. Save and shave

To get more shaves from a disposable razor, leave the head soaking in mineral oil. The oil prevents rust and eliminates dulling mineral deposits left when you rinse the razor.

20. Save while you connect

Billions of dollars are available for lower-income households through the Affordable Connectivity Program.