4 great ways to make your money go further

January is a month that often feels twice as long in financial terms after the extravagances of Christmas and New Year, but just because we’ve reached February and your bank balance is finally looking a bit healthier doesn’t mean giving up all those thrifty habits you’ve adopted at the start of the year. It’s far better to capitalise on your good financial habits by adopting a few more and helping your money to go even further. Here are four simple but effective ways you might do just that:

Try online grocery shopping – There are several benefits to this, not least saving yourself the time and expense of travelling to and from the supermarket. Your shopping bill is also likely to go down without impulse buys to tempt you and the ability to check exactly what you need at home before placing your order. Many online grocery services also provide introductory offers and vouchers which can reduce your spend even further.
Make sure your loyalty is rewarded – TV, broadband and landline providers often don’t contact existing customers about any deals they have, so it’s down to you to get in touch and see whether you can reduce your bills. Moving onto a new deal can save you a tidy sum every month.
Staying in is the new going out – The cost of an evening out for dinner or drinks with friends can quickly mount up, so why not suggest socialising at your place instead. If you don’t fancy heading to the off licence, there are plenty of services you can sign up to which will deliver a selection of your tipple of choice straight to your door every month.
Drive less (or not at all) – Every time you grab your car keys, think about whether you can make the journey another way. Cutting down your driving time will save fuel money as well as reducing parking and maintenance costs. If you live in a built up urban area, it’s quite likely you’ll be able to get by without owning a car at all, which adds even greater savings by cutting out insurance and road tax – not to mention a boost to your savings if you decide to sell your vehicle.