I was thinking of going to the cinema when I get my car serviced next week. Sadly it's not a Tuesday, and I don't qualify for any affiliate discounts with their partners. Any tips to make it a bit cheaper? I was thinking maybe I buy a gift card using 10pc off at WWs and won't book online (so I don't pay the booking fee) or buy their snacks.

Hello r/AussieFrugal

Effective immediately, these type of referral links will be allowed:

1. Savings accounts. We define savings accounts that is by an authorised deposit-taking institution (ADIs) covered under the Financial Claims Scheme (the FCS). UP Bank and Virgin Money referral links have been recently popular and are examples of this.

2. Survey referral links. Due to previous incidents involving scams and survey links on this subreddit, these were temporary banned until the Mods had done their investigation and remove these from the subreddit. We are now allowing these referral links.

These referral links are only to be shared on our dedicated Megathread (All other Referrals Thread). All links must start with HTTPS. HTTP is not allowed due to security hazards.

All other referral links relating to earning money (that is not the above) are not allowed and will be removed.

All referrals that are not meal kits AND cashback referrals are to be posted here to keep clutter off the sub, and in an effort to keep it high quality and actually useful.

Please clearly indicate any instructions, bonuses for both the referred and referee and any caveats.

Please note that referral links about making money (ie: surveys) will be removed.

Savings accounts are an exception and hence, these referrals are allowed on this Megathread.

Welcome to our Frugal Tips, Finds and general discussion thread!

This is a place to share any and all frugal discussion, and any discussion that doesn't need a standalone post.

Have you seen an exceptionally good sale this week?

Perhaps you discovered a store that is absolute bargains?

What about a new tip you've found that's helped you save?

Are you looking for a good bargain in your local area?

If it's new and/or exciting for you, it's sure going to be for someone else!

Please note that any referral links should not be posted here. They should be posted in their respective Megathreads.

so thanks to the 3g shut down i need tp replace my fully functioning 5g uk imported phone as telstra is blocking it. i decided on the oppo ren 11 which is $599 at big w. As it's over $500 it wont let me use my everyday 10% discount, any tricks anyone on getting this phone cheaper?

So I was made redundant a month ago and because I worked for a small company I received no redundancy pay. I had no real savings and was moving house. Also I'm not a citizen and cannot receive any benefits or financial government help.

The upshot is I have around 1 month of money left.

So far I have called all my creditors and reduced or paused payments. Paused all unnecessary subscriptions and reduced food spending.

I managed to get my monthly costs down to $3200. Assuming I do nothing but live, eat and sleep.

I'm applying for every single job that I think I can do. I live in Canberra where many jobs require citizenship. So that's making it harder.

I have returned to freelancing in marketing. I set myself up as self employed, got an abn, started promoting myself. But the work isn't coming in yet. Beyond tiny bits here and there.

I'm selling stuff on ebay, etsy (I crochet) and Facebook marketplace.

What more can I do?

I just need to make my current money stretch as far as possible. While I hope a job will come through or my freelancing will take off.

Edit... thank you all for being so kind and giving me a little boost today. Some really great ideas for me to focus on. I'll keep you all updated.

I iust saw that anytime fitness is offering 5 weeks for 5 dollars but I dont if its worth it or not and whether they are gonna offer better deals for Black Friday?

I really appreciate the great tips and robust discussions in the group on the cost of living. I really appreciate your hints and tips and advice!

I'm getting into this routine for my hair and will soon shop for products as I'm using what I have left. Do you have any recommendations on cheap products that are curly hair friendly?

hi recently just purchase a car, wondering what the cheaper comprehensive car insurance may be? or if it’s even worth it and i should just do third party. I live in the city if that helps

My previous rental had bills included in the rent, so I haven't had to handle gas, electric and water bills through the cost of living increases (just mobile and internet). My new rental requires me to set all these things up next week.
What's the quickest way to do it? Some companies offer to do it all for you 'for free' (I'm sceptical they will get a good price)
More importantly, what's the most frugal way to do it? Any tips welcome!

Please don't respond with referral links - I'm looking for long term affordability not a giveaway.

In case anyone asks: no solar, no rainwater tank, gas bottled LPG not metered, internet is FTTN. I wish it were different.

After tips, is anyone gold coast based? Looking at different places to save costs on groceries, have been reccomended fruit and veg shop at Helensvale and also harbour Town, has anyone compared prices? Also considering a costco membership but not sure if it's worth it. After fruit veg meat fish and pantry staples.

I'm trying to figure out if its just me or not. The last few weeks my groceries have been heaps more expensive that usual and I cant figure out why. I thought we were coming to the end of the cost of living crisis, but I guess maybe not.

"Cashrewards is an Australian cashback reward program, founded in 2014. It enables users to get a portion of their cash back when making a purchase online or in-store at over 1,700 retailers"

"The ShopBack Group is Asia-Pacific’s leading shopping, rewards, and payments platform, serving over 38 million shoppers across ten markets. ShopBack offers a suite of products to their users - from Cashback through purchases both Online and In-Store, Vouchers and deals, as well as payment options."

Some of our users are big fans of Cash Back apps! These include Cashrewards and Shop Back.

Most also have a referral for them so this is the thread to put your referrals in.

Comments are sorted in contest mode.

Any referrals outside of this thread will be removed.

This is a fortnightly thread for all Food Box/ Meal Kit referrals to avoid subreddit clutter.

This includes (but not limited to) Hello Fresh, Marley Spoon, Eatiku etc.

All standalone posts will be removed.

Comments are in contest mode.

***

See here an excellent post A full lifehack guide for mealkits (HelloFresh, MarleySpoon, Everyplate and Dinnerly originally by HikARuLsi

(https://www.reddit.com/r/AussieFrugal/comments/123741q/a_full_lifehack_guide_for_mealkits_hellofresh/)

The archive can be found here:

https://web.archive.org/web/20230322175638/https://www.reddit.com/r/AUfrugal/comments/11f2lsw/a_full_lifehack_guide_for_meal_kits_hellofresh/

Considering using the Moneywiz app to help manage the household budget.

It has a feature which connects to your internet banking (commbank in my instance) to sync transactions automatically via SaltEdge. Is this secure? Should the worst happen I’d need assurance that the same protections are in place for financial reimbursement

Hi all, I am 25F here. I grew up middle class with a family that had poor financial habits which I guess I inherited.

I went to university/ school and studied hard, but it was expensive and I carried on a $10,000 personal loan which was largely for expenses like a laptop and textbooks and an ongoing life support when exams and studying was tough and I couldn’t pick up shifts. It is now down to $6500.

I worked for a year but basically saved nothing because for the first time in my life I had access to real money, so I spoiled myself with a long holiday and I guess as much clothes and things as I could get because I denied myself for 10-13 years. It wasn’t really conscious - just a way of satiating the demand that I had for such a long time.

Fast forward 18 months I now earn $2800 a fortnight in my work, and I am trying to save $2050-$2150 per fortnight. My parents let me help them in other ways to avoid paying rent.

My biggest expense seems to be wasting it on impulse buys or expensive lunches when I need to get into the office. It is hard for me to meal prep due to time constraints. Are there any cheap, high protein meals that would help me cap food costs at $80 a fortnight?

The other big expense is the personal loan of $300 a month which I am going to close hopefully soon. I just don’t want to see my recovering savings plummet by a significant percentage.

I noticed not much of a price difference anymore?

I need to get a new phone and I’m unsure which one’s the best. Optus and Telstra are the only ones I really know but I’d like ones that are cheaper.

I just received an email from TPG that they are increasing my plan mobile phone from $30 (45GB) to $35/month (50GB). I expect they will increase it again because they've done a few times before. Which is ok I guess, life is getting expensive for everyone, even companies.

My internet service provider is Occom (network is tied to the building, router came installed in the apartment) and I'm paying $70/month for a RedTrain Fibre plan at 45Mbps.

In total, I'm paying $105/month for phone and internet. Cost of food and rent is already beating me down, which is unavoidable. But maybe phone and internet costs can be reduce somehow?

I guess I'm looking for advice on the following:
- Is there any way I can reduce this cost by switching providers?
- Has anyone been able to just pay for the phone and get by using the internet with mobile hotspot?

My internet usage fluctuates between 200GB-400GB. The max TPG offers is their "Large Plan" which is $45/month for 100GB, which is 100GB less than my minimum usage. So hotspot might not be the right option.

I don't need an ultra fast internet connection. I basically use it for work and watch lectures on YouTube and sometimes music. I don't use any streaming services like Netflix etc. I use my phone mostly to speak with the family in Brisbane, I'm in Sydney.

Does anyone know of a supplier for good quality shorts for men?

I have been buying Kuhl for the last few years and have been having with the fit and quality but the price always hurts.

Considering the rides are not working half the time and are in maintenance, I don't want to pay almost $200 a year for using it only a very few times a year. Are there any good discounts passes for the Gold Coast?

Bonus points if its something you can make in an apartment, dont need a workshop / tools etc

Chain store selling really really cheap food, drink, household items that are either expired or nearly expired (usually the latter) for usually around 20-30% the retail cost. It's incredible.

There's 4-5 of them in Melbourne not sure about other cities.

Feels like a genuine win

We have a ~10yo Blanco BFD9XP dishwasher that needs a little roller for the top shelf, but $30 is a ridiculous amount to spend on a tiny piece of plastic for an older dishwasher that doesn't really wash that well anyway.

Does anyone know of somewhere that has lower-priced, non-genuine parts, or ... any ideas on alternatives? I hate dropping money on rubbish!

It's a "32X2017 KLEENMAID BLANCO DISHWASHER BASKET WHEEL"

Here's a pic of the broken bit: https://imgur.com/a/qgLKNRt
(am gonna try a temp fix of super glue, but that won't do well with the 70º wash lol)

I looked at AliExpress, sadly they don't have one that looks even close 😟

With all the talk of card surcharges recently, is it really just a simple matter of inserting your card rather than tapping in order to avoid the surcharges fee? Or am I misunderstanding something?

When does CW go on half price sales say on fragrance and stuff? Is there a price tracker to check to see how low they go before it jumps back to normal pricing? How do you guys track the prices ?

I currently freelance and I use my personal laptop for it. It still works but its nearly falling apart so I know soon i'd have to buy a new one.

Now while im still freelancing and I dont think I'd do this in the long run, why not buy a laptop now while its still declarable as a deductible for tax? Its my first year in aus so im not every experienced on this.

Will it be a huge deduction on the tax I pay as a sole trader? Or is this not very frugal of me? And better to just buy a new laptop when i actually need it?

Like some Chinos and a business shirt. Would it be best to sick with Kmart/Target or should I try connor?