Meal Planning: Planning meals for the week and sticking to a grocery list can save you a lot. Apps like Mealime or Yummly let you plan meals based on ingredients you already have, which can reduce food waste and save on groceries.

Automate Bills and Savings: Set up direct debits for your recurring bills, and consider automating a small amount into a savings account each pay. Even if it’s just a little, it adds up!

I have a separate account for my bills – most are direct debited. I have a list of what bills and expenses are, and when they need to be paid and use a calendar to organise which week of the month they need to be paid in. If there’s money leftover for a particular week I look at putting that money into another account for when needed on something else/ unexpected expense.

A good way to start is Woolworths rewards using the online app .i bank mine for Xmas which usually pays for the month of December groceries.

I do all mine in a journal.
Calculate what your bills are over the 1/4 and then break that down into weeks. I put that amount away into a seperate bank account and that’s what my bills money stays in and is payed out of, I usually go over the budget every few months to check it is still working, and usually I over estimate a smidge on it all so that there is always a little extra to cover an unexpected rise in bills.

I set what my food shopping budget is and I meal plan through what is on special that week, I add in veg and lentils to spaghetti to bulk it up for lunches or “quick meals”, butter chicken I add in chickpeas and sweet potato and that bulks that up to, we also cut down on meat as it saves us lots of money.

Put aside a small amount each week for special fun things, but mainly stick to free activities like picnics, parks, museums, home cinema nights, local farmers markets ect can also be a great way to save money. Check out the community centres they always have great activities on.

The Australian government or ATO put out a budget app a few years ago. Might be worthwhile looking into it.

Split your money into categories and stick to them, meal plan ahead for the week and you’ll know exactly what you have to buy.

If you are buying electrical goods then Retravision are doing a lowest price match guarantee. If you buy something for x $ and in a certain period of time you see it advertised on say Harvey Normans or Good Guys website for less, Retravision will refund you that amount.

Keep a book on your income and expenses per week or month. Everything.

My partner and I swear by Barefoot Investor – we started 2 years ago and wiped all of our debt plus haven’t been truly without money for atleast a year and a half.

I have created my own budget spreadsheet, where I track how much everything costs and I break it down on how much it costs per week, fortnight, month and year. It helps give perspective an identify areas where I can cut down on.

You can google free budgeting templates.
For me a big thing would be to look out for specials when you do your groceries. See what is on sale and try and work with those ingredients when you’re making meals for the fam.

You really do just need to change your mindset to “don’t spend unless it is super needed”. You can probably use your bank statement to see where all the money is going, and then once you know your weak spot, try to reign it in a bit or look at other options ie if it’s groceries, start a meal plan which allows you to use cheaper cuts of meat, or take advantage of discounted meat in stores. Often fruit shops are cheaper than Coles/Woollies.

My tip is to ask yourself “Do I really need this?” and if so “Is there a cheaper option?”

Look at your bills and see if there is anything you can do without.

It is great that you are reaching out for advice and help. If you can work with spreadsheets, they are fantastic to help keep a track of your weekly expenses. For those that are estimates, like groceries, power and fuel, when you actually pay them, put the actual cost against your estimates amounts…..this will help you see where you may be able to save some money. Even the coffee, or lunch that we buy when out, adds up, include them in the budget also. Don’t forget to include them or similar spending habits to your budget. Always shop for groceries with a shopping list and don’t add any extras to the trolley. Good luck.

If you’re so undisciplined, an app won’t work. Maybe ley someone else look after your money?

I made up a spread sheet that shows me how much we have per fortnight to spend on us, after bills and groceries have been paid for. Any money left over at the end of the fortnight gets put aside

I have a budget book and headings so I write home much I.want to spend a fortnight then do subtotal as I go ie $500 for food and houses clean g items etc….then when am getting close know to slow down. I write what we get in for the fortnight money wise then.at the end what we spent so I have an idea of where we are at with money. We live on one wage so need to do this. It’s what two incomes I wouldn’t be so.strict. Am jealous of families on two wages.

Definitely write a weekly budget and meal plan! I have a weekly budget just in my notes in my phone, nothing fancy and it works for us. It’s easy to adjust when some weeks have more expenses than others

Menu planning while choosing cheaper cuts of meat, going vegetarian for one or two meals a week. Stick to a budget with your grocery shopping, buy things like rice in bulk

Turn off any appliance on standby – eg tv, dvd etc at the wall. Use cheaper cleaners eg chemico, jiff etc. Use supermarket brands. Try to grow some veges – either in a garden or pot. Give yourself challenges to make it fun. Sorry not these are apps!
Track your money for a week use an app or bank app.

Word of mouth recommendations can also at times be helpful. Bookstores might have some good books or links to programs.