The majority of Americans are living paycheck to paycheck, have less than $10,000 saved for retirement and spend more than they earn each month. Odds are, you fit into this camp. If you made it to this website, odds are also that you are sick of it and desire to become financial independent, rich, retire early, or maybe just want to learn how to pay down your debt so you have more accessible funds for leisure.
Whatever your situation may be, whatever your financial goals, debt is most likely stopping you. Here are 50 tips for getting out of debt. Apply some of them, apply all of them to help you achieve the freedom that comes along with being debt free.
Apply none of them and continue to suffocate under the weight of freedom crushing debt. If you want to be like everyone else, and live paycheck to paycheck, do what everyone else does. If you want to live like the very few who don’t have constant worry about debt and bills, you will need to behave differently.
Without further ado here are 50 ways you can be different then the majority and pay down your debt and get on the path to financial freedom.
1. Pay more than the monthly minimum
Monthly minimum payments are designed to keep you paying the creditor forever. If you really want to get out of debt you will need to pay more than the minimum each month. Otherwise you are just paying the interest which is calculated every month. You need to start taking big chunks out of the principle in order to knock your debt out for good.
2. Stop going out to eat
If you are in debt can you really afford to go out and pay someone to cook for you? You can go to the grocery store and buy the same food and make it yourself for a third of the price.
3. No more Starbucks
This is a no brainer. Four dollars for a latte every day? I drink KCups for about .29 cents a cup. It is even cheaper when I can find a coupon
4. Clip coupons
You can save a ton of money just by showing coupons to the cashier at the supermarket. The Krazy Coupon Lady makes a living just advertising all the different coupon deals every day at various stores around the world. Check out her website and start clipping them coupons npw. A 75 cent newspaper can save you a hundred dollars or more if done right.
Just be sure you’re using coupons for products you already buy, otherwise you could end up overspending on items you’ll never use.
5. Plan you trips to the store
You will need to do more than just clip coupons. You need to plan out your trip to the grocery store. For starters, don’t shop when you are hungry. Make a list and stick to it. Avoid impulse buys. Organize your coupons and bring a calculator so you can keep track of your cart and stay within budget.
6. Thrift shops
There is nothing wrong with shopping at thrift shops. In fact, for a while, salvation army clothes were actually in style. If you are dead broke and in debt, you shouldn’t care what other people think anyway.
7. Cancel cable
Lets face it, most of the crap on tv isn’t even entertaining. and it certainly isn’t doing anything to enhance your life. If you absolutely must know what happened on the real housewives or whatever other mind melting show you watch, just google it. Chances are you can find the highlights online for free. Cut the cable, and put that $150 – $200 bucks a month toward your debt and watch how fast it disappears.
8. Avoid expensive hobbies.
There are plenty of ways for you to entertain yourself that don’t cost a ton of money. Do you really need to spend $60 on video games and then another $50 just to find some friends to play with you online? And think of the amount of money you could be earning in the time you are wasting playing games. If you are serious about eliminating your debt then get serious!
9. Cancel the gym membership.
Do you even lift bro?
10. Sell your car
The average car payment in America today is over $500 a month. That seems crazy to me. Imagine how fast you could knock out your debt if you instead used that $500 a month towards debt elimination. Hell, the car is probably the biggest part of your debt. If you want to learn more about how your car payment is keeping you poor, check out this article I wrote.
11. Pay cash for everything
When you buy stuff and hand over cash you get nothing in return except the stuff you bought. There is an exchange that happens. Cash for goods. At the end of the transaction, the cash is gone and you are left to enjoy the goods you have purchased. When you use your credit card, at the end of the transaction you get the card back. There is no tangible exchange and thus it is much easier on the concious to spend spend spend. Not to mention, you will now be charged interest on top of the cost of the items you just bought. In fact…
12. Cut up your credit cards
You read that right. Cut up your credit cards. Just cut em all up. Remove the temptation. Not unlike an alcoholic who flushes all his booze down the toilet. Go cold turly on your credit card addiction.
13. Sell your old crap
Look around the house. Odds are you have loads of crap that serves no purpose. Sell it. Have a garage sale, start an ebay store, facebook marketplace, etc. There are a million ways to sell your stuff. If you don’t use it, sell it. Apply the money you make towards your debt.
14. Sell new crap
There are people on the internet who just give stuff away free. Go get that stuff and sell it. Go pull a bunch of stuff out of the sale bin at the walmart and sell it. Buy items for $5 and sell them on the internet for $10. If has never been easier. And you now have tons of free time since you cancelled your cable and stopped going out to eat.
15. Pack Your Lunch
Pack your lunch, and you’ll save a nice chunk of money each and every month.
16. Carpool
Take turns driving to work and save money on fuel and wear-and-tear on your car.
17. Create a budget and stick to it
This should go without saying. Nerdwallet has a great article that will help you create a budget.
18. Find free entertainment.
You are going to need to freze your entertainment spending for a while. This means no going out to the movies, concerts, mini-golf, bowling or whatever you do for fun that costs money. Instead, challenge yourself to find free ways to stay entertained. Take the kids to the park, go for a walk or a hike, enjoy a free concert, or look for a free event in your community.
19. Set up automatic payments
You got yourself into debt. Obviously you lack will power. If you simply don’t trust yourself, set up automatic payments each month. This way you don’t even have to be tempted.
20. Cash in loose change
Who doesn’t have loose change laying around? In the car seat, the ashtray, the dryer, your pockets, under the sofa cushion, junk drawers… There is spare change to be had everywhere. Get a jar and start collecting. Before you know it you’ll have a decent chunk of change. Cash it in and put it towards your debt.
21. Cancel subscriptions
What unnecessary subscriptions do you have that are just sucking money from you each month? Magazines, apps, streaming services, jelly of the month???? Whatever it is, you need to ask yourself if you are really getting the value from it that it is costing you to remain in debt.
22. Get a 2nd job.
If you are in debt that badly, your ego shouldn’t be an issue. Go out and get a 2nd job. Shovel shit if you must. You got yourself into this mess, if you are serious about getting yourself you must do whatever it takes.
23. Stop investing.
Until your debt is gone, you want all your income to go toward getting out of debt. Once you’re debt-free and have built and an emergency fund, then you can resume your contributions. Once you have done this, you can resume contributions to your savings and investments.
24. Ignore your broke friends.
Stop trying to keep up with the Joneses!They’re assholes. they are trying to impress people they don’t even know or like. You are different. You are going to sacrifice now in order to live a better life tomorrow while the Joneses are still spending a quarter of their income on their car.
25. Ask for a raise.
What do you have to lose?
26. Put unexpected windfalls into debt
Got a bonus at work? A larger then expected tax refund? Found a hundred bucks in the laundry? As tempting as it may be to spend found money, now is no time for that. Put any found money towards your debt.
27. Request Rate Reductions
Contact your creditors to see if they would lower your interest rate. This is not always something that works, but it is definitely worth a few calls. Like asking your boss for a raise, what do you have to lose?
28. Avoid Monthly Fees
If your bank charges monthly fees, ask to waive them. If they won’t, consider switching to an institution that offers free banking.
29. Avoid ATM fees
Perhaps the biggest waste of your money is paying money to get your money. ATM fees are just crazy stupid. I have seen someone pay as much as $5 to get $20 from the ATM. That is worse than loan sharking.
30. Adjust Your Insurance
Make some calls to find out if you can get a better rate on your auto and/or home or renter’s insurance. You can sometimes find a better deal by bundling or even increasing your deductibles a bit. Again, it doesn’t hurt to ask.
31. Downgrade Your Cell Phone
See if you can’t lower your monthly payment on your cell phone. Use your home internet for most of your data usage. Use your phone less and less and watch your bill go down. Contact your service provider and see what can be done to lower your bill.
32. Cut your overall spending
I wrote a whole article dedicated to just this subject alone. 10 insanely easy ways to cut spending
33. Cook at home instead of eating out or hitting the diner for lunch
34. Cook from scratch
Cooking a meal from scratch is often much cheaper then buying pre made meals
35. Bring your lunch to work every day
Going out for lunch every day can become costly and add up quick. bring your lunch to work instead and use the money you would otherwise spend at the vending machine for debt repayment
36. Avoid name brands
Did you know that most store brands are made by the same companies that make the brand name items? And they usually cost about 30% less. Buy the off brands and save money.
37. Avoid designer clothes
Just like with groceries, the designer label clothes are much more expensive. And be honest with yourself, you probably already have a closet full of clothes you never wear anyway.
38. Buy clothes on sale
At the end of the season, clothes are much cheaper. Guy buy a winter coat in March or shorts in September.
39. Get a library card
Bored? Go borrow a book or dvd from the library instead of overpaying for one at barnes and nobles. Afterall, once you have read the book, what do you do with it?
40. Bring back game night
When was the last time you stayed home with the family and played trivial pursuit? Instead of going out for entertainment, stay at home and make it a game night. Charades costs nothing!
41. Curb your drinking
A case of Corona costs about $30. Go drink that same case at a bar and you will probably pay triple. Slow down your drinking and save money
42. Fire your landscaper/housekeeper
Seroiusly!?? If you are in debt and have a housekeeper or a landscaper you are an idiot. Stop being lazy. Wash your own dishes and mow your own lawn.
43. Eliminate all luxury services
Do you pay to have your car washed? Get your nails done? Spa visits? Professional massage? Stop it. You can not afford these services until you eliminate your debt.
44. Cancel your vacation
Now is not the time to take vacation. Erradicate your debt, save 6 months expenses in an emergency fund, and THEN you can consider taking that vacation.
45. Is debt consolidation for you?
Maybe it is time to research if you would be helped by debt consolidation. Research more about what debt consolidation is and how it applies to your situation.
46. Avoid lifestylle creep
Lifestyle creep is what happens when your lifestyle improves concurrently with your income. In order to prevent lifestyle creep, identify your wants and your needs and be willing to delay gratification of your wants in lieu of saving. Learn more about how to avoid lifestyle creep.
47. Balance transfer high interest credit cards
There are a million offers out there for you to transfer to a 0% introductory rate credit card. You just need to make sure you pay off the principle before the year is up and you start getting crushed again with interest.
48. Eliminate costly bad habits
We all have habits that we know are bad for us and are also financially costly. Do you smoke? Drink? Hit the vendoing machine every day at lunch? These are all things that are not only bad for your health, they are killing your wallet. Stop them now and put that money towards paying down debt.
49. Organize your bills
This should go without saying and should be part of your budget. However I cant tell you how many times in my youth I paid a late fee. Not because I didn’t have the money, simply because I was disorganized and didn’t pay on time. Get organized, know what you owe and put together a calendar along with your budget.
50. Read earlyretirementearl.com every day
Stay updated on all the tips and tricks needed to help you become and stay debt free and get on the road to financial freedom by frequently visiting earrlyretirementearl.com.