This is not a new idea, and in fact many bloggers make it a strictly no-spend February. But I like to keep things a bit looser because not everyone can just stop buying things.
Not that you have to stop buying entirely. If you get a head cold in late February, you don’t have to wait until March 1 to hit the drugstore.
And obviously you’ll still have to gas up your car/renew your transit pass as needed, or pick up fresh produce or milk when you run out (and if you decide you can’t live without these things).
The point of this 28-day exercise is to try not to spend, and to be intentional about what you do end up buying. Pretty sure you guys are already good at that.
So: Who’s in?
Instead of buying on autopilot, a low- or no-spend February asks you to think critically about everything you want to put into the shopping cart:
Is this a need or a want?
If I need it, do I have something already that will work (almost) as well?
If not, is there any way to get it cheaply or free?
If not, how can I find the best possible price?
Other than that, you’re free to make up your own rules. For example, if an old friend hits town and you really want to meet up for coffee, for heaven’s sake drink some coffee. Or if you see a really skookum deal on a product your household uses a lot of, definitely buy it.
Low- or no-spend February cheats
You could also get creative. An old acquaintance will be in town in the near future, and Linda B. and I want to take him out for coffee and gossip. Fortunately, I have gift cards for a local coffee shop (it was a holiday present), a small local restaurant (every so often I buy a bunch of GCs so they can have the money upfront) and the neighborhood Tastee-Freez (ditto). We can get our friend his coffee, and maybe even some curly fries, but I won’t have to spend any cash.
(Except for the tip. Willing to bend the no-spend rules for that.)
Regarding the really-good-deals thing: This coming Tuesday is Senior Tuesday at Fred Meyer, a Kroger store. It’s a standing date for DF and me, because we’ll get an extra 10% off Kroger products – even the “manager’s special” items. So I used some Fetch Rewards points to get Kroger GCs.
(If you don’t use Fetch Rewards, or any other shopping app, you are missing out. See “Rewards programs FTW!” for the how-to.)
Your mileage may vary
Sometimes you just really, really want a pizza. And that’s okay! But during a low- or no-spend February, don’t automatically give yourself permission. Think about what you could do with the money you would have used for a fairly forgettable meal, then poke around in your kitchen for the makings of a creative one. (Or, heck, a boring one: I have been known to have Cream of Wheat for supper when I don’t feel like cooking.)
To be clear: You can still have the pizza if you really want it. Just be intentional about the purchase.
To help make your purchases more strategic, use the next eight days to do a quick recon of your pantry. If you stock up now on things you’ll need for the next month, it will cut down on the number of times you have to hit the store (or go online) to buy kibble or quinoa or whatever.
Again: Low- or no-spend February doesn’t mean you absolutely, positively cannot shop. But the fewer trips you make, the fewer chances to succumb to the siren song of that week’s loss-leader treats. When I decide I need bananas* or milk or something like that, I’ll ask DF to go. His willpower is astonishing.
At the end of low- or no-spend February
That’s the best part: You get to check the books and see how much (if any) extra money is left over. I say “if any” because we all know that life hands us surprises.
But should that happen, you get to congratulate yourself for having dealt with the problem using cash on hand – no credit card debt, no dipping into your emergency fund.
What will you use your “extra” money for? To pay off the last of the holiday debt? Put additional dollars toward a mortgage? Beef up that emergency fund?
You get to make the rules. The only thing I ask is for you to consider sharing your experiences. I’ll be doing a weekly** update on how the experiment is going, and your stories and workarounds – and your success stories – are probably more interesting than mine. So do feel free to leave a comment, both here and on each week’s update.
Good luck, and good frugal-ing.
*Technically we could get by for a month, since we have canned fruit, dried apples from our own trees and loads of raspberries that we froze last summer. I expect I’ll want bananas but I don’t need bananas.
**That is, if winter brain-drain lets it happen. I’ve felt pretty logy lately.
I could do this. I’m doing a no spend January (except for groceries). Low spend sounds like it’s possible. Oh shoot, dh will have to get a new suit for our son’s wedding.
Well, you’d have had to get that no matter what, since the wedding is upcoming. As I said: Make your own rules.
Congratulations to your family. Hope the occasion is joyous.
Alas, next Tuesday is Jan 31. Senior Tuesday @ Fred’s is Feb 7th. Gotta wait a bit.
Whoops. You’re right. I’ll hang on to those Kroger cards another week.
I should be able to do a low-spend February without too much difficulty: I’m having a dental implant on Jan. 31, so I’ll be eating mushy food (with ingredients on hand) for much of February anyway–not to mention recovering from the cost of the implant!
I feared the worst with my own implant, expecting a lot of pain. It really wasn’t so bad. Hope your experience is similar.
But I always say that dental work is God’s way of saying, “Oh, go on, have a milkshake for lunch. And for dinner.”
I’m in!
I’m in! I know I’ll be invoiced for some goodies I purchased this month but I’ll be more discriminating in Feb. Good idea to check the pantry & freezer and make any necessary store runs this month😉.
Count me in. We need to start eating down our freezers and pantry. Even DH is willing to stop diving into the Meat Manager’s Bargain Bin for the month of February.
That’s a bad habit for DF and me, too. We need to eat what we already have before restocking.
I tried to do this in Jan…..but then I had a reaction to Shingles vax and ended up in ER with Tachycardia, AND had to have a plumber out the same week 🙁
I will try again in Feb though as I need to pay myself back for my very unexpected Jan expenses!!
Luckily, I have a healthy emergency fund, and health insurance…..so I am very grateful for that!!
I will kickoff with a few free meals as a coworker, who i have spoken of before – very good cook and always makes too much — brought me a ziploc bag (frozen) of her Beef Barley soup she had just made–that should feed me for a week!!
Yikes! That must have been scary. I’m glad you’re on the mend, and welcome to the challenge.
I will be doing my stock up for basics like my laundry detergent and a few other things this weekend. Now that I wfh no spend is much easier for me. I need a reason to catch up on my to be read pile. So I’m in!
I’m in! I was doing the same for January, too, and doing a great job until Monday morning when my sewing machine experience a sudden cardiac arrest and died right then and there. For my life a sewing machine is much more of a need, not a want. The “want” part of the equation is how fancy/pricy I want to get with a replacement. I bought a comparable machine that same day and if it lasts me 20+ years like my dearly departed one did, then I’ll probably never buy another. No regrets at all–just gratitude that I could replace it without stressing over the cost. In other areas of the house I’m mostly eating from the freezer/pantry right now, buying only fresh produce/milk. This time last year I was diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes and I have gotten my lab values down to absolutely perfect, so I’m not willing to compromise in my diet no matter what! There will be 2 occasions for lunch out before the end of February, but I have the money for that tucked into the back of my wallet, so no stress with it. I look forward to seeing how we all do with low/no spend!
I’m doing a necessities only January and can easily extend it to February. Our little chest freezer is well stocked and I’ve been using up canned and dry goods that are near or just past the best by date. Our finances are a bit tight right now while paying off the last bit of some debt. It’s more appealing to stay home in the middle of winter and enjoy some good, home-cooked meals.
Count me in! I’m definitely up for the challenge. Thanks. It’s nice to know I’ll be doing this along with you and fellow readers of this blog. I’ll have one bump in the road mid-February for our anniversary as we are planning a date night. However, the meal out on that date night is being paid for with a gift certificate we got for Christmas so the only expense will be the movie and popcorn (gotta have movie popcorn) afterwards. Tuesday is $5 movie day so we plan on going out on a Tuesday. Hopefully snowstorms or illness will not keep us away.
I’m in. We reduced food expenses in January, but not by much. Our local meat market had a sale on lump crab cake for $8.99 per lb. I bought three, and husband did not receive my message, so he also bought three. So we gifted 2 cans to a visiting sister. The same meat market also had a sale on beef eye roast one week for $4.99 per lb, so of course I had to get one (2 + lbs), which lasted us for three meals, and leftovers to the freezer for beef vegetable soup. Still have the Christmas ham in the fridge as became too ill over the holidays to cook anything that was not quick and easy. All stocked up on canned veggies. Skipped a sale stock-up yesterday as I fell and hurt both feet, resulting in a lovely blue and black boot fitting. That will limit my shopping due to limitations on standing, walking, carrying. Enforced savings for the win!
Yikes! Not me. (laughing)
For us, February is a month of events:
Super Bowl Sunday
One family birthday … we’ll be paying for dinner out.
Mardi Gras … Family tradition.
But, Lent starts at the end of the month, so that’s a more frugal time.
I’ve already started to do this…sort of…in January when we made it a priority to meal plan each week by using what we already had in the freezers. So I made a list of all the meats and things we could work into meals, and I really, really shouldn’t buy anything for a while! So far we have been more creative, and enjoying our dinners at home…and those always stretch out to at least one lunch, and sometimes a reborn dinner! Just filling in with fresh salad fixings and milk, we should be able to save enough to start paying over on the new car we were forced to purchase in October. (And yes, it was a forced purchase…had a 100 plus year old tree fall on a completely paid off car during a storm!)
I am in, as much as I can be… Just the reminders help me to keep an eye on the budget and pantry, and avoid the wants… I was going for a no-spend January, however my sister and I are going to Ecuador and the Galapagos in April and all the booking costs are happening now. oops. Also, needed to get a new Computer on order, as mine is giving questionable results these days (it is againg). However, even with my tendencies to take the deal, my frivolous purchases were way down. February is a new month! Lots to eat in freezer, pantry, fridge, basement canning shelves. Chickens are producing eggs (and I will need to buy feed as that is something I can’t really store in quantity due to furry rodents). I love creme in my coffee, and am trying to cut back due to needing to lose some pounds, that might be the one thing I reduce the use of rather than actually stop buying. lets go, team!
I’m in Donna. I hope my will power takes me through the whole month. It will be low spend, only essentials.
Hope you’ll share some of your successes during the month.