20 Items You Should Buy Now To Save Money Later

Spending money is not something I justify frivolously, however there are items you should buy now to save later that will greatly impact your savings over time. Some items may save you hundreds per year, while a few of these items may save you only a few dollars. The key to remember is: all money adds up over time. So let’s get to saving!

*to learn more about each item or purchase, click the image*

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The BIG Items You Should Buy Now To Save Later:

Programable Thermostat

With a programable thermostat, you can save money while your sleeping, out of the house, and precisely any other time you’d like to. The kicker is you can program the temperature to change so it will happen automatically. After you’ve gone to bed the temperature can decrease to save you money, and before your feet hit the floor in the morning the temperature will be back to the comfortable degree you desire. The same goes with leaving for work in the morning or going on a day trip. You’ll save money effortlessly.

Energy Saving Appliances

Energy saving appliances save money for you without you having to do a thing. An old refrigerator uses almost double the amount of energy that an energy star refrigerator would. Just a year can save you over $100 on your utility bill. Just think how much money you could save every year if you replace all of your old appliances with Energy Star appliances. Considering these appliances will last for decades, that money will add up substantially over time.

Safe Deposit Box

A safe deposit box is pretty self-explanatory, but an obvious must-have. If you want to keep your special valuables and important documents safe in the event of a break in, you need to have a safe place to store them. This is where a safe deposit box comes in to play. A deposit with a code instead of a key is wise so that the key cannot be found.

The Little Items You Should Buy Now To Save Later:

Water Filter

Buying bottled water is the biggest waste of money in my opinion. Why pay for something that is free? If your water tastes gross or you fear it is unclean, all you have to do is purchase a water filter for your faucet or a water pitcher filter. You save twofold: excess amounts of plastic in the landfill if not properly recycled and extra money in your wallet.

Quality Clothing (purchased for a fraction of the original price!)

Although the clothing at Walmart or Target might be cheap upfront, you’ll most likely end up replacing those items after a few years of use. Instead, you can buy quality clothing and still save money by purchasing gently used or brand-new items from thrift stores.

My recent favorite recent find is a pair of white, on trend 7 For All Mankind shorts that I bought for under $10 and would’ve cost me over $70 in store. A few of my favorite online thrift stores to shop at are Swap.com, ThredUp, and Poshmark (use my code MEREDITHANNE26 to save $10 on your order when you sign up).

Goodwill and Value Village have also served me well in-store over the years. Over half of my closet is thrifted and consists of brands like Loft, 7 For All Mankind, Madewell, Lululemon, Zella, Nordstrom, and other brands you’d find at Nordstrom. Never under estimate the type of clothing you can find at the thrift store for a fraction of the price you would pay in the department store.

Potty Pad for Pets

A potty pad is great for keeping your furniture and carpet from being soiled by pets when you’re away from home. Instead of your pets being tempted to soil the interior of your home, they have a designated spot to go when you’re away from home.

Reusable Tupperware

Buying plastic baggies may not seem like a huge expense upfront, but over the years it all adds up. Buying reusable glassware or plastic Tupperware is a great way to save money overtime and save the landfills from being filled with plastic that is thrown away.

A Laptop Case

A laptop case is a great way to ensure your laptop will be safe and preserved for as many years as possible. I recommend buying a shield for your keyboard as well so that nothing will be spilled into the keyboard causing sticky keys or the keys to be irreversibly damaged.

Phone Case

I make my phones last for 4+ years and one of the ways I am able to do this is by putting a phone case on my iPhone. That way if you accidentally drop your phone, spill something, or treat it too rough, it is less likely to be scratched or damaged.

Lunch Box

Packing a lunch will save you money two ways. First, when you have a delicious healthy packed lunch, you’ll be less likely to spend money out on your lunch break. Second, it will save you money on having to buy disposable lunch bags.

Juicer

If you’re into the latest health trend of drinking nutrient dense vegetable juice, save your money and purchase a juicer. That way you can know exactly what’s going into your juices and make them in the convenience of your own home. Plus you’ll be saving lots of money because store-bought juices are expensive.

Nutribullet

Similarly, a Nutribullet or other type of high powered blender is great for making smoothies and other type of recipes such as my healthy butternut squash mac& cheese instead of going to places like Whole Foods or Jamba Juice to buy a smoothie.

Coffee Maker

This should be a no-brainer, but buying a five dollar cup of coffee at your local shop coffee shop is a fantastic way to waste money when you can brew your own coffee at home. I personally buy Starbucks beans from Costco and brew my own Starbucks coffee at home for a fraction of the price but the same quality cup of coffee.

Buy Items on Sale

The next time you see a crazy good deal on an item you regularly buy, stock up! If you’re going to buy it repeatedly in future weeks or months anyways, you might as well buy it right now at that great low price.

Hot Tools Sleeve to Save Your Countertops, Cabinets, and Travel Bags

If you’ve ever set down a curling iron only to realize you just burned a nice mark onto your counter, you need a hot tool sleeve. No more paying for new countertops or not receiving your deposit back after you move out of your rented home because of damage.

Hot tool sleeves also great for packing hot tools into your suitcase shortly after you’ve used your flat iron or storing your hot tools underneath the bathroom cabinet without worrying about it burning the wood.

Gadget to Squeeze Out Every Last Drop of Your Toothpaste Effortlessly

Instead of wasting your life trying to squeeze every last drop of toothpaste out of its tube, invest in this gadget. It does the hard work for you! And you’ll never have to waste toothpaste again.

Reusable Water Bottle

Carrying a water bottle with you is a great way to stay healthy and make sure you don’t get dehydrated. However, it can be expensive to buy water bottles on a weekly basis. A reusable water bottle can be easily washed in the dishwasher and will last for many years.

Rechargeable Batteries

Batteries are used for all sorts of household gadgets and necessities. Instead of having to buy new batteries at a high price, buy rechargeable batteries that you can use over and over again.

Packing Cubes

Do you want to avoid the $50-$100 fee fee to check your bag at the airport? Then invest in packing cubes. These will change your life if you are a terrible packer or a constant traveler. Don’t take my word for it; read the reviews. You’ll be able to pack twice as much into a carry-on and will drastically reduce the number of bags you’ll have to check for your family on your next vacation. Jordan from FunCheaporFree was able to pack her ENTIRE family of 8 into 2 checked bags using packing cubes.

Crockpot Liners

Okay, so this may not save as much money as the other items do but it will save you TIME and time is money, right?! I ALWAYS use crockpot liners when using my crockpot because all you have to do is take out the liner, throw it away, and SKIP washing your crockpot. It actually does save you money because you don’t have to run your massive pot through the dishwasher which saves soap and water, but more importantly you can avoid the hassle of washing your huge pot after every use. I love them!!

And That’s a Wrap!

What else do you purchase up front because you know it’ll pay off in the long run? I’d love to know in the comments down below! I’m always looking for new ideas to save money. Please make sure to give this post a share to Pinterest or your other favorite platform if you learned something new and found this post helpful.

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Resources That I Love:

Ibotta: Ibotta is an awesome cash back app that you can use on your smart phone to earn cash back rewards simply for shopping. It includes many popular stores such as Amazon, Walmart, Target, Costco, Fred Meyer, Thrive Market, and many more. When you download the app, use my referral code here to earn your first $10, and start inviting your friends to start earning huge bonuses!

Ebates: Ebates is phenomenal because you get high percentages of cash back just for shopping. For example, if Ebates is offering 10% cash back for shopping at Target and you buy something for $500, you’ll get $50 in cash back. Amazing right?! Use my link here to sign u for Ebates and start earning money simply for buying your everyday needs. BONUS: By using my link, you’ll earn $10!

TIP: Download the free and easy to use cash back button on Ebates.com. With this button, any time you go to a website that offers cash back through Ebates, you’ll automatically get cash back from your order when you click the cash back pop up that will appear. It’s easy peasy lemon squeezy!

MyPoints:  MyPoints is a rewards program that gives you points for reading e-mails, shopping, taking surveys, doing web searches, and more. Once you earn a certain amount of points, you can redeem them for a gift card of your choice to over 75 merchants. They also offer free access to coupons to hundreds of different merchants daily. I’ve already earned a $25 AMC gift card and a $50 Amazon gift card in 2 months just by using Mypoints 5-10 minutes per day before I roll out of bed. Sign up and start earning here.     

Groupon: Groupon is a deal-of-the-day recommendation service for anything from restaurants to vacations to electronics. Every 24 hours, Groupon broadcasts an electronic coupon for a restaurant or store in your city, recommending that local service while also offering you a 40% to 60% discount if you purchase that service. I use Groupon AT LEAST a few times a month if not more. I just had my oil changed at Jiffy Lube for $20 when it would’ve cost me $60 without the deal. Groupon has saved me thousands of dollars over the years. I never go anywhere without checking Groupon first. Use my link to save $10 on your next purchase with Groupon!