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Websites For The Frugal?
fwc writes "Like most people, I like being able to get the most benefit out of my money. In pursuit of this, I use several websites which help stretch my dollar even more. For instance, I have found smarterliving.com which I consult for good travel-related deals. I also use slickdeals.net and fatwallet to make sure I don't miss those almost-too-good-to-be-true deals. When looking for the best price on a specific item, I usually consult Froogle, Pricewatch, and Shopper.com. I also use a collection of online stores which sell stuff dirt cheap, such as newegg, PC Surplus Online, and of course half.com. Recently, I was looking for some tools at Harbor Freight's Website and a friend suggested that I might want to also look at Homier's. I was pleasantly suprised to find that they have some prices which are even lower than at any other site which I have found. This makes me wonder what other sites are out there I haven't found yet which are in the same category." I know techbargains has "saved" me money on some things I might not otherwise have bought. Where have you been best led?
The Frugal Living Tip File has some top notch advice. It disappeared from the net awhile back, but archive.org has a copy.
EVERYDAY IS CATURDAY
always check Reseller Ratings before buying...
--IronHelix
In no particular order:
In my experience, Amazon is almost ALWAYS the cheapest place to buy something, not because of their prices on items, but because of their free shipping on orders over $25.
Cloud City Digital: DVD Production at its cheapest/finest
...can be bought cheap, too. Go to Cheap Ass Gamer; it relies on different users posting the deals they have found, but it seems to be a very effective system. The availability of some deals depends on your area (and the brick & mortar stores you have access to).
I think Yahoo bought a lemon when they acqured Kelkoo... Or maybe they just have a damn good buisness plan for them...
Here's a site that'll give you advices on how to save big: clickey
"A door is what a dog is perpetually on the wrong side of" - Ogden Nash
...and you want MORE? I know you want the best for your money, but that's just greedy... :)
http://www.gotapex.com/
:-)
superior. they update every day with new deals, coupon codes, and much more. i check up every day when i get home
Ebay can be a good source for cheap stuff if you don't mind buying second-hand goods. I've bought a few things dirt-cheap on Ebay... sometimes you have to take a little gamble, but generally I haven't been disappointed often, not even with items sensitive to wear and improper handling such as model airplane engines.
;)
An added bonus for the environmentally-conscious: you're helping to save the planet by recycling
If construction was anything like programming, an incorrectly fitted lock would bring down the entire building...
I co-founded the ebay sniping website snipeswipe.com and I can say that our users routinely win ebay items very cheaply.
Unfortunately, due to ebay's no-spidering rules, we can't search out for sweet deals on ebay.
You can also spend your time on ebay searching for "Labtops"
He posts a ton of stuff daily, and seems to aggregate what's on some of the other sites and combines it with coupon codes, etc. link
"Want in one hand and spit in the other and see which one fills up first." - My Dad
Think that's bad?
Well, you know those soap chips that are left over when you're almost finished using a bar of soap? My father saves them, and then compresses them into a new bar of soap when he's saved up enough of them.
How's that for frugal/cheap?
NEVER EVER BUY FROM TIGERDIRECT
These guys screw up big time, constantly have credit cards stolen, etc etc etc
Just google for night-mare like stores
Sunny Dubey
it's not thriftiness, it's Money Optimization! The game is to maximize the amount of money still remaining in your wallet after each purchasing excercise.
$cat
I've purchased several item from TD with no problem and my rebates went through without a hitch. -However- they have a terrible reputation for denying rebates, hiding rebate information, and otherwise abusing rebates.
If you find something at TigerDirect and you can get it out the door at a bargain price by all means go for it, but it it requires a rebate be warned, you may have trouble.
-dameron
Stop spending your money and pay off debts and invest. Think of your (financial) future for once!
www.fool.com
A great place to get a good pirce on power tools, but their handtools both mechanical and woodworking are of horrible quality.
:/
Cheap woodworking tools lead to serious injuries. And mechanical tools lead to broken knuckles. You get what you pay for and then you pay some more to Blue Cross Blue Sheild
Mack, Snapon and Craftsman really can't be beat, you get durability, quality and Sears will replace about any tool even if it's from doing something stupid with em.
Yeah, pretty good prices, but they are also theiving criminals who have a horrible return policy (puts frys to shame) and tend to "lose" rebates.
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I would recommend Clark Howard's site. Clark Howard has a nationally syndicated radio show and has written several fantastic books on smart financial principles. He is very well known here in the Atlanta area and his life story is very interested. He made his first million on an average salary by saving and investing for the long term (of course he makes a lot more now on his radio gig and his books).
His site contains an abundance of information on anything subject you can think of. Hey, he's pretty cool technology-wise...he even uses Vonage!
Don't forget geeks.com The website isn't that pretty, but sometimes you can find a pretty sweet deal on computer stuff.
Learn something new.
Dressing well can REALLY help your career, a well dressed idiot will make more money in the long run than a poorly dressed average man. I consider my clothes, hair, smell and all of that to be an investment, it's a good way to get an edge in the compeditive IT industry, and it works VERY well.
One thing I have found about frugality - it can be penny wise and pound foolish.
If I spend 2 hours comparing deals, checking competitors, and surfing sites to track down $50 savings on a gadget, did I gain anything? I could have spent that 2 hours with my family, working on consulting gigs, and doing other household chores. It is called the opportunity cost of time in economics. It didn't cost $0.00 to track down that $50 - there was a cost.
I guess it depends on where you are in life. As a college student, I clipped coupons, and comparison shopped to get the best deal. Now with 2 jobs, and 3 kids, I think a few bucks here and there is worth a little more time with my family.
Well, you know those soap chips that are left over when you're almost finished using a bar of soap? My father saves them, and then compresses them into a new bar of soap when he's saved up enough of them.
OK, I don't know if this marks me as cheap or just a geek, but my process for dealing with soap "slivers" is to stick them on the new bar. I really don't see what the point would be in saving a lot of slivers, but when you have one old one and one new one they stick together without much effort, since the wet soap kind of acts like its own glue. Future lathering wears down the old sliver, and eventually the new bar becomes a sliver and the process repeats. Hopefully your father finds this new algorithm useful. :-)
I like it.
Gives some good hints on how to avoid a scam.
Explains how the car dealers make money, and how you can save some.
If you don't understand how they make money off you, then you can't tell if they're ripping you off. If you know what is going on, you have a chance.
I hear there's this website called DealMeIn.net that's really good!
I heard a good quote a while back... don't remember who said it though.
"In America, its what you save, not how much you spend."
I find this to be very true, especially at warehouse discounters such as Costco, Sam's Club, etc. Many in this country are easily duped by clever marketing schemes and pricing.
100% Insightful
B.G. Micro is sort of like All Electronics in that they carry a ton of surplus electronic junk, download both catalogs and enjoy! Also try American Science and Surplus for a wider variety of tech stuff, toys, labware, and millitary goods.
I've been using for a while now. When a site pulls a coupon code or something, Ben usually updates the listing, and the discussions following each posting are a helpful way to share results. "I had to put in a California ZIP code to view the item, but then I was able to order it shipped to my Michigan address." or "Make sure the CompUSA is within 4 miles of the Best Buy or they won't honor the pricematch. Get a friendly CSR and you should be golden!"
I've stopped using Pricewatch, their listings have become crammed with keyword spam and are all but useless. The "price including shipping" column was a good idea, but the quality of the listings has been terrible lately.
I order a fair number of things from eBay, and also AbeBooks.com (nice for buying used textbooks) so I don't really feel that I'm out of touch with international shipping rates. However, using BorderFree at Half.com results in absolutely outrageous shipping fees. If I spend $15US, once BorderFree's fees are added in I tend to end up with a bill of maybe $45US, versus somewhere in the neighborhood of $5 - $10 for shipping a similar item from other online retailers.
Most slashdotters seem to hold an incorrect meaning for the word "frugal" true (and indeed, so does the majority of society).
Frugality isn't so much about only buying the cheapest thing, it's about not buying things in the first place. It's using the wisdom to know what you do and do not really need. Buying 2 liter bottles of cola because 20 oz bottles are more expensive isn't frugal, that's economics. Frugality would be not buying the soda in the first place, because you don't need it and water is freely available (and better for you, to boot).
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