101 ways to save money
Are you looking for money to invest? Here are tips on how to free up money from your present budget so that
you have some to invest.
Around the House naturally kills off the bacteria. Learned this from the
missionary community.
1. Use GNLD washing soaps. They work out much 15. If you have a backyard, start a compost heap for
cheaper than the stuff we buy from Uchumi. fertilizer. Keep 3 kitchen bins – one for ORGANIC
2. If you have a computer, recycle printing paper and veg, paper & leftover waste, the second for
change the printing default to “Draft” so as to half PLASTICS, and the third for GLASS. Everything
the costs of printing and paper. organic can go into the compost heap.
3. Keep all your loose coins in a big sealed tin for a 16. Grow your own veggies – a small patch with a
year (place it near the door so you can empty your compost heap can feed a family.
pockets when you enter the hse). . . you‟ll be
surprised how much it adds up to. Car and Transport
4. Recycle birthday and Christmas cards (cards are
very expensive and they all end up in the dustbin 17. Buy your fuel at Mobil – they give a free lux soap
anyway). Cut out the pictures and get the kids to re- for every 1,000/= fuel
make them into home made cards and write the 18. Cut down travel with your car by 50% - make only
message. Everyone will think they are really cute. absolutely necessary trips.
5. Buy your clothing items (for adults) once every 5 19. Go with your car to the nearest shopping center,
yrs. Save up the money in an investment fund over leave it there and take a Metro into town.
that time so that it can first work for you before you 20. Car pool with a neighbor – saves fuel costs by 30 –
spend it. 40%
6. Buy the bulk of your clothes& shoes Mitumba. 21. Plan your trips to the shops around your weekly
7. Hold a yard sale with 10 other families and sell off circuit, ie shop only at those shops that fall on your
all you do not need (kids clothes, books, etc) natural route – do not go out of your way for a task.
8. Build a small incinerator in your back yard to save This way there is no extra fuel cost for the trip.
on dustbin collection fees. Alternatively take the 22. Avoid traffic jams like the plague- they waste a lot
garbage out to a garbage dump (not roadside) on of petrol. Go to the office/home a little early or late
your daily runs. to avoid the jam.
9. Reduce security costs by buying a siren and pilot 23. Do not overspeed (60 Kph). The faster you go, the
light instead of paying for back-up alarm. Crooks more fuel consumed per km.
don‟t know the difference once the alarm rings (also 24. Avoid engine wear and tear - never rev a cold
pinch a Securicor sign for your gate!) engine. Let the engine warm up for a minute of two
10. Keep a small house pet dog. It‟s fun, makes an ideal before you drive off on a cold morning.
birthday present for your kid, and is a good alarm 25. Fix a car problem immediately it appears (eg shock
that hardly eats anything. absorbers). Waiting “till it‟s serious enough to
11. Make all birthday, anniversary, Christmas gifts warrant attention” often impacts other parts causing
practical household or necessary clothing items. If new problems that will cost you more (eg wears out
you are buying a kettle - kill 2 birds with one stone the springs). The cheapest time to repair is
and give it to your wife as a birthday present, or immediately.
give your daughter a kitten (deals with the rats, but 26. Learn to do a basic service yourself (oil change,
she doesn‟t know that does she). filter, etc).It‟s not that hard. Save bigger jobs for the
12. Have a day househelp instead of a full-time mechanic.
househelp. They are generally more satisfied with 27. Give neighbors a lift into town daily for a small fee.
their work because they have a social life beyond 28. Move closer to the kids school to save fuel, or move
your home, and their absence from the home in the the kids to a school closer to home.
evening means you have to simplify your life, 29. One day a week give your car a Sabbath.
which cuts down costs. 30. Hire out your car between 8:30 am – 3:30 pm when
13. Pick up no-cost exercise (jogging, walking, home- you don‟t need it . . . it could earn enough to pay for
workouts, etc) instead of gym fees. itself. It may even earn enough to give you a driver
(and then you can hire it out in the evenings as
Kitchen well).
31. Set a limit on how much mileage you allow yourself
14. Save gas by sterilizing drinking water using to cover per week. Once that limit is reached, use
sunlight instead of boiling – leave the water in a other means of transport, or stay at home.
plastic bottle (not the blue types) for 1 hr. Sunlight
Monthly shopping & supplies always buy small packets which inevitably cost
more). If you can - avoid packaged goods altogether
32. Buy your annual supplies (dry products like toilet (buy beans at the market instead of Uchumi)
paper, sprays, soaps, etc) once a year in January – 42. Do your own home repairs/house painting (or find a
buying in bulk gets better prices, and saves you the friend who can) . . . it‟s not that hard.
monthly cost increases (ever noticed how 43. Buy good supplies of green groceries when you
everything has gone up by 2 – 3 shs each month . . . travel out of the city (a sack of potatoes, beans,
adds up quickly so you could save a ton by buying charcoal, etc). They cost less because you cut out
everything in Jan and avoiding inflation). The trick the middlemen.
however is not to overuse your supply and run out 44. Keep a comparison price list of costs when you
early – pack things in 1 month cartons and don‟t shop in the supermarket. Remember they deflate the
open the next till the beginning of the month. price on common items so that they seem cheap, but
33. Get together with several families and buy things they inflate the prices on all other items so they can
together in bulk (supplies, meat, etc) recoup their losses. So beat them at their game!!!
34. Get together with several families – buy a cow,
slaughter and share the meat. This reduces the cost At work.
per kilo to half the butcher price.
35. Don‟t stop at the shops for little household items . . 45. Don‟t buy a copy of the daily papers . . . the costs
. keep a shopping list to fill out once a month at the add up quickly. Read the office copy or listen to the
super market. Kiosk shopping is much more radio for the days news.
expensive than the supermarket so you‟ll be 46. Carry a packed lunch to the office. It is much, much
surprised how much you can actually save by not cheaper (and healthier) than a snack from the shop
going to the kiosk. It also curbs the desire to next door.
instantly fill any „felt need‟ for an item. Stretch till
the end of the month and do without many of those Electricity
“small shopping” items.
36. Never shop with a credit card (or ATM debit card). 47. Use energy saving bulbs – they save tons on the
It has been shown that people who shop with cards electricity bills
tend to purchase 30% more goods than if they shop 48. Determine the exact amount of light you need in a
cash! (Which is why the supermarkets work so hard space and get the right bulb. Having the wrong
to get you to use a card). rating (100 W) at the wrong place increases your
37. Don‟t rush your shopping. Rushing is often at the power bill.
cost of good judgement on items. After you fill your 49. Reduce the number of security lights you have on at
grocery cart – transfer all the things to a second cart night
and ask yourself “Do I really need this?” before 50. Install a low wattage movement sensor light instead
going to the counter. of security lights. This way it only comes on when
38. Don‟t go window-shopping – it creates desire, and it senses movement.
don‟t “pop into” the supermarket . . . you will 51. Switch off light when not in use BUT NOTE : the
inevitably spot something you “absolutely need”. yellow light bulbs consume 5 minutes worth of
39. Carry only what you need daily in your pocket . . . electricity when switched on . . . so if you are
extra money (just in case I need it) will always find leaving a room for less than 5 minutes – leave the
something to buy! Infact – see how long you can go light on. Tube light consume 15 minutes worth of
without breaking down that note in your pocket. electricity when switched on – leave them on if you
Have you ever noticed how quickly it disappears are away for less than 15 minutes.
like mist once it is broken? 52. Set the boiler thermostat to heat water to body
40. Buy inexpensive no-name brands in the shops if temperature (not hot). You can make huge savings
quality is the same. DO NOT buy brand names here.
(Sanyo, Sony, Lux, Nivia, etc) otherwise you are 53. Retire the kitchen kettle and save huge costs by not
paying for the name, not the product. The old idea heating water „on demand‟ for little kitchen tasks.
that it‟s better to buy an expensive product that will 54. If you must have a kettle, then keep a thermos flask
last longer is not true except for a small no. of very next to it so that any left-over hot water is not
sophisticated professional electronic equipment. It‟s wasted.
not even true for cars. 55. Give up the microwave – microwaves encourage
41. Avoid fancy packaged items (kids go for the higher consumption of electricity as we often
colorful box, not the item). A quarter of the cost of remove frozen things directly from the fridge to the
the item is the cost of the packet plus printing! So microwave, instead of letting them thaw overnight.
the more fancy, the more expensive. For the same 56. Get a fridge with a lock – open the fridge only twice
reason avoid buying small packets of products a day – hence force people to plan things to thaw
because the smaller the packet, the more the cost of well in advance. This saves on how much work the
packaging and printing (this is why inflation is fridge has to do to cool down again after opening.
higher at the bottom among the poor because they
57. When you use the oven – bake enough at one go to 69. If you like meat a lot then eat at your friends house
fill the oven – don‟t waste electricity by baking too a lot . . . and go for the occasional company dinner,
little. wedding or Nyam-Chom plot.
58. Switch off the mains from 6 am to 6 pm each day 70. Cook meals in bulk – when you cook make 2 – 3
except weekends. Even when it seems you are not meals more than you need and place in freezer –
using electricity, there are a lot of little gadgets that most thing freeze well (chapatis, rice, meat, githeri,
are nibbling away at your money (fridge, video, TV, etc).
stereo, clocks, lights switched on and off 71. Breakfast (bread, butter, jam, tea, sugar, cereals,
needlessly, etc – they‟re all “off”, but they still sausage, etc) is often the most expensive meal of
consume quietly in the background – a music the day, so eat ugali or githeri for breakfast instead.
system, TV, Video on “standby” consumes 7 w per A good heavy meal means you won‟t even need
hr). lunch, thus saving in 2 ways.
72. Avoid restaurants and packaged food (snacks,
Water cakes, etc) as this sort of food is expensive and is
rarely healthy. Eat fruit instead. Only visit
59. Conserve water by how you shower, wash your restaurants when someone else wants to take you
hands/body or brush your teeth – DO NOT leave out (encourage them).
the tap running while you soap up or brush your 73. Eat a staple meal for lunch or dinner daily (eg ugali
teeth. Teach the kids to brush with one glass of & Sukuma 6 days a week. It is not necessary to
water.. have wide variety which actually increases your
60. Don‟t use expensive toilet sprays – keep a costs. One meal a week do something special that
matchbox in the toilet and burn a match instead of the family enjoys, but don‟t blow your budget and
spraying the air – for some reason it works very hence lose the value of this. If your job allows it,
well (watch out with kids – you don‟t want to burn get the variety from business dinners and get-
your house down in an attempt to save 10/=). togethers on someone else‟s budget. Amazingly it‟s
61. If you must use a spray – buy GNLD spray – a a fact that the people in Kibera eat a much healthier
bottle lasts for 1 yr . . . and if you first dilute it into diet than the people in Runda, because they eat a
2 bottles – it lasts 2 yrs. Amazing! staple meal, good for the body, without all the junk
62. Conserve water by reducing the amount used by the and sugar that kills the rich.
toilet when you flash – place a big plastic bottle 74. Steam vegetables in the micro (cooked only 60% to
filled with water in the cistern to reduce the amount retain nutrients). Cooking them with gas, or
of water it takes to fill the cistern. If you build or overcooking, costs more money. Learn to cook (and
ever have to replace your cistern, look for one bake) more meals with the Micro – saves on fuel as
designed for low water usage – some types use even there is no heat wastage (unlike gas).
half the normal amount. 75. Serve food on the plate in set portions. Reduce the
63. Put in smaller boilers so there is no hot water left in amount of food per plate the way hotels do by
the boiler after showering. Alternatively – have the spreading it out and putting green nothings called
family wash at around the same time on one boiler „garnishing‟. Use smaller plates. Most people
load of water. To reduce the cost of heating even (especially adults) overeat. So avoid overfeeding
more, install an overhead instant heater and (even kids). This also saves on washup time, water,
disconnect the main boiler. work, soap, etc (but goes against our Africanness to
serve in abundance and waste food if necessary so
Food as to make a good impression).
76. Eat only local, in-season fruits, and not expensive,
64. Make sure the gas flame does not go to the edge of imported off season fruits (often tasteless).
the sufuria while cooking – any flame over the edge Remember that imported fruit, because of all the
is totally wasted. Therefore use wide sufurias to processing and handling, freezing and transportation
ensure as much of the heat is transferred into the it goes thru before getting to the supermarket, often
cooking and not lost over the edge. has no nutritional vitamin value left, even though it
65. Stainless steel sufurias absorb heat more easily looks so good. You‟re buying the looks!
while cooking (but can char the food). Use them to 77. Cut out packaged fruit juices, sodas and squashes
boil things like water. from your shopping – they have little nutritional
66. Eat meat only once or twice a week – your body value left.
does not need much protein meat intake. 78. Avoid imported supermarket products where you
67. Eat lean pork instead of beef or chicken. It‟s much have a choice of local ones.
cheaper, and surprisingly lean pork has the least fat 79. Buy what products you can from the producers and
of all meat. cut out the middle man if possible. Fresh milk,
68. Supplement your protein intake with beans – they vegetables, honey, pork, chicken, etc are all easily
have high protein and are VERY healthy. If you available at cheaper prices from the farms within
have gas problems with them then don‟t cook them Nairobi (especially from the Catholic communities).
with the same water you soaked them in.
Others use a SCB account - minimum balance of 50,000/=
and no ledger fees. (Note Barclays Current account
80. Sell off any clothing item you have not worn in 6 charge irrespective of deposits, but Standard do not
months. charge ledger fees on Current accounts if you
81. Sell off any household items you don‟t need or use maintain the minimum of 100,000/=, which can be
(wedding gifts, extra clocks, sofas, dinner sets you your 2 – 3 month emergency fund anyway. With
never use, etc). Most homes are too cluttered with both banks take an ATM card because they charge
needless stuff that deteriorates before being thrown heavily for counter withdrawal. Barclays and
out after 10 yrs. Sell these to release funds for loan Standard also have the advantage of allowing you to
repayments. operate your account from any branch and from
82. Sell off your wedding dress (or at least hire it out). multiple ATM, plus the Standard Electron Visa
83. When feeling unwell, visit a registered Pharmacist ATM card actually works overseas). Avoid
first before going to see a doctor . . . they could save Standing Orders and Bankers Cheques – use a
you consultation fees (and long waits). cheque instead, or deposit money directly into the
84. When buying medicine ask for “generics”. They account.
may cost less than half the price of brand names. 93. For family holidays with the kids – go camping
85. Move to a cheaper house. instead. The kids consider it fun, and you carry the
86. Move the kids to cheaper schools. food you would have eaten at home. It‟s the
87. Sell off dormant „plots‟, car, etc to pay back high cheapest form of holiday making.
interest loans. 94. When you want a holiday at the coast – exchange
88. If you can‟t sell, hire them out and turn them into houses with a family that lives at the coast. Even
assets. exchange kitchens. That way the cost of the holiday
89. Pay off your high interest debt first. If you have a is only the travel costs down.
loan with 15% interest, paying it off ASAP saves 95. Furnish your house with rustic African deco. An
you 15% per annum. Paying off high interest loans African lampshade costs 50/= as opposed to
first is actually one of the best investments imported 800/=.
financially. You don‟t get any actual money into 96. Use iron-wrought furniture. Beds, chairs, dining
your pocket, but you save having to take money out tables, etc are all much cheaper than the roadside
of your pocket to finance that 15%. jua-kali wood products.
90. Commit to bargain shop at secondhand garden sales 97. Make curtains using plain white sheets with a
(expatriate leaving) or at “Sunshine Boutique”. You colorful 6 inch border strip on the side. Much
can furnish you whole house, find all appliances, etc cheaper than buying curtain material.
at throwaway prices at such sales. 98. Remember – Plan B (the last minute substitute plot)
91. Unless your mobile is office supplied – dispose of it always costs more than Plan A (the original plot
– you can actually survive without one! You‟ll be that failed), so avoid Plan B plots. If you bounce at
surprised how much money you save, and how a friends place, go back home, don‟t go off to the
many calls you don‟t need to make if you have to movies to compensate.
use a pay-phone. Even SMS adds up quite quickly 99. Learn to entertain yourself inexpensively – video
(how did we ever survive without these expensive hires, concerts, films, nyama-choma plots,
gadgets?). Alternatively discipline your use of the magazines, journals, novels all cost tons of money,
mobile (500/= per month?) Remember and are sometimes purchased on the spur of the
“convenience” costs (instant telephoning, instant moment. Instead cultivate inexpensive ways to
transport, instant music, instant TV variety, instant entertain yourself (radio, some TV, family reading,
e-mail, instant meals, etc), so do away with some of jigsaw puzzles, borrowing friends videos, walks,
the convenience to save costs. conversation with a friend, etc).
92. Run one bank account only. Many people end up 100. Buy your magazines and reading materials from 2nd
paying ledger fees of 650/= per month for 2 - 3 hand shops (there‟s a good one at Yaya) or second
accounts that mostly hover above zero. Don‟t be hand street vendors selling last years Readers
conned by the new “MOVE” accounts of 800/= Digest . . . or borrow from a friend after they are
ledger fees flat per month (9,600/= per year). Keep done with theirs.
your money in a Barclays Saving Account and 101. Attend auctions. You‟d be surprised how cheaply
maintain the minimum balance of 20,000/= as an you can pick up valuable items for your home or
emergency fund. If you maintain the minimum office.
balance you pay ZERO per year for ledger fees. Or
Not everything above applies to everyone, but out of the 101 you might find 20 ideas that work for you and
reduce your budget. Other ideas might seem too radical (like getting rid of your mobile, or hiring out your
car), but forget the „pe-tho’, it‟s your budget!