Saving Up for Retirement? Cut Down on These Expenses

Every year, millions of people retire, and of that number, many of them don’t have enough money to live comfortably when they’re no longer earning a consistent income. Successful retirement planning begins long before you clock out from your last shift.

Whether you’ve been investing in a company-sponsored 401(k) plan, or you’ve built your own retirement accounts through investing, having money on hand when you’re done working is one of the most important aspects of living comfortably when your career is behind you.

There are several expenses, including some that you may not have even considered, that you can cut back on before you put your working days in the past.

While cutting back on a few expenses may not result in you saving enough money to completely fund your retirement, it can certainly help you retire more comfortably. Whether you need to pay off a few credit cards, or you want to build your emergency fund, cutting these expenses can help you save up for retirement.

Dining Out

Dining out is one of the easiest ways to spend money quickly without realizing it. Since you don’t bring home any sort of tangible evidence of your evening out, spending money on takeout, whether it’s fast food or fine dining, is a surefire way to spend a lot without realizing it.

This doesn’t mean that you never go out for a nice dinner with your spouse or grab a quick burger from your favorite fast-food joint on your lunch break, but it does mean that you don’t fall into the trap of spending hundreds of dollars every month on takeout food.

Consider meal-prepping for dinner and packing your lunch before work to cut down on the amount that you spend on dining out each month.

Subscriptions and Memberships

While magazine subscriptions are largely a thing of the past, they do still exist, there are plenty of other subscriptions and memberships out there that can drain your money.

Music platform subscriptions, subscriptions to your favorite social media influencer’s platforms, and gym memberships can all lead to money going out without any sort of true quality coming back in.

Again, this doesn’t mean that you have to cancel everything. If you use your gym membership to stay in shape, don’t cancel it. Improving your health and wellness is just as important when it comes to retirement planning as saving your money is.

However, if you’re only going to the gym once or twice a month, you may be better served paying a small fee every time you go.

Also, look at bundle options for some of those subscriptions. For instance, Spotify, one of the largest podcast and music platforms in the world, has family plans that allow you to save on each subscription by putting everyone in your family on the same plan.

Saving on these luxuries doesn’t mean you have to completely give them up, it’s about spending smarter.

Streaming Services and Cable TV

83% of American households have a subscription to at least one streaming service, and the average American family has anywhere from two to four streaming service subscriptions. Additionally, studies indicate that in the United States, the average cost of a basic package that includes internet and cable TV is around $144 while premium packages cost approximately $220.

Many people have cut out cable because they’ve realized that they spend more time watching those streaming services than watching cable TV.

While there’s not a one-size-fits-all solution to the spending problem when it comes to cable and streaming, the statistics point to one powerful fact: most people don’t need three or four streaming services and cable.

Spend some time examining your viewing habits and decide which streaming platforms you aren’t using. If you can’t find any, it’s a safe bet that you don’t need to keep spending hundreds each month on your cable bill.

Impulse Shopping

Have you ever noticed that your local grocery stores and favorite big-box retailers have candy, gum, candy bars, and other small items near the cash registers?

This is because they’ve spent millions of dollars studying the impulse shopping habits of customers. Today, thanks to advances in technology, you don’t even have to get off your couch to find yourself faced with impulse shopping.

According to a 2022 poll, 76% of American adults shop from their phones. It’s assumed that this number has gone up in the last couple of years, though new data has not been published.

Every website you shop on suggests other items that you should pair with those that you’re buying. This brings impulse shopping straight to your fingertips. Stick to buying what you need and you’ll save plenty of money.

Entertainment and Travel

Finally, you can cut down on your entertainment and travel budget to save some money, which will allow you to spend more on entertainment and travel once you’re done working. In some ways, this may seem a bit counterintuitive, but the logic checks out.

It costs a lot to go to the movies for an evening, and the price goes up when you account for dinner before or after the movie.

Also, while there’s nothing wrong with taking a vacation, spending huge amounts of money to travel while you’re still working puts a dent in how much money you can spend when your working days are done.

Before you plan that European vacation, make sure that you have enough money in your retirement to live comfortably when you’re no longer earning a steady income.

Saving For Retirement

The decisions you make today will have a direct impact on how you live when you’ve retired. By cutting back on some expenditures now, you can spend more time and money enjoying your retirement.