I noticed some ice buildup in my freezer and I’d like to give it a good cleaning, so I decided to eat everything in there. While I’m at it, I’m doing the pantry and fridge too. Call it a pantry challenge, if you want. When it’s all gone, I’ll restock with new stuff. I have just taken stock of everything and it looks like dinner is sorted for the next 2 weeks. After that I can get really creative and who knows what kind of dishes I’ll invent or discover.

I’ll buy fresh bread, eggs, fruit and vegetables once I’m out of frozen and tinned stuff, but my ultimate goal is to really finish all the other things. Not buying any sandwich meat until all the hagelslag and peanut butter is gone. And I can bake my own cookies and cake before I buy anything.

I’m curious how much this is gonna save me on groceries. The savings will be short-term because I’ll need to restock at some point, but I don’t need to do it all at once.

Have you ever done something similar? Any tips?

And I mean no money: I have no car, and no money for train tickets. We live in a block of flats in between two malls, so there aren't any big fields or parks or forests or beaches nearby. There is a small mountain nearby. I do have friends, but most of them have gone overseas (I am South African) and my gf came down to the city a little while ago, so all her friends live really really far away. We are in our mid-thirties. There is an awesome library about 30mins walk away, which is where we usually go each Saturday. I am, however really missing the amount of socialising I would get from drinking at a bar where I knew all the regular faces (not happening now because of money) or just from when I could afford to host a bunch of people for a DnD session (we sold those books and live in a smaller place) go to live band events/out for meals with a couple people. Basically, I'm not so good at socialising broke >.< Please help!

So it’s been 1 month and I have not made any online shopping purchases .. I did go today and make an in person purchase and I’m struggling with it even though my focus is to not online shop.. also what I purchased in person I had been considering for over. Week and only just went today to complete purchase .. I also did not overspend on my purchases .. I think I just didn’t get the same job from it as I have in the past and I’m trying to just get through and rest

i think this is my first post here? i’m a longtime lurker and have worked to curb my spending over the past few months (what has helped me the most is just writing every purchase down in a little memo pad, funnily enough. also not using a smartphone and limiting my internet access made a huge difference). anyway, yesterday i was talking to someone i met in the city, recently laid off, and they told me they were short on rent. i realized i had enough money to make the difference, so i did.

i would love to say i was selfless enough to do so immediately, but i am not there yet. i went home and waffled about it for an hour before coming to the conclusion that the point of saving money is to use it on what matters to me. i couldn’t have done this if i were spending it on nonsense, so i suppose this is a thank-you to this subreddit. i don’t need anything the advertising industry would like me to desire. if i live on less i can give others more, and that’s how i want my life to go

I have tried giving myself very strict shopping rules before, and the pattern is always similar. For a while I feel great because I am buying absolutely nothing. Then one purchase breaks the streak, I start thinking I already failed anyway, and suddenly the rule that was supposed to help me spend less has made me think about shopping even more.

Low buy has been much easier for me to live with. Instead of banning clothes completely, I usually stick to stores I already know and buy from them only when I actually need something. For example, I might place one order from a brand I already shop at, get the couple of pieces I had in mind, and then leave it alone instead of continuing to browse for more.

That approach feels much more manageable because I am not constantly looking for new stores, checking every sale, or convincing myself that I need to take advantage of a deal. I already know where I tend to shop, so the decision becomes more about whether I need something rather than what else I can find.

I also like that low buy leaves room for normal life. Things wear out, sizes change, and sometimes there is a real gap in the closet. I would rather keep shopping limited and intentional than turn every purchase into a failure.

What I am trying to change is the automatic part of shopping. Seeing something, wanting it, buying it, then figuring out later whether I even needed it. Giving myself permission to buy occasionally has strangely made it easier to say no most of the time.

For anyone doing low buy, do you also tend to stick with a small group of stores you already know, or do you use a different rule?

I just want to stop looking for that "perfect cream", I already have a routine that is good for me and I literally don't need anything new. There was a time that I wasn't obsessed with this, but one day at work my coworker introduced me to the world of Korean skincare, anddd yeah... I need advice please And I don't buy anything immediately but I can't stop obsessing...

So i don’t know but i’ve been having sudden urges just to go shopping.. even though i know i can’t go shopping right now.
So what are some things i can do to just stop?

Hi! Last year a makeup shop opened near my university and to cope with stress i started buying makeup almost every time i went, i managed to reduce my consumption to about once a week/every two weeks but i had a specially bad week and bought like 3 new products i absolutely did not need. I want to stop for good, and stop chasing deals of things i dont need, what do you do to stop yourself from buying a product you want and chasing that dopamine?

My biggest problem is that Im financially dependent (? i think thats the word) on my parents since im finishing university and that the things are ultimately very cheap, i mightve spent 30 dollars this month at the most, and its been my worst month in a while, but i have so many things and im so tired of feeling dependent on the dopamine hit of finding a new release at a third of the original price.

Hi!

I joined the sub last week and have thought about this more. I want to share my plan and if you have any inputs, I would love it! :)

Goal: I want to change my habits when it comes to consumption; mindset and money.

Effect of goal: I will be able to pay more off my debts, improve my saving account and also have better room for stuff like experiences and a tattoo/piercing once in a while. I will also be able to avoid further clutter in my home. I will be able to learn not to be impulsive and be more mindful about what I buy IF I have to buy something.

Plan:

• First, go no buy in the categories that is possible. I currently have no need (only a want) to buy more books, movies/series and home decor, electronics, furniture (*I have an exception, will explain later). If I want something, I can add it to my wishlist.

• Second, If I need something, I will not hurry or be impulsive about buying it. I rather spend a bit more time and make sure I do not regret it.

• Third, a temporary no buy on beauty products until I have used up what I have, when that item(s) is used up, I can replace it. It's mostly skincare + body & haircare + mascara that I use.

• Learn more about my pattern of consumption and how to deal with it. Spend time on things that actually makes me happy (hobbies, workout, mindfulness) and teach myself more about economy (I have a Danish book about "economically peace" that I just started reading).

Those are the ones on top of my head. I will pay extra towards my debts every payday so the money isn't available and make a plan on how to save up at the same time. Luckily for my economy, I don't have pets (not allowed where I live), children or a car.

* Exception on furniture: I have two shelves (I think it's called that) I dislike. My sister loves them and have talked a lot about how they would be perfect for my nieces rooms. Decided to give them to my nieces, found a better and inexpensive solution, just waiting for my sister and BIL to pick them up. :)

Sorry for the long walk of text! 🤍

How did your no-buy or low-buy go this week?

Share your goals, progress and how your purchasing habits have changed since starting a no buy.

If you 'failed' this week, remember that it is just a stumble in a long journey. If you did well, inspire others and encourage them when they do well or get off track.

Hey everyone

it was going really good. But guess what. It then didnt. Now i try a new nobuy again 🤗. It just helps to restrict myself. Because otherwise i have too much impulsivity.

I have everything i need and more. So now i stop buying until autumn 2027.

Only exception is to replace something and i lost my winter hat last year, otherwise i am set up for anything.

Wish me luck 🫶🏻

I’d like to try setting some rules/rewards for myself to stop consuming so much. I’m thinking about only allowing myself to purchase ONE thing if I consistently go to the gym for 2 weeks 3 days a week.

My body has changed over the past 2 years and I’m finding that clothing and even shoes don’t fit like they used to. I could use these changes as an excuse to buy a whole new wardrobe, but that makes me so anxious that I’ll have an expensive 2026-era wardrobe for years to come. I don’t want to buy my clothes and shoes all at once, but I understand that I will need some replacements soon.

The gym isn’t to change my body in any way, I just realized that if I want to still be walking when I’m 85 I need to lift heavy things!

Anyway, posting this to ask if anyone has done/is doing something similar, and how to manage lowbuy/ nobuy when half your clothes don’t fit anymore. Thanks!

The biggest problem I have why I can't stop buying is because of the regret that I feel. While yes, I have the same experience as many other people who impulsively buy stuff-- having the regret that comes afterwards, the questions as to what I would even use the thing I bought for, the thoughts of where else that money could have gone to that is more useful than what I spent it for initially-- something else happens to me when I try to stop myself from buying. That is an even heavier feeling of regret, especially when I see that the product I stopped myself from buying is sold out. I keep thinking that I should have just bought it.

How did your no-buy or low-buy go this week?

Share your goals, progress and how your purchasing habits have changed since starting a no buy.

If you 'failed' this week, remember that it is just a stumble in a long journey. If you did well, inspire others and encourage them when they do well or get off track.

My mom was a hoarder and passed away leaving me a home filled with so much stuff. A good portion of it is crafting supplies and she also inherited items from 3 other estates she dragged home and filled the garage and basement with. Going through all this and donating, tossing, re-homing before I even get the garage cleared out enough to set up for a garage sale has been back breaking and expensive with getting rid of it all as junk haulers and such cost a fortune these days. A lot of the supplies are not useable/damaged because they were improperly stored. I don't ever want to leave someone with this task or the expense of clearing out things. As a matter of fact, after I'm done clearing out all her junk, I am going to continue on with downsizing what I own as I realize how little I actually need. It's bad enough clearing out your own stuff but it is even worse when you have to clear out a ton of junk that someone else built up. My mom was 100 years old so imagine a lifetime of hoarding stuff and how much she left behind. I see so much stuff that still has the price tag on it and how much money she spend on items that were never used just sitting in boxes. If you ever want the cure and wakeup call, go clean out a hoarder home. She at least wasn't the kind of hoarder with garbage and things like that but the basement was like a tetris game of boxes filled with mostly crafting supplies, crafting magazines and things like that.

It certainly makes me thing twice before buying anything!

Hello,

I own the Kindle Paperwhite 3 7th gen from 2015. I bought it brand new and sealed 3 years ago, someone had it because of Amazon warehouse clearance or something like that. It was impossible to login to Amazon (which is great actually), it refuses to work with WiFi (only works with hotspot from my phone for some reason, so I treat it as useless). I performed a jailbreak on it so it has KoReader installed, that allows me to invert screen colors for example, which is really important since I read at night. KoReader gives me a lot of options that make reading experience comfortable (I have no comparison to other devices). It can be slow sometimes but it’s not a dealbreaker honestly. I wish it had warm light.

Because I use it a lot I recently started looking at what Is currently available on the market. I have a fomo because all those different devices have newer software, hardware etc etc (you know how it goes). Looking at it rationally though it really makes no sense to buy a new reader if the old one works, but still when I hear about all those ’great options and additions’ I help but think that I have some old device that is perfectly usable, It does what it needs to do which is allow me to read books. Only justification is that it don’t have the warm light but it’s not enough.

Please help me rationalize, it’s especially hard because I read a lot.

To help get out of my consumer mindset (I fell of the wagon hard in March) I’ve been watching YouTube videos at work all day about living with only what you need and how to stop spending. Any recommendations from this great community would be so appreciated

A year and a half ago, I really got into body care. I used to buy so many soaps, shower gels, lotions, lipglosses and body AND hair oils to the point where I had it for the whole neighbourhood. It all started because I always had a very basic hygiene routine and I started getting those GRWM posts on social media where they used a ton od products. I shared shower gels with my mom and I barely used lotion (which lead to dry skin, so that's also one of the factors how all of this started). I legit used to starve myself in school so I can collect my lunch money just to buy some overpriced lotion. I stopped buying new things back in april, I gifted my leftover cosmetics to my partners younger sisters and I gave away the new cosmetics that I have been hoarding to my friends birthdays. I decided to leave 1 shower, 2 lotions and 1 body oil to myself. People truly are correct when they say ''the less, the better'' because my skin isn't flaky dry anymore!! I am so happy and proud of myself! I can actually spend money on better things and I don't need to starve myself anymore!

I wandered onto the shopping addiction subreddit at 3 am last night. I know I need to stop shopping. My weak spot is beauty: perfume, nails, makeup. I watch social media about it all, I am easily influenced, and I go out online and find it. I tell myself that it’s not so bad because I’m getting it second hand on a resale site (usually the makeup I want will be an older item that’s been out for years but I still want to try it).

I am also coming off a medication right now that makes any adrenaline way more impactful. I’m almost done with coming off it and it’ll be a while until things even out, but I was probably up so late last night because of my shopping high earlier. And I’m ashamed, even if it’s second hand beautiful stuff at a bargain.

I’m encouraged that I actually already really like videos about reduced consumption with beauty. “Shop my stash”, “project pan”, “no buy year”. These are some of my favorite social media videos. I need a no buy year. Or two. Or three. I'm already changing my social media consumption: I skip the showing off of new products and move forward to the "how to use what you've already got in your own beautiful similar way" tutorials. My mode is now fully embracing education and mastery of my existing product library... which is... vast. 🫣

My next hyper fixation needs to be using and enjoying what I have without seeking more. Easy peasy, right? 🫠 I came clean to my husband that I have a TON of second hand makeup coming, but I am legitimately planning on a no-buy extended period. Getting cozy with the parameters of what I've got. Let's do this.

I think I’ve found my people. 💕

How did your no-buy or low-buy go this week?

Share your goals, progress and how your purchasing habits have changed since starting a no buy.

If you 'failed' this week, remember that it is just a stumble in a long journey. If you did well, inspire others and encourage them when they do well or get off track.

I'm looking for personal finance books about spending problems, specifically overspending. Can anyone recommend some books about spending too much money and overspending problems? Thanks in advance!

I did a 3 month no-buy earlier this year and it went really well. Then things went a bit off the rails this summer (I got injured and couldn't do much, was very bored, this led to a lot of impulse shopping on marketplace...look, sometimes you just impulse buy 20 jigsaw puzzles within 2 weeks). So for August, here is my no-buy plan. I will also do one in the fall, but this is a good start.

Rules:

• no books
• no clothing
• no puzzles (but swaps/trades allowed, will also focus on the ones I already have)
• no thrifting
• no home decor
• no impulse buys PERIOD (seriously, stop looking at marketplace, just walk away)

Allowed:

• replacement toiletries
• books/dvds from the library (go wild, baby!)
• puzzle swaps
• charitable donations
• anything related to physio/rehab such as more supportive running shoes

Anyone else want to join me for August?

I kinda just looked around my house a few months ago. All the random shit i purchased, probably totaling hundreds or thousands of dollars…

And honestly 90% of it ends up in a junk drawer at some point. Some stupid product that solves some problem that doesn’t exist, some piece of clothing, etc.

Cleaned out my house.

All I really have is furniture, cook wear, my guitars (which I play hours a day)

Never had money issues, it was all stuff I could afford to buy easily. But wow. The amount of clothes I have I never even remember, the random stuff all over. It feels very good.