Not all money-saving hacks are created equal. Some sound smart on the surface, but end up doing more harm than good. In a recent Reddit thread on r/povertyfinance, people shared dozens of real-life examples of so-called frugal choices that quietly drained their wallets.
One of the most common complaints was about chasing tiny savings, especially on gas. “Driving out of your way to get gas for a few cents cheaper. Wastes time and money,” one person said. Another added, “Friend of mine would do this all the time. When I do the math, it’s like $2 saved, but you’re driving 10–15 minutes out of your way. Not worth it for anything less than 10 bucks, imo.”
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Grocery shopping also came up frequently. One person described how multiple stops across town for cheaper prices often backfire: “I also feel this way about driving across town to a different grocery store because a few food items you need there are 20 cents cheaper. So your grocery trip involves multiple stops.”
Then there's bulk buying—often praised as a cost-cutter, but only if done right. “Buying large quantities for a better price per unit, but losing product to spoilage as you fail to use the product quickly enough,” one comment read. Others warned about forgetting where you store things or over-consuming because you have more on hand. “If you buy 2x the amount of cereal, will it last 2x as long? Or will you just eat more cereal?” one asked.
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Plenty of Redditors pointed out that buying the cheapest version of something often results in spending more later. One memorable story came from a commenter who said, “My dad bought at least 10 cordless drills when I was a kid. They all stopped working within about a year, all cheap junk.” The person spent more upfront on a quality drill that still works today: “In the end, he has spent 5x more money and his drills were always pretty bad even when they worked.”
The same goes for clothing and shoes. One person admitted to wearing thrift store moccasins with cardboard soles in their 20s. “I was in so much foot pain by my 30s, it affected my day-to-day life,” they said. After switching to quality shoes, the pain disappeared.
