17 habits of people who are great at saving money

Good savers start early, say certified financial planners Janet Stanzak and Kristin Garrett. Many good money savers were taught as children to put away for a rainy day, but even those who weren’t have learned to jump on an opportunity. “Good savers don’t procrastinate financial decisions,” Garrett says.

If your employer is not paying you Superannuation, a good rule of thumb is to put 10 and 15 per cent of your pay each month straight into a retirement or Super account.

One of the biggest lies we’re sold today, Stanzak says, is that wants are actually needs. “I’ve had so many clients try and tell me that travel, new clothing, and eating out are real needs. They’re really not.” Instead, good savers actually write down a list of their basic needs, their wants, and their big wishes.

Autopay makes paying bills easier – in fact, it makes it too easy for money to flow out without you really registering what’s happening. Whether you pay by BPay or via another online transaction, intentionally paying your bills makes your brain note the expenditure. If you do set up autopay (no late fees, after all!), make sure you don’t just set it and forget it. Check the transactions at least once a month to make sure the charges are accurate and get a good sense of what you’re spending. Even better, Garrett adds, good savers write all those transactions down in their budget.

Autopay allows you to forget the pain of paying your bills, right? Well it works the other way too. Automating your savings account, either through an automatic transfer on a certain day each month or through using a savings apps, can take the sting out of saving, says Stanzak.

Yes, a real, honest-to-goodness written chart or spreadsheet that they update and balance regularly is one of the trademark money-saving tips from savvy savers. “The first clue you have that someone has a problem with money is when they can’t provide their monthly cash flow,” Stanzak says. You can’t save if you don’t even know how much money you have to begin with.

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This isn’t a hard-and-fast rule, Stanzak says, but good savers often tend to use physical types of money. Research shows that people can spend more money with credit cards versus paying with cash. Statistics show that the average non-cash transaction is $100 more than a cash transaction. If you’re trying to save, handing someone a wad of cash provides enough of a mental speed bump to slow down many impulse buys.

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It sounds simple, but one of the best money-saving tips is simply making saving a priority in your life, says Andrea Woroch, a consumer-finance expert. “Before spending on anything else, they pay themselves first by putting savings into a retirement account or other self-directed savings account,” she says.

What’s a cup of coffee here or a $2 app there? Little things can add up to big expenses quickly, Garrett says, often before you even realise what’s happening. Good savers will write down, in their ledger or budget, all their expenses, even the tiniest ones. Doing this can also help you track down hidden fees you had no idea you were paying.

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Being frugal is a big part of saving money. And good savers are not too proud to use coupons, hunt down the best deals, or research all possible options before buying. “Good savers think through each purchase and research alternatives like used options, compare competitor prices, look for coupons, and read reviews in detail to make the best buying decision,” Woroch says.

“You’d be amazed at how many people get divorced but keep living their married lifestyle,” Stanzak says. Big life changes, like job layoffs, divorce and illness, inevitably affect our budgets. Good savers amend their spending to reflect their new earning or income status regardless of how painful it is to acknowledge.