13 Proven Ways to Save Money at Home | [Your Brand/Website]

Whether you own or rent, home is where the heart is. It's also where the bills come. This guide will help you learn how to save money at home with a bottom-to-top look at savings in every room. To maximize your savings, you can use these tips with advice from our general savings guide.

Outside

Start saving money on your home with its exterior. There are several things you can do to make your house look nicer and save money in the long run.

• Plant trees to save some green—about $250 a year If your house faces direct sunlight, plant trees. Not only will they improve how your lawn looks, but they could reduce your heating and cooling costs by $20 a month.¹ Plant deciduous trees—the kind that lose their leaves every year—on the east and west sides of your home to increase shade in the summer, and plant evergreens on the north and northwest sides of your home to block cold winds in the winter. Plus, mature trees can even increase your property value, but just be sure to plant them away from power lines and your foundation.

• Keep the lights shining and save $36 per bulb Outdoor lighting makes your house look inviting after dark, but actually deters animals and would-be burglars from approaching. To cut down on bills, switch your porch lights to LED dusk-to-dawn lights. Not only are they 75% more efficient than incandescent bulbs, they automatically turn on at night and off in the day.² You’ll never have to worry about leaving your outside lights on again, while saving $36 a year on electricity per light bulb.³

  For outdoor flood lights, switch to motion-activated, solar-powered lights. They’re simple to install, require no wiring and generate their own electricity.

• Upgrade your windows and save $111 per year Windows are good for more than admiring your lawn—they help insulate your home. If you have old windows, they’re probably letting a lot of heat out of your house. Replace them with efficient, ENERGY STAR® qualified windows. Doing so can save up to $111 a year when replacing double-pane and $465 on single-pane windows.⁴

Utility Room/Basement

Your utility room and basement are great places to help you decrease your expenses with these money-saving tips at home.

• Don’t overheat your water and save $60 a year If you have a hot water heater that uses a tank, turn yours down to 120°F. Any hotter can be dangerous, and doing so will save you money. Also, consider getting a water heater cover to increase insulation and reduce the cost of heating water. By turning down your water heater and making sure it’s insulated properly, you can save around $60 a year.⁵

• Keep your clothing cool and save $260 a year Wash your clothes on the cold setting and you could save more than $60 (and decrease electricity used by 90%).⁶ It will also make your clothes last longer since heat breaks down most clothing, which increases your savings even more.

Living Room

You spend a lot of time, and electricity, in your living room. Use these tips to save money while you’re home on the couch and when you’re out.

• Flip the switch on electronics and save $100 a year Your TV, stereo and other electronics use energy even when they’re off. By unplugging them when not in use, you can save up to $100 a year on your electricity bill.⁷ If you don’t feel like unplugging and replugging in your devices every time you use them, you can get a surge protector and turn them all off and on with the flip of a switch. A surge protector will also keep your devices safe from any surges in electricity, potentially avoiding a costly replacement.

• Choose the right lights and save $300 a year In addition to using the same energy-efficient LED lights you used outside, put the lights in your house on a dimmer. Not only will the mood lighting be easier on your eyes, it will be easier on your budget as well—your lights will use less energy when dimmed. Just make sure your new LED lights work with dimmer switches. If you replaced 40 incandescent bulbs in your house with LED ones, you could save about $300 a year.⁸

Kitchen

There are several easy ways to save money in your kitchen at home. Beyond saving money on groceries, take a second look at your large appliances.

• Wash dishes the right way and save $65 a year It’s actually more efficient to use your dishwasher to clean your dishes instead of handwashing them. That’s because you’ll save around 5,000 gallons (or $40) of water.⁹ When you use your dishwasher, opt for the “Air Dry” or “Energy Preferred” setting to save up to 50% on electricity per load (or $25 annually).¹⁰

• Put your electricity bill on ice and save $38 a year Your electricity bill can chill out by about $20 a year if you set your refrigerator and freezer to the right temperatures. They should be between 37°F–40°F and 0°F–5°F respectively.¹¹ Consider turning your ice maker off in your fridge and making ice cubes the old-fashioned way to save another $18 a year. And don’t forget to clean off the coils around the condenser—not only will it save you a few dollars a year, it will make your fridge’s motor last longer.

Bedroom

If you’re looking for easy things you can do at home to save money, look no further than your bedroom, where you can save money while you sleep.

• Make saving $50 a month a breeze with a ceiling fan Most people enjoy sleeping in cooler temperatures, and while it’s tempting to have the AC on high when you’re sleeping, using a ceiling fan and keeping the thermostat a few degrees warmer could save you $50 a month in the summer.¹² Plus, during the winter, flip the switch on the base of the fan to reverse the direction of fan blades, which pulls the cold air away, so you can reduce your heating bill as well.

• Keep more than the light out and heat your house for 24% less Curtains can serve as more than decoration. Not only will they make sleeping in on the weekends easier, they’ll reduce noise and block out sunlight, keeping your house cooler in the summer and warmer in the winter. This can save you up to 24% on your heating bill.¹³

Attic

Top off your savings in your attic by maximizing the efficiency of your heating and AC.

• Program your settings and save $750 year Forgetting to turn the thermostat off during the day can lead to some seriously wasted cash. Each degree increases the cost of your electricity by about 1%. Program your thermostat to around 78°F during the summer and 68°F during the winter to save up to $750 a year.¹⁴ Plus, you can even control some thermostats with your smartphone, so if your plans change, you can update your AC with just a few taps.

• Get your ducts in a row and save $300 a year Beyond just the thermostat, making sure the rest of your heating and cooling system is in top shape can really keep your bills from overheating. Stay up to date with regular maintenance like changing your air filters every 45 to 90 days. And make sure there’s no dust or furniture blocking your vents. Finally, checking your air ducts for holes and leaks can save you up to $300 a year.¹⁵

There are countless ways to increase your savings throughout your house, and while some of them may not seem like a lot, they can add up to some serious cash. Then, consider taking the money you save and investing it into a savings account, and watch your savings grow. Plus, with regular maintenance, you’ll keep your home in better shape for years to come.

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