15 Things Americans Waste Money On
Spending money is found to be easier for most Americans than saving money. In a society where consumer debt is considered normal, so is spending money wherever a person can.
In this article, you will read, a variety, of areas where Americans waste a large portion of their money.
Here are the 15 things that Americans waste money on.
1. Subscriptions
This includes recurring monthly costs for families such as TV streaming apps (Netflix, Disney +, Hulu, etc.). In addition, there’s music, audiobooks, fitness, grocery shopping apps, and even monthly dog-box subscriptions (Barkbox). These subscriptions can be valued if they are used as they were intended.
However, if a person has five different TV streaming accounts, but never utilizes two of those, they’re wasting money, every month on subscriptions that should be canceled.
2. Groceries
With the rising cost of groceries in the US economy, many Americans are spending beyond what they can afford to feed their families. You walk into a grocery store and feel your bank account has been robbed!
While this is on a larger scale for the US economy, the individual issue is the money wasted on groceries due to people buying without planning. Many families could save money in this area of groceries by meal planning for the week. This will eliminate the unnecessary purchasing of additional produce or meats that may spoil.
3. Dining Out
It is common for Americans to dine out more than prepare a home-cooked meal. This is a costly expense that can be minimized for many. Dining out proves to be quick and convenient, but it does not help that bank account. Groceries are not getting any less expensive; yet, the cost to dine out far outweighs that grocery bill.
4. Consumption of Alcohol
The American culture has become engulfed, with making alcohol available for purchase at almost every private or public event. Whether it’s a fall festival, individual home party, dinner with friends, or a day out on the boat, alcohol is typically available for the consumer.
The cost of consuming alcohol exceedingly outweighs the post-dollars deducted from a person’s bank account. A person could easily add anywhere from $8-14 extra for one alcoholic beverage with their meal.
5. That Daily Cup of Gourmet Joe
Many Americans love their coffee. I’m one of them. The cost to grab a gourmet coffee daily can add up to as high as $42 per week ($5-6 average coffee p/day). This means potentially $168 spent per month on gourmet coffee.
Most do not look at the whole picture (monthly cost) but one cup of joe at $6. So much of this money could be utilized in other areas such as savings, retirement accounts, or donating to a favorite charity.
6. Home Warranties
Most home warranties require an initial payment from the homeowner to get an estimate of any noted damages for repair. The homeowner is paying a monthly home warranty, and an additional fee to get an estimated cost for the home repairs.
These costs can vary from $89+ depending on the terms and conditions of the warranty company. These are easily sold to new homebuyers and the waste of money to carry a home warranty exceeds the cost of most homeowner-required repairs.
7. Pet Insurance
I have a German Shepherd of my own so I can understand how one may argue the value of pet insurance. However, if you take the monthly cost of the pet insurance (~$40-$80 p/month), the average pet owner is spending, at most $960 per year for a possible incident that requires veterinary costs to exceed this.
The majority, of the pet insurance companies, carry a deductible requirement to be met in addition to the monthly charge, to keep the pet insurance intact and for the pet owner to receive reimbursement for veterinary costs.
This equates to the pet owner paying approximately $1,460 ($500 deductible) before the pet insurance company will compensate the pet owner for said expenses. A pet owner could create a separate savings account for their pet in the event of these situations to cover the damages.
8. Travel Insurance
The main benefit of travel insurance for Americans is to be reimbursed and change their travel dates/locations due to circumstances beyond their control. This is not a common reality for most people, therefore, travel insurance wastes money.
Travel insurance companies are banking on people who believe they’ll be responsible for covering every travel-related booking with a travel insurance blanket.
9. Cell Phone Plans
In today’s world, everyone owns a cell phone. Many families in America aren’t only ensuring the parents have the premium package cellphone plans – but that their children mirror the parents’ plan. Many Americans could reduce their monthly cellphone bill by selecting only the necessities for the children in the home and keeping the premium plan for the parent(s).
10. Interest-Fees Accrued on Debt
This may sound like a no-brainer, but many people do not realize the actual “free money” they’re wasting monthly to credit card companies by not paying off their debts monthly. This is a waste of money that the individuals could use to put food on the table, save up for that dream vacation, or dedicate that interest fee to a retirement account.
11. Gambling
This is a high-risk category that individuals do so often in hopes that the next ticket, number, or slot machine might be their lucky one. This includes buying lottery tickets, BINGO, and casinos.
Rather than spend an individual’s money to try and win more money, get creative and find other ways to earn money that will not leave the person feeling unfulfilled and disappointed.
12. New and Leased Vehicle Purchases
Americans prefer to own a new vehicle or lease one, to have that new vehicle advantage or reduce their monthly vehicle payment.
Disadvantages to leasing include specific terms and conditions that must be adhered to during the leased period, the owner must return the vehicle at the end of the leased period and either pay the car price that it was before leasing it (interest was the only payment during the leased period) or the individual will lease or buy another vehicle.
There’s no savings created from these scenarios. This weighs in as a complete waste of money long term.
13. Emotional Shopping
Many people will shop when they are dealing with higher emotions than normal as an expensive coping technique for the time. It’s also been found that people tend to impulse buy in the late evenings when scrolling through their social media online.
This usually leads to buyer’s remorse the next day when they realize how much they spent on items that were not needed but filled a feeling in the moment.
14. Cleaning Services
This includes hiring a company or an individual to clean the home bi-weekly, or monthly. Most Americans spend money in this area to buy back time. But the reality is, they are wasting money on services that can be done within the household.
15. Beauty Services
Due to consumer demand, the beauty industry is at an all-time high with nail salons available at nearly every corner. The average cost for a manicure/pedicure is approximately $60-80 per appointment.
The average consumer will spend a minimum of $120 monthly to maintain a professional manicure/pedicure. While this manicure/pedicure feels nice, many Americans could save this money and instead, buy an at-home nail kit and visit a nail salon for special occasions.
