Minsk to Mist

How to save money living in London: 30+1 tips that actually work

As we discussed in my previous post, being a cheapskate in London is very expensive. If you go on a first flight somewhere, be prepared to pay a premium on an Uber right to at least get to a train station downtown from where you can actually get to the airport. Or, if you decided to live outside of the city to save a few hundred on renting in the city, get ready to spend that difference on trains and sometimes even taxis if your late-night outing in London landed you on the last train, which, for some reason, decided to terminate a few stations away from your destination.

Coming from Eastern Europe, I was raised to be pragmatic. So, I won’t be telling you to steal your co-worker’s lunch from a fridge or walk 3+ hours a day one way to get to work and save on fares. My focus is on how you can realistically reduce living expenses in London without your quality of life taking a massive hit. Let’s explore where you can stash in a few pennies in different categories.

1. Housing

Unfortunately, rent accounts for about 40-60% of a Londoner’s budget – unless you are lucky enough to come from money or have been living here long enough to get a deposit and buy a flat. If living in a shoebox isn’t on your bucket list of adventures, there are still certain ways you can live in London on a budget.

1. See if renting one or two Tube stations out of the city centre would make financial sense – sometimes it does. Just don’t forget to check if that difference would add up due to the fare difference if you live in a different zone.
   1. Consider house shares, especially if you are new to London. Apart from saving you money and giving you a grace period to find another place, you can also meet great people and learn a lot from them.
   1. Negotiate rent if you are renewing your lease. This can be realistic, especially if you are a reliable tenant. I wouldn’t try it right now, though, with the number of landlords letting their properties out declining.
   1. Go to a private owner instead of an agency. Having a middleman saves your time and effort on setting the tenancy up (which is probably easier if you are new to the country), however, long-term, paying agency fees makes zero sense to your landlord or landlady.
   1. When possible, opt for a furnished flat. Not only will it save you on setting up costs, it would also reduce or even completely eliminate your ‘man and van’ expenses when you move.

2. Utility bills

2.1 Compare deals from different energy providers. You don’t have to settle for the one you already have, and you can always switch to the one that offers a better deal.

2.2. Air-dry your laundry instead of using an electric or a tumble dryer. I know it means planning your laundry routines more thoroughly, especially in those dreadful winter months; however, those things add up very quickly.

2.3. Turn appliances and sockets off. It’s crazy how a socket in the ‘on’ position still consumes electricity.

2.4. Check if you are entitled to discounts. The most obvious one is a single-person council tax discount; however, there are others you might be eligible for, say, if you are the only breadwinner and have one or several dependants or if you have a medical condition (check if you can claim the discount if you are on a ‘no public funds’ visa, though).

2.5. Be more mindful with your subscriptions. If you work and try to live a fulfilling life outside of work, chances are, you don’t really have much time to watch all of Netflix, Apple TV, Disney+, SkyTV and others in one month. Why not check what is it that you’d like to watch on one of them, pay the subscription for as long as (and ONLY for as long as) you need it, and then switch to the next one? I cancelled my Disney+ subscription in March, haven’t yet regretted it. Haven’t found the time for it either.

3. Grocery shopping

3.1. For long shelf-life staples, shop at Aldi or Lidl. If you have enough space at home, consider buying stuff like pasta and tins in bulk.

3.2. Visit local shops just before closing time. Many items that are expiring on the day will be sold for almost nothing. Make sure to look for a yellow ‘reduced’ tag.

3.3. Sign up for supermarket loyalty schemes and use them whenever possible. Tesco vouchers are a real life-saver sometimes, even though using them online is a bit tricky. Also, they have some cool discounts and offers for Clubcard holders. Waitrose gives me a cashback for healthy food spending. Every little helps!

3.4. If you are flexible and like surprises, sign up for apps like Too Good to Go. The former was my lifeline when I first moved to London as I could pick up a dinner for 2 on my way from work for about £2.49! The catch was that I just took what they had as a leftover, without having the right of choice. Only got disappointed once!

4. Eating Out

4.1. Before you go and meet up with your friends for a meal out, eat at home (or grab a Tesco sandwich) so that you can be more frugal when ordering at a restaurant.

4.2. Take advantage of the happy hour offers in your area.

4.3. Use apps like FirstTable or EatClub to get up to 50% discount off your meal. Be mindful, though, many of these apps come with a service or a membership fee, so do your math before deciding if it would be worth it.

4.4. Don’t shy away from things like Groupon or LivingSocial. The latter gave me a chance to have a lovely steak dinner for two, followed by a complimentary visit to the Shard back in 2020! You never know what a steal you can find there. Again, though, be mindful of T&C’s, they can be tricky.

5. Transportation

5.1. If you can get there on foot in under 30 minutes, the weather permits and you don’t have to carry a heavy bag, just walk!

5.2. Consider buying a Travelcard if you commute regularly.

5.3. Santander and other cycles are very affordable, and some of them are willing to lure you in with ‘first 5 minutes are free’ deal. Take advantage of as many as you can.

5.4. When using National Rail, consider booking directly with the train operator rather than the Trainline. If you travel regularly, this could save you hundreds in booking fees.

5.5. When you can, use buses and trams instead of the Tube. The Hopper fare gives you unlimited bus and tram journeys within an hour from your first tap for just £1.75.

6. Entertainment

6.1. London is FULL of wonderful options to have a great time without spending a single penny! From free museums to walking tours, city farms to comedy nights, if you aren’t particularly picky as to which particular exhibition or gig to attend, there’s always something for you. Sign up for newsletters from Londonist or MyLondon to keep an eye on the free or cheap things to do in London.

6.2. Some theatre performances offer discounted last-minute tickets to fill up the seats. If you are flexible and don’t have to plan your day weeks in advance, just go to TodayTix, London Theatre Direct or Central Tickets to find your steal! (Note: works fine if you go by yourself or with just one other person; if there are 3 or more of you, you might have to sit separately)

6.3. For avid cinema goers, consider buying a membership with your local cinema chains (Vue, Odeon, CineWorld or Picturehouse). Some of them also give you extra perks like 10% off food and drinks at the concessions.

6.4. Learn what sort of extra perks your subscriptions (Amazon Prime, Sky), bank, broadband provider and many others have to offer. Many of them come with discounted or even free tickets to cinemas, eating out coupons and many other tasty offers. Many of them only apply mid-week, though, so if you don’t go out on a school night, might not be for you.

6.5. Google ‘gym free pass’ to find which gym networks in your area offer free trials. Most times, that would be either a free training session or even a day pass.

6.6. Explore what sort of activities you have in your area that are free. For example, in Tower Hamlets, we get to enjoy free swimming sessions (time slots are limited, though), free yoga and Pilates at the community centre and many more. Just go to your local public gym or community centre and look at the posters. (The fact that Tower Hamlets residents can visit the Tower of London for just £1 is completely nuts, but I love it!)

6.7. Sign up for cashback websites like TopCashBack or QuidCo, and try not to buy anything unless it’s on one of these websites and you can claim your cashback using them. After 6 months of using TopCashBack, I have gotten £100+ as an Amazon gift card (you can withdraw your cash if that’s your preference, though).

And one final thought…

The internet is full of articles on frugal living and ways to save money in London. While many of these are very helpful, and I would definitely recommend exploring the topic further, don’t forget to actually go out and talk to people. Your friends, pals and co-workers are an incredible source of street smarts, new ways to save a few quid and sometimes even free stuff that they wouldn’t mind sharing with you. In my native language, we have a saying ‘no need to have 100 rubles, as long as you have 100 friends’. There is some truth in that.