We've all been there: Maybe the store pricing is confusing, maybe we're just too tired to watch our pennies, but we've all overspent on a so-called "bargain." Redditors are no different. Almost 2,000 commented after a Redditor asked a question that obviously hit a nerve: "What was something you thought was frugal, but turned out not to be?"
What was something you thought was frugal, but turned out not to be?
by u/Maximum-Gas-3491 in Frugal
After u/MaximumGas3491 asked fellow Redditors what they thought was frugal but turned out to be the exact opposite, comments poured in. Redditor u/Fresa22 noted on what turned out to be a common issue — getting hoodwinked by the store to buy in bulk only to discover the price is more than expected. "I was very surprised when I figured out that sometimes you pay more per ounce! Gotta do the math."
Redditor u/SleepAgainAgain admitted growing their own food isn't the money-saving hack they hoped. "It can be frugal, but if you're buying soil and fertilizer, in your specific case it probably isn't. I enjoy doing it and I don't let the costs get out of hand, but I definitely tend to spend more than I plan at the start of the season."
Buying the cheapest product was a scam Redditor u/imfamousoz called out. "Buying the cheapest toilet paper or trash bags never works out for me. With the butt napkins more gets used per wipe because it's so thin it turns practically to powder. With trash bags the savings gets eaten up by how many times I have to double up because a bag rips."
Surprisingly, Redditor u/Sufficient_Being4460 said buying secondhand items is frequently a scam. "Going to second hand shops and or Goodwill. The clothes are the same price as new now. And a lot of the time that same shirt is cheaper at Walmart new.
Redditor u/SpiritualCatch6757 bemoaned a common money suck that is rarely the deal it seems to be — gym memberships. "Bought two years of gym membership up front. Got 10% off? 25% off? I have no idea. The guy selling was slick. Anyway, I was actually pretty religious and went every other day the first year. But at the second year it was once a week to once a month to never."
Old appliances offered for cheap raised the ire of Redditor u/mellopax. "Old appliances are disgustingly inefficient, even if they're 'built to last 500 years,' especially fridges and freezers. You see that around where I live. People thinking they're saving money by keeping their fridge from the 70's because 'they don't make them like that anymore.' They don't, for good reason."
Surprisingly, Redditor u/allthebison thinks couponing is not only a time suck, but not frugal, either. "If I look through coupons, I’ll be buying name-brand crap discounted for more than store brand I usually buy. Plus, coupons mess with my impulse control (“but it’s on sale!”) and leave me with inventory I might get sick of."
The lesson? Even people who pride themselves on being cheap can make mistakes. Learn from them, why don't you?
