How to Save Money & Go Green; a Step-by-Step Guide

Over the last 20 years, going green has become a part of everyday life – and there’s always more we can be doing. There are several good reasons to go green. It reduces your carbon footprint and can save you vast amounts of money. It can also help you better understand the world around you, and encourage empathy.

Though going green may seem a little daunting, it is not complicated at all.

Are you looking for ways to save both the environment and money?

We have got you covered. There are several easy ways to go green and save money in everyday life. Taking one step at a time can significantly impact the world and the people around you.

Here are some easy and viable ways that you can follow to save money & go green. Let’s take a quick look at the post for details.

Why Should You Go Green?

Before directly jumping to tips on how to save money by going green, it is essential to figure out why to go green. Well, there are endless reasons to go green – y’know, apart from saving the world from ourselves, for ourselves and future generations. Some of them are as follows:

• It is an excellent deal to contribute to the betterment of the planet. 
• It is a great way to reduce pollution.
• It helps you lower the consumption of natural resources, and decreases/eliminates waste. 
• It reduces greenhouse gases emission, leading to improved air quality. 
• It adds value to life and offers excellent health benefits.
• It can help you save money on your electricity and water bills. 
• It is a great way to support the local economy. 

Overall, living an eco-friendly life is a personal choice at the end of the day. But, if you want to make this planet a better place for future generations and save some money, you must adopt the below-mentioned tips.

How to Save Money by Going Green

Everyone from global conglomerates to single-person households are talking about following eco-friendly ways to save money. But, the question is; how to be green?

This section includes different methods on how to save money while saving the environment. Let’s look at the top 23 tips on going green on a budget or for a budget.

1. Invest in Solar Power

Investing in solar power systems is one of the best ways to save money and help the environment. It is an excellent idea to become environmentally friendly by lowering pollution from fossil fuel energy generation.

Solar panels can also save you enough money by reducing your utility bills, and despite popular misconceptions, they do work on cloudy and rainy days. Overall, you can make the planet a better place and save money by investing in solar panels.

2. Don’t Waste Energy

Obvious, right? Well, apparently not.

Most people waste too much electricity for no reason. Wasting energy is definitely not good for the environment and your finances. There are several instances in day-to-day life to minimize your energy consumption.

For example, unplug your phone, laptop, or other devices when fully charged. Turn off lights when not in the room and turn off your TV rather than putting it on standby. Make sure you only boil the amount of water needed for the amount of tea you’re making in your electric kettle.

In fact, any plugged-in appliances will still draw some electricity from the wall socket, even if they are turned off!

In most cases, one primary reason behind this waste of electricity is laziness. But, these small things can make a massive difference to the environment and your monthly electricity bills.

Therefore, make sure not to waste energy. You can also consider using energy-efficient appliances in your home to make the most out of them, or unplugging anything you’re not actively using.

See Related: Best Energy Efficiency Loans for Homeowners

3. Use Reusable Water Bottles

Millions of single-use water bottles are used and dumped across the planet, leading to waste. If you want to make an immediate change for a better tomorrow, switch to reusable water bottles.

The use of reusable bottles can reduce plastic production. It also lowers the waste in landfills, resulting in less pollution.

Moreover, the study shows that bottled water bottles cost more than tap water. An average human being needs to drink 2 liters (just over 2 quarts) of water a day to comfortably survive and function. That means the use of reusable bottles can save around 800 standard-size disposable plastic water bottles a year, eventually saving you lots of bucks.

See Related: Different Things That Money Can’t Buy

4. Minimize Your Water Usage

It’s not easy to get clean water from a source to a tap – and harder nowadays as more of the planet’s drinkable water is saturated with forever chemicals, hormones, and microplastics that will poison every living thing on Earth unless changes are made worldwide.

Minimizing the water usage around the home is one of the easiest ways to save money and is essential for saving the environment.

It takes lots of energy to purify and pump water, leading to greenhouse gas emissions. Saving water can help in conserving energy resources and minimizing pollution.  

Additionally, less water use can save you a good amount of money by lowering your water bills. There are several ways to minimize your water usage.

For instance, reduce your shower time, use a low-flow showerhead, put a brick to your toilet tank, etc. By making these small changes around the home, you can save money & go green.

See Related: Capitalism and the Environment: Are they Good or Bad for Each Other?

5. Go Paperless

Going paperless is another green way to save money. The key ingredient to make papers are trees, which prevent the release of toxic gases into the atmosphere. The more trees we have, the cleaner the air is.

The data shows that it takes around 24 trees to produce one ton of paper – oof. That means we can save forests (and therefore the very air we all breathe) by going paperless, leading to building an eco-friendly planet.

A paperless environment can save you money in different ways, from purchasing supplies to storage to distribution to printing, and more. Therefore, consider replacing paper files with digital documents. It can save you good money in the long run.

Alternatively, if paperless is out of the question, try a more eco-friendly paper, such as hemp-based paper.

See Related: How to Store Solar Energy for Later Use

6. Use LED Lights

Switching to LED lights from conventional light bulbs is a no-brainer. As LED bulbs are made of non-harmful materials, they don’t affect the environment and people.

Originally designed as the kind of tiny bulbs used for power lights on radios and TVs, a happy side effect of these easy to manufacture bulbs is that they can help free the planet from pollution and contamination.

Although LED lights cost slightly more than traditional bulbs, they use up to 90% less electricity and last longer due to a simpler, more durable construction. Hence, they can save you money on electricity bills due to less power consumption.

7. Choose Walking or Cycling

In the US, people often prefer driving to walking even for short distances, harming the environment and wasting fuel. Walking or cycling over driving is one of the best eco-friendly ways to save money.

Cycling or walking can help the environment in different ways. The benefits include less greenhouse gas emissions, less air pollution, less noise pollution, safer roads for pedestrians, and so on.

Not to mention, cycling or walking over driving (for work or whenever possible) can save you hundreds of dollars by cutting fuel costs. It can also save you some bucks on your car maintenance in the long run.

8. Reduce Your Meat Consumption

Meat is not only expensive but also damaging to the planet – especially the beef industry. Data shows that the world’s meat industry emits more harmful gases than all of the world’s combustion-based transportation.

How? Think about it; countless fields, praries, and meadows filled with cows, whose only purpose is to get fat on grass, filling the air with their methane-rich farts! It might sound like a joke, but it isn’t.

That isn’t even taking into consideration the nation-sized swathes of rainforest that need to be destroyed every year in order to create more grazing land for cheap beef, not to mention the environmentally damaging methods used by the industry to process cows into meat.

That means eating less meat can lower your carbon footprint dramatically. Also, as meat is expensive, having more vegetarian meals can help you minimize expenses while protecting animals and the earth.

Overall, having meat-free meals once or twice a week can be a great move to go green on a budget.

Not only that, it’s proven that less red meat and more veggies can improve your physical health and extend your lifespan.

9. Use Washable Rags for Cleaning

Most people use disposable paper towels for general cleaning around the home. Buying paper towels not just hurts the environment but also adds some extra dollars to your expenses.

The best option is to replace disposable paper towels with reusable rags for cleanup duties. As you can use washable rags repeatedly after washing, they eventually save you lots of money.

Swedish dishcloths are a great alternative. They’re durable, long-lasting, hand and machine washable/dishwasher safe, compostable, and AMAZING at removing any kind of filth.

10. Carry Your Own Shopping Bag

These days, many supermarkets and shopping centers charge their customers for the shopping bags they provide – it’s their part in helping everyone go green.

This small fee generally goes back to help fund the parent company’s green initiatives and encourages people to bring their own shopping bags, rather than use wasteful plastic bags.

Taking your own shopping bag every time you go shopping can save you a few bucks a year, and prevent more waste from plastic bags that won’t decompose. Also, some stores offer customers a slight discount when they have their own bags.

Moreover, the less use of plastic shopping bags means less of them will end up in landfills. It will cause minimal environmental pollution, leading to a better planet.

See Related: How to Comfort Someone With Money Problems

11. Go for Second-Hand

The manufacturing of new products, i.e., clothes or anything else, is complex and costly in every aspect. The process can impact the atmosphere negatively due to massive pollution and waste.

If you want to eliminate or lower environmental pollution, consider buying second-hand items. This can be the easiest way to save energy.

Not to mention, second-hand products are way cheaper than fresh ones in shops. That means buying used items can save you lots of money.

Overall, repurposing other people’s unwanted stuff can massively help the planet and save good money.

12. Make Your Own Compost

People spend lots of money on compost for their gardens, which doesn’t make sense – everyone can make their own!

Composting on your own is ideal for the environment and your pocket. You can do so by recycling your leftover scrap food, offcuts and paper. The idea can benefit the environment as leftover food is saved from landfill waste, and could go on to help more food grow.

Also, composting keeps the soil moisturized, lowers water usage, and eventually reduces electricity or energy bills. Moreover, as you will prepare the compost at your home only, you don’t have to spend a penny on compost.  

Plus, growing your own food is not only rewarding but massively reduces your carbon footprint. Just think about what it takes to get a carrot from a farm to your table…now consider all the environmentally harmful steps removed if you grew your own using your own compost.

13. Avoid or Quit Smoking

Smoking is not only expensive but also affects the environment and your health.

The smoke from cigarettes contains harmful chemicals. Not only are these chemicals poisoning you, but they can also contaminate ground soil and waterways, posing a threat to people and wildlife.

Also, as you may know, the average cost of a cigarette pack in the US is $6.65. That means a pack of cigarettes per day can cost you around $199 a month or $2,394 a year.

This shows that quitting smoking can help you save both your environment and money. Moreover, no smoking means no health issues caused by it, ultimately eliminating healthcare expenses.

14. Work Out at Home

Most people who go to gyms do so in cars or on motorbikes. Driving to gyms (as well as sort of defeating the purpose of going to the gym) means consuming fossil fuels, resulting in environmentally harmful gases.

Not only this, but people also spend hundreds of dollars on gym memberships each year – at gyms that need huge amounts of money to just keep those bright lights on 24/7, let alone the financial and material cost of making sure gym-goers have the latest, cleanest equipment to use.

Do you want to avoid these unnecessary expenses?

Just work out at home and go jogging or running on the sidewalk.

Create a small gym space at your home where you can exercise. Gyming at home also offers several benefits. It saves you money and keeps the environmental impact of your fitness routine low.

Moreover, several instructors or yoga practitioners online share fitness tips for beginners or others looking for fitness guidance. Plus any good runner will tell you, the best place to run is on the road.

Explore their videos and start working out at your home for no fee.

15. Collect Rainwater

Harvesting rainwater is another one of the best eco-friendly money-saving tips. The process includes collecting rainwater from roofs or other surfaces and storing it for later use to water lawns, gardens, vegetable patches or clean your car.

You can save enough water from rain which can be used for several days. That means you will spend less money on water bills or companies. One can make huge savings for their house or business by collecting rainwater on a large scale.

Additionally, collecting rainwater is an environmentally friendly move, which ensures sustainability.

Since rainwater contains more oxygen and micro-nutrients, it is best for plants. Rainwater harvesting can reduce surface water contamination with metals, fertilizers, and pesticides. It also lowers soil erosion and prevents flooding.

If you plan to save rainwater for drinking it, make sure you purify it first!

16. Prepare Your Own Household Products

Commercial products, such as beauty or cleaning goods, include chemicals and usually come in plastic packaging. The use of these products in your daily life can harm the environment and your wallet.

Consider making your own beauty or cleaning products at home using raw materials. Also, since these products are often expensive, this is a good way to save a considerable amount of money.

You can find a vast range of DIY recipes and guides for beauty or cleaning products online. For instance, you can make a wildly effective household cleaning solution using lemon juice, vinegar, baking soda, and herbs (it’s actually nuts how well it works).

Overall, you can produce effective cleaners using things in your pantry, saving money and the environment.

The same can be said for beauty products. Check your larder; you might have your own Saphora in there!

17. Use Cold Water to Wash Clothes

Washing machines are hideously wasteful contraptions. They typically use 90% of their energy to heat water during laundry – and use an insane amount of water to do a single load.

Heating water to wash clothes is a complete waste of energy. It leads to more energy consumption, which is bad for the environment, and it leads to bigger electricity bills, which is bad for your wallet.

To reduce your electricity bill and carbon footprint, consider using cold water to wash clothes. Cold water can clean your clothes just like hot water – with maybe a little extra elbow grease if you’re handwashing. The only difference is that there will be less electrical energy use.

Overall, lowering your carbon footprint is as easy as switching to regular water for a cold wash.

18. Line Dry Your Clothes

Many people use clothes dryers to dry their clothes at home. But unfortunately, dryers use more power than most of the other electrical equipment in the household. The best thing is to line dry your clothes rather than using a dryer.

For this, set up some clotheslines outside, basement, laundry room, wherever you have the space, and hang your wet clothes there, letting them air dry.

As there will be no electricity use, you can save some money on monthly energy costs. Moreover, no use of power means no consumption of energy resources, a healthy choice for the planet.

19. Buy Reusable Straws

Purchasing a set of plastic straws may seem cheap, but it is expensive in the long run. The best alternative is to invest in reusable straws. As you can use a reusable straw for years, it can save you lots of money.

Buying reusable straws is also an eco-friendly move as it can help with the earth’s plastic problems.

Just be careful of the metal ones – they have been known to injure and kill people in freak accidents. Go for silicone, or reusable plastic ones.

20. Consider Fixing Stuff

We live in a throwaway culture, especially in the US. We throw things away as soon as they break and immediately replace them, knowing the cycle will repeat.

Throwing damaged stuff away is expensive and terrible to the surroundings and atmosphere. The best solution is to fix broken things instead of ditching them.

So, the next time your phone breaks, take it to a mobile repair shop and get it fixed. The mobile repair can save you lots of money than buying a new one.

If you’re handy try fixing it yourself. If you need a hand fixing stuff, just try Googling “how to fix [whatever you need fixing]”; you’ll be amazed at the wealth of knowledge out there to help you.

21. Open Windows or Doors at Your Home

This is an old eco-friendly way to save money. Instead of always keeping your air conditioner on, consider opening windows or doors to allow the natural breeze to cool your rooms.

Also, on sunny days in winters, you can open curtains and let the sun come inside, eliminating the need to turn the central heating system up. Moreover, you can also save some energy on lighting by keeping your curtains open during the day.

22. Read Newspapers, Magazines, and Books Online

From newspapers to magazines to books or more, almost everything is available on the web. Consider reading them online rather than buying hard copies. Going for digital documents is an eco-friendly deal as it can save hundreds of trees, energy, and fuel.

You may also find that online editions are cheaper and sometimes free compared to a physical text.

23. Make Sure to Buy Only What You Need

Last but not least, make sure to consider your needs before making unnecessary purchases. People often get influenced by social media and order products they find online without much consideration.

Gotta have the latest phone, gotta wear the latest labels, gotta eat the latest fad.

But people need to understand that they don’t need to have everything social media shoves down their throat. That’s why it is necessary to think before buying anything.

Lowering your product consumption is one of the best ways to save money and help reduce your carbon footprint.

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