Coping With A Higher Cost Of Living

With winter bills soaring, Andy Webb has a plan on how to best mitigate any financial damage

- Andy Webb

From record petrol pump prices and surging energy bills to sizeable supermarket spending and costlier clothes, the last few months of 2021 saw big jumps in how much we pay for things. And I’m afraid that trend is likely to continue in 2022.

But don’t panic (too much). There are ways you can find savings and boost your budget. Combined, these should minimise some of the damage to your bank balance caused by creeping inflation.

Give some or all of these a go and you’ll hopefully manage much better.

Shop around

I use online tools to help me find the lowest price. For everyday purchases there’s PriceSpy. It’s essentially a price comparison site, but I love the feature to see the recent price history—it’s a great help in working out if there could be a discount just around the corner.

Downshift brands

If you’re always buying the leading brands at the supermarket, give some own-brand alternatives a whirl. Often similar products are made at the same factories and while they might not taste exactly the same, the money saved might incentivize you enough to make the change.