With inflation being the highest it’s ever been in decades, you’re most likely looking to save money everywhere you can. Gas, groceries, and housing-prices are soaring. It’s impossible to not spend money on these essentials, but when it comes to tech, there’s plenty of ways you’re spending money unnecessarily.
Let’s start with a free trial. Sounds like a great way to stream a movie or get a service for free for a limited amount of time, until you forget to cancel. A Chase Bank study found 71% of respondents wasted more than $50 a month on unwanted subscription fees. If you sign up for a free trial, set a calendar reminder to cancel before the trial ends.
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Renting a router from your internet provider is also unnecessary spending. If you rent your router for $10 a month, buying one for about $100 can pay for itself in less than a year.
And are extended warranties worth the money? Adding a year or two worth of protection may not be worth the cost, especially if tech support is not included. Instead, some credit card companies will extend protection of devices for damage and theft for no additional cost if the purchase was made with the card.
There are free programs that do the same job as expensive software programs. LibreOffice, Focus Writer, or Google Docs are good alternatives for Microsoft Word. Canva and Gimp are great for photo edits and graphics instead of paying for Photoshop.