7 Money-Saving Tips for Large Families

5 minutes

In large family households, expenses multiply. So, take a look at these money-saving tips so you can optimize, prioritize, and choose wisely.

Written and verified by the teacher Samanta Ruiz.

Last update: 11 October, 2022

If you have 3 or more children, you’ll need to plan your expenses better to optimize the household economy. To help you in this quest, we want to offer you this list of money-saving tips for large family households.

There are many ways to select the expenses, prioritize certain needs and make the money reach each month. You just need to be orderly, plan ahead, and be smart when allocating resources. Let’s get going with some recommendations on how large families can save money!

Large family households and the challenge of making ends meet

According to the Spanish Federation of Large Families (FEFN), 73% of these groups have trouble making ends meet.

“A third of large families live with less than 2,000 euros and 7 out of 10 find it difficult to make ends meet.”
-Spanish Federation of Large Families-

Of course, this phenomenon isn’t unique to Spain. It’s logical for finances to become tighter when there are more members in the family. Therefore, we want to make our contribution and share the following money-saving tips that may be useful when thinking about how to organize the economy of large family households.

1. Organize wholesale purchases

Products that are sold in larger quantities or in closed packs containing several units, are usually offered at cheaper prices than per unit. For this reason, joint purchases among several families are a great way to save on consumer items.

A family buying produce. — Planning purchases for the whole week is a good option for large families. It’s ideal to make a list of necessary items and take advantage of sales.

2. Shop with a weekly list

Take an inventory of what you have at home and make a list of the items you’ll need each week. Then, do your shopping based on those two pieces of information. It’s not a good idea to overbuy, as you may end up using up the extras that you bought even though they weren’t part of your budget for that week.

It’s only a good idea to buy extra when you find an excellent bargain and as long as they’re items that can be stockpiled, such as toilet paper, paper towel, or laundry soap.

3. Plan an annual budget

Making an annual budget is more efficient to be able to cover the punctual expenses that respond to events such as the beginning of classes, a birthday, vacations, or Christmas parties.

The secret is to save during the months with fewer expenses and reserve those resources for special events. This way, you achieve a balance in your budget throughout the year and don’t have to go into debt to cover those extra expenses.

4. Take advantage of sales and second-hand items

For products you consume on a daily basis, it’s best to follow the sales offered by stores and supermarkets, which, in many cases, are scheduled by days or weeks. In addition, for fruits and vegetables, take advantage of those that are in season, which are always much cheaper–not to mention healthier!

In the case of clothing, the opposite is true–buying clothing that is out of season can be a great money-saving option. For example, buy swimsuits in winter or warm jackets in summer. Also, look for opportunities in outlets, cyber sales, and second-hand clothing.

5. Recycle to save

There are many things that can be recycled at home, and that means savings for the economy of large family households. For example, clothing and footwear that’s passed between siblings or cousins. In addition, you can also reuse furniture, bed linen, towels, packaging, and many other things for other uses.

6. Adapt the house for low energy consumption

A person replacing a traditional light bulb with one that's less energy-consuming. — Changing the light bulbs for LED bulbs is a good saving measure, as in large families, the energy use is higher and, therefore, the bills to be paid are usually high.

The price of energy is one of the issues that cause concern in recent times and it’s likely to continue to be a source of worry in the future. The bills that large family households have to pay can quickly escalate. Therefore, it’s important to adapt your home for low consumption.

Some of the actions you can implement are the following:

Change traditional light bulbs to LED type.
Locate lights in strategic places to take advantage of their use.
Use cold water in your washing machines.
Reduce the use of heating at night. Instead, blankets and quilts can be used to keep warm in bed.
Cook once for several days to optimize energy expenditure.
Use the car less and walk more or ride a bicycle. Your health will thank you!

7. Teach children to help out with savings

In the case of large family households, a fundamental part of an efficient savings strategy is for everyone to contribute. To do this, teach children to do the following:

Take short showers.
Always turn off the lights when you leave a room.
Help out in the care of the house (mowing the lawn, painting, tidying up, cleaning, among other tasks).

Savings tips for large family households, a plan to live more peacefully

The ability to save is important for anyone, and especially for large families. In these households, expenses multiply and surprises are a fact of life. Therefore, having a savings base translates into peace of mind for everyone. These savings tips can help you plan your family finances and deal with unforeseen events without panicking!

In addition, you should know that large families are of great value to society, as they’re the ones that ensure population growth and contribute to the demographic balance of a country.