Tip 4: Make coffee at home, save over $500 per year

This is one of my favorite ways to save money. I grind my own beans and make coffee at home. It costs about 60 cents to make a great 16 oz cup of coffee at home vs. about $2 at a coffee shop. I still get coffee at a coffee shop on occasion, but making it at home most of the time results in savings of about $45 per month. For me, this is worth doing.

In addition to saving money, I have learned to make better coffee at home than you can get at a coffee shop. I use fresh beans and grind them myself just before brewing. I use filtered water and brew the coffee using a cone filter in a coffee maker with a thermal carafe. When ready, I place the coffee in one of the best thermal coffee mugs that you can buy. All of the equipment I use may sound expensive, but costs very little compared to the cost of buying coffee at a coffee shop every day. My very nice coffee maker cost only $45, and my grinder about $30, and my thermal travel mug about $15.

Making your own coffee at home not only saves money, but saves time as well. It takes time to drive to the coffee shop, place your order, pay for your coffee, wait for your coffee, and drive to work. It only takes a few seconds to grind my beans and start my coffee brewing while I do other things. When I am ready to go, I just pour the hot, fresh, delicious coffee in my mug and go on my way. I wish it were morning so I could make some coffee now.

Making your own coffee is one of those ways to save money that depends on forming a new habit. If you are in the habit of walking to the coffee shop during a coffee break, or going through the drive-through window of a coffee shop on the way to work, it will take effort to break that habit and establish a new habit of making your own coffee at home. This is worth the effort, because you can save a lot of money over time.

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