There are lots of ways whereby you can reduce your living expenses. Of course the first one is to spend less and buy less. We need things like food but we probably do not need to each as much as we do, nor choose the food we choose. We could budget our food bill and have less food and less expensive food, maybe buying cheap cuts of meat and stewing them rather than buying the best steak. Instead of going out to bars and restaurants tell yourself that the next going out is staying in, and arrange fun evenings at home. Getting a take away works out far cheaper than eating out, and cooking something delicious for a few friends costs virtually nothing.
But the best way to cut down on living expenses, without feeling you have made such a huge sacrifice, is to be more vigilante about every cent that disappears. When you do your washing choose a day where the weather is hot and sunny if you can so that you can be sure to be able to put the washing out on the line to dry and save money on using a tumble dryer. Make sure that the washing machine is full up before operating it as it wastes electricity to use a half empty machine. Set it to a cycle which is adequate without being more expensive than it need to be. If you are used to running it on a 40c cycle you may well find that a 30c cycle works just as well with things which are not soiled or stained. By doing little things like this every day, automatically, you save money every day without losing out. It just needs a little thought.
Some people just let money trickle through their fingers, sometimes before they have even seen it. If you watch every cent that goes out and make sure it is worth its expense this will not happen. Never borrow money, even if they offer free interest, you never know what is around the corner and you may well not need what you are buying at all, it is really just a waste of money. With things like holidays it is better to go without and wait until you have the cash rather than borrow. When it comes to holidays cut down how many you have, where you go, the standard of hotel and which time of year you go, if you cannot bring yourself to cancel holidays altogether. It is better to compromise and half do something and pay less for it, than to spend more than you can afford.
If you have any one living with you have a good look at how much it costs for them to live there with you and if they are paying their way. Maybe you have a lodger who has been there for a while and sort of become a family friend, yet even though your expenses have gone up they are still paying the same rent they paid when they moved in. Make sure that whatever you charge them covers everything with some profit on top to make it worth your while.
Do you really need a car? Even if you do, do you need the car you have or can you manage with one that is more economical to run? Do you need to use it as often as you do or can you sometimes cadge a lift or walk?
It is always possible to save money and cut down on living expenses, you can save a little every day, it all adds up.