All we did was make the decision to get money from the ATM each week for what we thought was reasonable for each of us to spend on groceries, gas, dining out, and all extras. We budgeted the same amount of cash each week and we used our credit card purchase history to help determine that weekly amount. Thursday was the wallet refill day and come the following Tuesday/Wednesday things got tight early on.

What we learned:
1) We got mad the first two weeks because we both ran out of cash way soon.
2) We could do better with the 'extras' category of spending, like cut most of it out.
3) We found ourselves putting money aside each week to buy something bigger in a future week.
4) Those items we were 'saving' up for ended up not seeming important after we had cash money to buy them. Guess we did not need them.

Overall we are glad we did this, it was terribly inconvenient for buying gasoline, but we saved money without really trying to. We are both back to using our credit cards (we continue to pay the balance in full) but we are both glad we went 'old school' with cash purchasing. It opened our eyes to what we needed vs. what we just wanted right then.

-Cash for groceries is my first way to save on the food bill ($125/month). Using grocery money for food ONLY is the second way to save. I never spend the entire amount each month, and I never borrow from next month - no matter how great a food bargain I find. As money in the grocery budget accumulates, I'll buy a year's supply of powdered milk, or a large purchase of grains/seeds/beans so I can save by buying in bulk. While the garden is in full swing I save a lot of money then because I don't need to purchase produce. I sometimes use that money for special purchases, like a large ham or turkey for a holiday meal, otherwise I stick to $10 worth of meat each week.

-I use the Neal Boortz $1 savings plan. That means I save all my $1 bills and each month I put them in our Christmas/Emergency Fund savings account in the bank. I've always saved at least $500 every year, and as much as $1,000 doing the $1 savings plan. Naturally, this savings program only works well for people who use cash instead of credit/debit cards.

-You're right about buying gas with cash being inconvenient. We use our Sam's Card for purchasing gas at Sam's Club and that bill is P.I.F. each month.

-I started something in August that has helped the bottom line. Other than groceries, I only "shop" every other month. November was a shopping month, but December wasn't, so I had all the Christmas gifts done and wrapped before December ever got here. Shopping often becomes a habit without any real reason or purpose for it. By waiting for a "shopping" month before making a purchase, I have a longer period of time to consider if something is a want or a need. Most "wants" are unnecessary. If you shop because it's entertainment, try going to the library instead and "shop" for a book to read, or a how-to video to learn a new skill. I have been able to take my "walking-around money" (aka allowance) and put it in the savings account rather than frittering it away on mindless shopping sprees.

-Grainlady

It is far easier to avoid frivolous spending when you're spending actual cash--which is finite--as opposed to swiping a card.

We do have one credit card account between us. The card stays in the safe, it's used only for ordering our medications, and for renting cars/buying airline tickets, etc when we travel.

A few years ago my wallet was stolen. That brought home to me the benefits of using cash, though. I lost cash (a significant amount, because DH had put a deposit in the checkbook), my credit card, my checkbook and all the 'stuff'--license, medical cards, etc--that you keep in your wallet. Luckily, I've never been one to carry photoes. Of all the things I lost? The $1300 cash was the least important. The hassle of replacing all the other stuff, of worrying that they'd be misused, and the YEARS of dread that someone might steal your identity were far worse than those few $$$ I lost. Don't get me wrong--$1300 is a LOT of money to us, but money is finite, the potential losses from the other things were infinite and gave us a great deal of worry. I even had one of those emergency keys for my car in my wallet--and the thieves had my address, so they could have easily stolen my car!

Cash is definitely the way to go. Not to mention you can get far better deals that way--you can often bargain for a discount with cash, because the merchant isn't having to pay the credit card fee, nor put out the effort needed to file and collect the bill from them.

And gasoline? That's much easier with cash. Oh, I forget, often that most of you live elsewhere. Here, we only have full service stations--we drive up, stay in our car, roll down the window, tell the attendant what we want and he puts it in the car--then we just hand him $20, $40 and are on our way. Guess it's a little more involved when you have to pump and go inside to pay, right?

Meh...

The actual cash that you need to pay off the card each month is finite also.
I use the CC as much as I can, and get the perks.

I cannot pay ANY bill in person anymore, so I do that online.

I do not want to carry around large amounts of cash. That's very unsafe.
I do not want to give up the perks of the CC. They're very rewarding.

I am by nature frugal, and we are a one-in-one-out household.
I do not buy on impulse, as I know that I have to give something up at home if I do buy. That alone makes me but very little new, unless something is worn out/broken/used up/etc.
We live on a strict budget, and we stay within that budget. Cash will not change that.

I just tried to picture paying college expenses for the kids with cash instead of CC. Much easier to call and put it on the CC instead of a 12 hour round trip (for DD's college)with cash... at least it was for me.

" I'd be interested to hear if you have a slightly different feeling toward parting with the money when it is cash."

The money I part with IS cash.... how else would the CCs be paid off in full each week?

Different strokes for different folks!
Glad you found what works for you; equally as glad DH and I found what works for us.

And unfortunately, the fact that so many people do use plastic these days, means that the prices are adjusted accordingly and those of us paying cash are paying premium prices unless we take the time and effort to bargain them down. That's a bit annoying, as well.

Our veterinarian gives us a 10% discount when I pay with a check or cash instead of either credit card or debit card, both of which incur fees to the business. The local gas station gives 5 cents a gallon discount for cash. I've negotiated small discounts with other merchants for cash, too.

And I pay the bills online. And I don't carry around big bills either. The gas station is happy to get 5's and 10's for gas, but would be put out to break a $100 bill. So if you pay cash, be considerate and keep the bills to less than 20's.

If it does not bother the merchant, it does not bother me.

I will ask local mom & pop places if they would prefer a check, and they say almost unanimously say no. So Discover it is!

The only place that objects is the local butcher... cash or check only. No plastic of any kind!

I have a friend whose dad is a doctor. He recently went 'cash only." He decided to stop playing the insurance game of billing insurance $160 for an office visit & getting $50 from the ins co. By the time he paid the billing service to process it all, take away another $5. Now he accepts patients cash only, $50 for an office visit. Patients can choose to send their receipt to their ins co and get reimbursed. This practice hasn't suffered at all - the schedule is full every day.

Tha got me thinking about cash transactions and then I saw this thread. It has given me a lot to think about.

We will spend no dime before its' time.

What I was wondering is can he stop medicare on a medicare patient he has already accepted. One who has been using medicare and he accepted it.

They can also opt out of plans, though while a patient can submit a receipt to most plans for reimbursement (there are some areas where this is the norm for most providers), Medicare generally requires the bill come directly from the provider. If I remember correctly there may be a few limited exceptions, but Medicare is pretty particular about billing.

Last time I went to get my hair cut at the mall, they no longer accepted checks. That Flo-bee and those thinning shears come in handy.

Shopping every other month sound interesting. I'm going to try that.

CC pif each month here, too.

A secondary effect, I don't do as much shopping on the months I do shop. It's shopping targeted at things that are necessities. ;-)

I also cut my own hair, but I budget $20/month for it and put it in the Christmas/Emergency Fund Savings Account each month. There's another $240 saved each year.

-Grainlady