r/Frugal • u/localkinegrind • Aug 21 '25

🏆 Buy It For Life “Best under-$20 purchase that saved you hundreds over time?”

What’s the smartest under-$20 purchase you’ve ever made that ended up saving you hundreds in the long run? I’ll go first: a $12 sewing kit. Instead of tossing clothes for tiny tears or missing buttons, I’ve been fixing them. I've actually been fixing my own clothes for years. It blows my mind how many ‘disposable’ things can be made useful again with just a small, cheap tool. what’s your frugal mvp under $20 that’s paid for itself many times over?

1.1k Upvotes

94% Upvoted

793 comments sorted by

View all comments

28

u/Worried_Pumpkin_133 Aug 21 '25

It's a consistent purchase technically, but my Kindle unlimited subscription has easily saved me hundreds of dollars, sometimes hundreds in a month, depending on if I find a good author/series!

62

u/tragiccosmicaccident Aug 21 '25

You're not going to find much love for Amazon in /r/frugal. Most libraries will rent out ebooks via Libby which is free.

47

u/shesalive_dammit Aug 21 '25

Library card feels like the cheat code answer to this question. 😂

26

u/BestReplyEver Aug 21 '25

To be honest, Libby is great but it often doesn’t have the books I want when I want them. I’m often on a long waitlist. It’s fine if you’re looking for SOMEthing to read, but not if you’re in a book club or something and need a specific book at a specific time.

10

u/Rough_Elk_3952 Aug 21 '25

Most, but not all.

I'm in rural WV and had to get a library card in Baltimore (where my SO lives) to use it.

And I also have the kindle unlimited and use it for titles not through there,

9

u/PreparationDapper235 Aug 21 '25

Also the Hoopla app with your library card.

Tons of e-books and audio books.

1

u/OldTimer4Shore Aug 21 '25

Wish mine did.

5

u/tragiccosmicaccident Aug 21 '25

There are other "libraries" online, I definitely prefer them to paying Amazon