Living frugally is often seen as being cheap. However, it's not quite so simple. Living frugally is all about saving money where, when, and as often as you can. It isn't about skimping on fun or never paying for a great experience. 

Being invested in a frugal lifestyle often prioritizes experiences over possessions. So, if there is a country you'd love to visit, save toward that goal instead of buying that new PS5 or upgrading your car to a newer model even though your current vehicle still runs fine. 

Frugal habits are excellent to build and learn, but not all of them are created equal. You have to evaluate each, in turn, to see if it fits your goals and lifestyle, because sometimes a so-called frugal habit can cost you more than you'll actually save. If you're new to frugal living and wondering just what habits might come back to bite you in the budget, we can get you started. 

1. Eggs Aren't Free

Going out in the morning to collect fresh eggs is one of the most relaxing things you can do. However, it doesn't mean that those eggs come free just because you didn't have to drive to the store to buy them. 

Purchasing chickens and raising them for six to eight months before they ever lay one egg, and then continuing to feed them for an average of five years before they are processed for meat or at least slow down on egg production is a costly endeavor. Yes, the eggs are magnificent, but raising chickens for egg production is not frugal, especially if you count the startup costs. 

2. Cheap TP

If you've ever used a public bathroom at a business, you've likely encountered cheap toilet paper. One instance and you'll understand why buying cheap when it comes to toiletries isn't the best or most frugal option. Instead of using a typical amount of toilet paper or paper towels, you end up overusing to make up for the thin, sadly made product. 

In you prefer disposable paper towels, shoot for mid-price products. The name-brand option might not scalp you, but you won't be left using half a roll every time to dry your hands or clean up, either. Off-brand companies make some excellent toilet paper choices that offer quality and quantity without the sticker shock. 

3. DIY Disasters

I always feel like one of the worst problems you can face is to be sort of handy. Someone in this category is skilled in a given area, such as carpentry. When you have a plumbing or electrical problem, this handy person may feel capable of figuring out your situation, only to exacerbate the issue by messing something up worse. 

It's easy to look at a problem and understand the solution. It's another thing entirely to know how to get from the problem to the solution correctly and cost-effectively. Many a do-it-yourself project had gone off the rails because someone who figured out step A couldn't get to step B or beyond before everything fell apart. If you don't have the knowledge to do a project thoroughly from start to finish, save yourself time and money and hire a professional. 

4. Sale Starters

I love great sales, especially if I'm going shopping. However, not all sales are created equal. If you regularly buy sale items simply because they are on sale, take a minute to reevaluate your spending. 

Items you purchase on sale should only ever consist of the things you need at the moment or are purposefully buying. The danger with sales is that it's so easy to talk yourself into an item you don't need because of the sale. Ever heard someone say, “It was too good to pass up?” I've heard it too often when I watched that sale item sit and collect dust. Save your sale purchases for items you need and the occasional long-awaited guilty pleasure. 

5. Couponing

I'll be the first to admit I love to watch couponing professionals do their thing. However, it is unlikely that you'll score the same sort of haul as the professionals do. First, you have to like purchasing multiple name-brand products that do essentially the same thing. You'll also need excess space in your home to store all the items you can't use immediately. Also, to make it worth the excessive time drain to clip and cut all those coupons and search for them online, you'll need to enjoy using the smallest size possible in order to actually save money. 

If you're not looking to turn couponing into your life, it's best to have a plan for which coupons work with your shopping priorities and your budget. When you know what you're shopping for, you can match coupons accordingly to save a little at the register.     

6. Dollar Store 

As a former impulse spender, the dollar store was my absolute favorite place to shop. It's so easy to get quality items on a tight budget. However, one of the biggest pitfalls to dollar stores is that it is also extremely easy to spend more than you intended. 

I remember running in multiple times for a few quick things and coming out with ten or fifteen items I hadn't intended to buy. If your discipline is lacking, or, like me, you're a reformed impulse spender, steer clear of the dollar store or send someone inside to grab the items you need. 

7. Cheap Food

I love a well-made burger with melty cheese and the oh-so-good taste of fresh tomatoes, onions, and crunchy lettuce. However, ordering or purchasing cheap food can be very unfrugal. Why? 

When you choose the cheapest, rock-bottom-priced food, your health is going to suffer. This, in turn, will lead to higher insurance premiums, more trips to the doctor, and procedures you may not have to endure if you don’t choose cheap regularly. Don't get scalped at the register, but don't walk out the door with low-grade food, either. 

8. Self-Sufficient Gardening

When I was little, my parents planted a big garden with all the usual suspects. Corn, green beans, potatoes, tomatoes, beets, carrots, and other vegetables all made an appearance. My mom often canned the excess we didn't need at the moment, and I remember thinking it was easy. 

Growing up in Michigan, I didn't know that there were places that didn't have optimum soil conditions for the majority of plants. Then, I married a man from Florida, and we bought a small property that had mostly sand for topsoil. It was excruciating to try to build a garden there, and I understood why so many people planted inside raised garden beds. Gardening can be a rewarding and fruitful endeavor, but it can also cost a mint in startup fees and water usage. If you don't get rain or have a rain catch system, you'll be taking the price onto your electric bill, which isn't exactly a frugal activity. 

9. Cheap Shoes and Clothes

When I was 12, my mom bought me a cheap pair of rubber-soled shoes from Kmart (a now-defunct retail store) to wear when I played in the yard. One day, I was helping my dad work on the roof of our porch, and when I took a bundle of rotted wood to the larger pile, I stepped on a nail. It went straight into my heel, and I had to hop back to my house. 

It's so common to look for cheap shoes and clothing when prices can feel exorbitant, to say the least. However, in the long run, you'll have to keep buying those items over and over again because the quality just isn't there. You don't have to wear Gucci or Armani, but shoot for the mid-price range so that you'll at least get a few years from your clothes and shoes before you toss them in the scrap heap. Sure, you'll pay at the front end, but buying cheap will cost you much more at the back end, with a constant need to replace what you just bought. 

10. Side Hustle Shuffle

They said starting a business would be easy. Sometimes, being self-employed can be a frugal effort, especially if you already have most of what you need to get started. However, if you think building a side hustle is cheap or frugal for most, think again. Equipment and other startup costs, coaching, financial changes, stress, and other aspects of business creation can all add up to both a non-frugal financial strain. And it can also negatively affect your health.

If you're after turning a passion into a money-making machine, do plenty of research before you take any official steps. Perhaps building that business over the years will offer a more frugal approach, but it will obviously require a much longer time factor than a fast start up with big costs.

11. Baked Goods

Cooking and baking from scratch is both a healthy way to eat and is frugal. However, there are some baked goods that you can scratch off your frugal list because they will either cost you a ton of time or you'll need to purchase expensive items to make them properly. 

If you aren't great at baking, you'll also have to factor in the test runs you'll need to complete to learn how to bake well. This can easily cause your electric, grocery, and time bills to rise exponentially. Occasionally, baking a special item is a great and often frugal activity. But don’t count on it for your main source of treats.

12. Canning Food

When you know how to do it, it can be a wonderfully frugal activity, especially if you're growing the food yourself; however, getting started will set you back a bit. You'll need either a water bath or pressure canner, lids, jars, canning supplies, and produce to can. 

When I was young, my mom canned all the excess vegetables from our garden, and we used the canned vegetables for years after they were first sealed. When you get started and can reuse the items over and over, it's a cost-effective alternative to constant runs to the grocery store and store-bought produce. But the time required to can your produce properly is certainly something to consider before diving into canning as a way of preserving food. 

13. Driving Too Far for Freebies

I love free stuff. However, I remember my economics teacher in high school telling me that nothing ever really comes free. Someone always pays in the end. If you're getting something free from someone, they originally paid the price on the tag. 

If a company offers something for free, eventually someone will pay for it. When choosing which free items to pick up, factor in how far you have to go to get them. If you're driving out of your way, you're paying out in time and gas to get something for free that may not be worth the amount you're spending just to get there. Factoring in these sorts of expenses is crucial to living frugally, so take them into consideration each time. 

14. Warehouse Bulk Buys

I loved a trip to Sam's Club when I was little. I loved the huge stacks of big, bulk items. I loved everything about those trips, except the huge bags of stir-fry mix my mother would buy for my brother's trips home from college. It often meant we'd have to have chicken stir-fry, and I hate water chestnuts with a passion. 

Buying in bulk is usually a cost-effective way to shop, especially for non-perishable items like toiletries and cleaning supplies. However, membership fees, travel, and overspending can be huge, money-sucking pitfalls that turn your frugal living on its head. Be mindful of what is truly cheaper in bulk, and then research the most cost-effective way to get those purchases made and back home. Then, you'll have a frugal bulk buy that you can brag about.