Archive: MoneySavingExpert's Money Tips Email

Ho, ho, uh oh...
It's 99 days till Chr******

Incl... money making tips, FREE cash, stamp rush, 3x cashback to gain £100s, hidden codes, BAN unnecessary prezzies & more

A warning... Christmas is on 25 December this year. January is debt counsellors' busiest month - ask people why they need help then and many reply: "Christmas, of course". Yet Christmas isn't unexpected, it's coming, so if you haven't started the financial prep yet, this is the moment (some fervent MoneySavers will already have done it all).

So here's my annual checklist of things to do now, to cut costs when the big day arrives (many also work if, like me, you celebrate Chanukah, or owt else). This isn't about early celebration - I hate Slade's festive tones played in shops in Sept (or Oct) as much as the next Scrooge - it's about preparation. See our 48 Christmas cost-cutters for far more...

1. Don't lust for a perfect Christmas, instead do a budget now and work out the best Christmas you can have on that. Many have a festive lust-list of what'd be a perfect Christmas, yet that's a risky mindset that can lead to debt or disappointment. Instead, let the finances lead. Spend a little time now to budget what you can comfortably afford on Christmas, then ask: "How do I have the best time on that amount?"

And if you're shouting back: "Yeah right, I can't afford anything", do listen to yourself (and follow some of the money making tips below), take a deep breath and consider going spending cold-turkey this year... Christmas is just one day, don't give yourself a New Year financial hangover because of it.

2. Grab a FREE £175 in time for Christmas. All banks, bar one, have turned off their switching bribes. I hope some will return, but there's no guarantee. Luckily, the one currently available is often a top pick, so it's worth considering.

• First Direct FREE £175, top service, 0% overdraft, 7% linked saver. First Direct* pays newbies who use its switching service £175, so do it now and you can get the cash by 20 Nov, plenty of time for it to go towards your Christmas coffers. It's always been one of the top accounts for service, rated 90% great, and it also offers a linked 7% regular savings account you can put up to £300/mth in, an ongoing £250 interest-free overdraft for many, and its debit card gives perfect rates abroad. Full eligibility and 'who can get it' info in our First Direct review.

3. Now's the time to discuss with friends & family if you're all BANNING unnecessary Christmas presents. Many spend far too much money, time, effort and stress buying people things they don't want or need in a tit-for-tat (tat being the operative word) Christmas giving extravaganza, where too much just ends up in landfill.

Now to be clear, this isn't about gifts for kids or spouses. It's about agreeing with the ever-extending list of friends, colleagues, classmates and family to release each other from the obligation of buying, or just do a secret Santa, or donate to charity. Read the full theory in my Ban unnecessary Christmas gifts blog, or watch this video that I'm proud to say went viral, the biggest I've ever done, proving it ain't a niche idea...
4. Beware gift vouchers/cards. For some reason our British sensibilities struggle with giving cash, with many finding gift vouchers more socially acceptable. Yet there are buts bigger than a troop of baboons...

a) If the store goes bust, gift vouchers usually become worthless.
b) Many have expiry dates, which often aren't made that clear.

So think carefully about the likely financial strength of the retailer, and how quickly they'll be used. If in doubt, cash (or money in the bank) is the ultimate gift voucher - it's totally flexible and usable anywhere.

6. Urgent. Stock up on stamps for this (and future) Christmas's cards NOW. First-class stamp prices are going UP AGAIN, this time by an inflation-busting 22% on 7 October - but buy them in advance, and as long as they say "1st", you'll still be able to use them after the hike. See beat the stamps rise.

As Ms Beckster tweeted me last week: "@MartinSLewis. Thanks for the heads-up. As someone who still sends 40+ cards every Christmas, I'll buy pre-price rise and save myself £12+."

7. There's still time to spread the cost to ease the pain. Some reports have a typical family's Christmas spend at over £800. For most, that's totally unsustainable from just December's income. If you haven't put it aside yet, there's still time - you could try to squeeze a quarter of what's needed from your Sept, Oct and Nov income. Put it in a top savings account and you'll earn a little interest too.

8. Flog what you got! Time for a stock-take; walk around your home to look for owt unused since last Christmas. Shops don't just look at what's in their tills, they value their stock too - so should we. So why not do a personal stock check... if you've toys, prams, old coffee makers, mobile phones, gadgets or even clothes unused since the last festive season, ask yourself if you should flog them for cash. Or flog your rubbish for cash (even old loo rolls), which includes tips on selling perfume bottles, jam jars and more. More help in...

- eBay selling tips - best for pricey stuff, eg, designer goods or electronics
- Facebook selling tips - best for larger items, eg, wardrobes or sofas
- Vinted selling tips - best for clothes

9. Try to  DemoHOHOtivate  yourself...
Small sacrifices now may add up in time for Christmas, eg, even now, if you stopped buying a £5 vape every day, you'd have an extra £490 by Christmas. Try our DemoHOHOtivator tool, which lets you see how all YOUR little cuts add up.

10. Please don't borrow for Christmas... but if you will, at least ensure it's at 0%. Borrowing for Christmas is a bad idea - DON'T DO IT. Far better to cut your cloth accordingly. Yet I know people do it, and will do it anyway, so if that's you, or you feel you've no choice (really think carefully if that's true), at least try to keep it interest-free. There are two ways...

• A 0% card. To find a 0% card you'll be accepted for, use our 0% Spending Card Eligibility Calculator - up to 21mths 0% is available. Normally with 0% cards, I'd say plan & budget to clear the debt or do a balance transfer before the 0% ends - or the rate jumps to the high APRs (around 25%), but for Christmas borrowing, try to clear it well before next Christmas or it'll make things even worse then. If you can't do that, then that's a big danger sign that you shouldn't be borrowing so much - it'll just compound your problems.
  
  Always stick within the credit limit and never miss a minimum monthly repayment or you can lose the 0% rate.
  
  
• Buy now, pay later. This pops up almost every time you pay these days, and lets you spread the cost over, usually, 3mths with no interest. Many don't think of it as a debt, but it is, though unlike credit cards, sadly safety regulation still hasn't been brought in (I'm hoping that'll change in October's Budget).
  
  Be careful, don't do it willy-nilly, only do it if it's planned and budgeted for, not on a whim (people get into most trouble by just using it all the time and not thinking it needs repaying). Make sure you can afford to repay within the time. If not, you can still get yourself in trouble. More help in Buy now, pay later.

11. Sort your shopping list now, use a Christmas cupboard, then POUNCE when things are cheapest. Prices fluctuate (just look at online Amazon price tracker CamelCamelCamel) - so your aim should be to create a list of things needed for Christmas and buy when they're cheapest. Some even have a cupboard ready, so when they buy, they can wrap it, tag it and store it in advance. As for how to find when it's cheaper...

12. Power down prezzie prices. You're already doing well reading this email, keep doing so and check the daily updated MSE Deals page, where from Nov, we'll include the famous Christmas Deals Predictor. Here are a few more quickies:

• Use shopping price-comparisons. PriceRunner and Google Shopping.
• Abandon ye shopping basket. Log in to your online shopping account, add what you want in the basket, then fail to finish. Firms often send codes to tempt you back. See our abandoned basket retailers list.
• Find out when it gets cheaper. Tell PriceSpy what you want and the price you're willing to pay, and it emails when (if) the item drops to that price.
• Check the min free delivery spend. If you're just below it, it can be cheaper to add a small extra item than pay for delivery. The Amazon free delivery tool finds it for you if shopping at the e-giant (see our 30+ Amazon tricks for more).

13. Bigger spenders... FREE £115 plus £10/mth Deliveroo cashback & four airport lounge passes. A lucrative alternative to the Amex cashback cards above, newbies signing up to the Amex Preferred Rewards Gold credit card get their rewards quicker here, though it's still a credit card, so only do it if you'll pay off IN FULL each month to avoid interest. You get...

- 23,000 Amex points. The card gives 1 reward point per £1 spent, plus 20,000 bonus pts if you spend £3,000+ within the first 3mths. While hefty, that's doable for many in the Christmas run-up, if you put all normal family spending on it (though it's not an excuse to overspend).

Hit that and you've 23,000 pts, enough for £115 of Amazon, M&S or Sainsbury's, and there are other rewards too.

- Deliveroo and airport lounge passes. You also get 2 x £5 Deliveroo cashbacks a month (worth up to £120/yr) and four free airport lounge passes a year (usually worth over £50 each).

Warning: The card is fee-free in year one, but £195 a year after, so diarise to cancel before year two if you don't want to pay, and remember to pay it off in full or it's 31% rep APR (and that's before the fee). Full help, eligibility info and more options in Credit card rewards.

14. Get an instant up-to 6% BOOST on your Christmas supermarket spending. Supermarket (now digital) saving stamp schemes offered by Tesco, Asda, Iceland, Sainsbury's, Co-op and Morrisons aim to encourage year-long saving for Christmas (see full scheme-by-scheme info). Yet the way they're usually structured means there's a loophole that lets you get a year's bonus in a day.

So you're better to save and earn interest in normal top easy-access savings, then just dunk what you'll spend in that store into most schemes the day before their 'bonus day' and they add the bonus anyway. Of course, this must all then be spent in that store, so it's only a winner if that's what you'd do anyway.

15. Train-ing home for Christmas? Don't wait to book fares. Advance tickets usually go on sale 12 weeks before the date of travel, and that's the best time to grab the cheapest fares. So if you know when you want to travel, be ready to pounce in a couple of weeks - and we've a way to ensure you're at the head of the queue. See our Cheap train ticket tricks.

16. Earn a £30 Amazon voucher by doing quick online activities and lots more side hustles. To earn some extra cash from the comfort of your own home, Swagbucks rewards you for simply playing games or filling out surveys. See how to get your Amazon voucher. Plus our Boost your income guide has 60+ side hustles, though not all will make you cash in time for Christmas.