Right now most Americans are experiencing a time of inflated gas prices. While it’s very difficult to get gas for FREE, we still want to share some insider tips with you to at least get your BEST price on gasoline!
1. Use store loyalty cards. Locally we have two MAIN gas stations- Sheetz and Rutters! Both of these stores offer a certain amount of cents off gas. You can save $0.03/gallon at Sheetz and $0.04 at Rutters. While these savings aren’t huge, you will still save $21.60 per year if you fill up 15 gallons three times a month.
2. Use online/app resources. My favorite website to visit is GasBuddy, where everyone in your community works together to report the BEST prices at each of your local gas stations. I use this EVERY time I’m heading out and know I need to purchase gas. They also have an app you can download. Also, if you link your Gas Buddy card to your debit card and use it at the station, you can save up to $0.25 per gallon.
3. Determine if you’re REALLY saving with cents off per gallon programs. If you’re local grocery store has a gas savings program, DO THE MATH! Make sure you REALLY are saving, because sometimes you end up spending $50 to save $5, and that is NOT worth it! I even tried this out one time buy filling my card with all the things I needed to earn $0.20 off per gallon. I went to the checkout, and my total bill was over $50, and when I looked in my cart, it was a ton of high-sugar processed foods! So, be careful and do the math to make sure you are really saving!
4. Cash Back Credit Cards/Points Cards– A few months ago I posted a short article about how to fly for free! This is another way to at least earn cash back or points to fly while filling your tank. You can also HOWEVER, my word of caution is to make sure you pay your credit card bill off each month! I also recommend that you write the expense out in your checkbook right away so that you don’t forget about it, and get that extra surprise when the credit card bill comes at the end of the month.
5. Buy Discounted Gas Gift Cards. Sites like PlasticJungle.com are great places to find gift cards at a discounted price!!!
6. Change your driving habits. Make sure you are employing all those great driving tips to make sure you are getting the best mileage out of your vehicle! Some of these include
- Don’t let your car idle. This means turning the car off when you’re waiting for long periods of time.
- Drive at a steady pace. (My father-in-law explained it as keeping the one gauge on my car between 2-3 at all times. You know, the gauge that you have no idea what it does! LOL).
- Shifting properly. While most people own automatic cars, you can still save by driving your automatic at a rate that feels right. You know what I’m talking about, you sometimes have to speed up your RPM’s while driving uphill, so drive the car the way you know it needs to be driven!
- Dump the extra weight. Make sure you remove extra weight from your car, and don’t carry around heavy items any longer than you have to!
7. Maintain your car. Doing things like changing your oil regularly, keeping your air filters clean (this can improve gas mileage up to 7%), keep your tires properly inflated will all help you save on gas mileage.
We hope these tips/tricks will at least help you save some green at the pump this year. Keep us posted on how you’re saving, and comment your ideas too. How do you save on gas??
Check out our other Money Saving Tips!
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on line apps are not always accurate. we get calls about our gas at my store being 2.55 gal. on gas buddy. i wish i’d buy barrels of the stuff. lol if you use gas buddy call and check it’s accuracy before heading out