Six easy ways to keep more money in your pocket

After each payday, it can be alarming how quickly your bank account seems to turn into a sieve. Suddenly, the fresh paycheque that earned you a couple extra pints has turned into penny pinching for the rest of the month. 

Of course, some expenses are unavoidable. But there are some sneaky payments that come out of your account each month that you could likely do without or reduce with little effect on your day to day.

So here are a few things that could help you save. And if you decide to put those savings in your investment account, you could really turn a little into a lot. By putting just £50 a month into an investment account that earns 5% returns a year after fees, you’ll be sitting on almost £8,000 after 10 years, or nearly £21,000 after 20 years.

Task one: Ditch your unwanted subscriptions

Everyone has a free trial they signed up to that they forgot to cancel, or a subscription to something they no longer use. You can subscribe to everything from razors to dog food these days – so it’s no wonder most of us have lost track.

Take a look at one month of transactions in your bank account to see what you’re paying for and ask yourself whether you’re using it. Citizens Advice found that Brits spent £688,000,000 in a year on unused subscriptions, which is a big potential saving. Over a quarter of people subscribe to something accidentally in a year, so it’s a good idea to double check. 

Task two: Don’t auto-renew your phone bill

When your phone contract comes up for renewal, it’s tempting to automatically switch to the latest version of your phone and sign up to another pricey two-year contract. But if you don’t really need that new tech and your phone still has some life in it, you could keep your handset and switch to a SIM-only contract. It’ll usually be for only a fraction of the cost.

For example, on EE the latest iPhone 17 with unlimited data will cost you £30 upfront and then £72 a month but increase twice over two years for a total of £1,819.64*. If, instead, you picked the same unlimited data plan on a SIM-only deal, you’d pay £32 a month with payments increasing twice for a total of £833, saving you just under £1,000 over two years.

*Costs from EE website, accurate to 29 October 2025

Task three: Cancel your pricey TV package

People who’ve been with the same providers for years will have likely seen their costs creep up. If you’re wedded to keeping the service, though, try calling up to negotiate a new deal. It’s likely you’ll instantly save money – although a new deal will often mean signing up to a new contract for a year. You should also consider whether you’re using all the services and channels you’re paying for. It might be an idea to scale down your package.

Another option is to ditch the service altogether for a streaming option, like Netflix or Amazon Prime. The cheapest Netflix subscription is just £5.99 a month. Now TV is another option, as it has a lot of the programmes Sky offers, but you can buy a monthly pass, or even daily, and then turn it off when you no longer need it.

How much you’ll save will vary depending on how much you’re currently paying. But as an example, switching from an £80 a month Sky package to a £10 entertainment package on Now TV will save you £840 a year.

Task four: Sort your old pensions

This one won’t necessarily save you loads of money, but it’s a good time of year to get all your pension paperwork sorted. The government estimates that people switch jobs 11 times during their life, which means most people will have lots of pension pots they’ve lost track of.

If you’ve lost track of a pot, and you’re an AJ Bell customer, you can use the pension tracing service to help find it. It should tell you where your pension is, how to log on to see its value, and whether you can transfer it. If you can’t find any paper documents, you can use the government’s pension tracking service instead.

Tracking down these old pots makes sense for a number of reasons. Firstly, knowing how much you have saved in total will help you work out how much you might need to save in the future to enjoy the retirement you want.

Secondly, once you’ve located any old defined contribution pensions, you could consider combining them with your existing provider. This will make your pensions easier to monitor and manage. And you could also benefit from lower charges, greater investment choice and more flexibility when you come to access your pot.

Before you transfer any old pensions, just make sure you double check whether they have any guarantees attached, as you could lose them if you switch to a new provider.

Learn more about pensions

Task five: Don’t leave your cash earning nothing

For the moment, interest rates remain relatively high, with the Bank of England interest rate at 4%. But if you don’t shop around for the right savings account, you could find your money earning a much lower rate of interest.

One way to research deals is to use the AJ Bell Cash savings hub. This provides a range of different accounts to fit your needs at competitive rates. The current top rate for a one-year fixed deposit account is 4.3% from QIB, with a minimum deposit of about £1,000.

You can also opt for ‘regular saver’ accounts, where you put a set amount of money in for a fixed period. But it’s important to read the terms of conditions of these accounts closely, because there’s sometimes caps on how much you can save and rules around withdrawals and deposits. However, these accounts can currently offer interest rates above 7%. 

(All rates accurate to 29 October 2025)

Task six: Switch your bank account

Most of us are guilty of being far too loyal to our bank and not switching to a new one. But you can actually make a decent amount of money for minimal hassle by switching, because banks will pay you an incentive to move to them.

For example, TSB will pay you £150 to switch if you deposit £1,000*. Some of these offers have criteria attached, such as setting up direct debits or paying in a certain amount each month. So be sure to double check all the rules, as missing out on one could mean you miss the bonus.

*Accurate as of 29 October 2025