Understanding impulse spending

No matter how frugal or good you are at sticking to a budget, no one is immune from impulse spending from time to time. But the more you give in, the more harmful impulse purchases can be to your finances.

Spending more than you can afford or buying things you don’t need can become a bad habit that’s difficult to stop. Overspending is a common barrier to achieving essential financial goals, like investing at least 10% of your gross income for retirement and building a healthy emergency fund.  

Instead of caving to impulses, develop strategies that stand in the way between the compulsion to spend and buying something you probably don’t need. This post will review 15 tips to resist impulsive spending so you can save more money.

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15 strategies to resist impulse buying

Use one or more of the following strategies to kill impulsive spending.

1. Shop with a list.

Whether you’re shopping for groceries, holiday gifts, or clothes, have a list of what you really need and challenge yourself to stick to it. You’ll always find something you didn’t know you wanted, but having a planned list keeps you focused. That way, you’re less likely to become distracted by something not on the list.

2. Use a waiting period rule.

Create a rule that you’ll take time to think about a purchase before you buy anything over a certain amount, such as $100 or $200. The longer you can wait, the better.

However, a good rule of thumb is to give yourself at least 24 hours to decide if buying something is a need or just a random impulse purchase. When you “sleep on it,” you have enough time for your impulse to settle down, so you approach the purchase with a clear mind. 

If you’re shopping in a brick-and-mortar store and find something you think you can’t live without, take a picture of it and its price. You can revisit the item after your waiting period has expired and use the information to compare prices online.

3. Calculate an item’s value in time.

Since a spending impulse is often emotional, engaging the logical part of your brain is a powerful way to stop it. Reasoning can instantly change your mindset, so you put the brakes on an impulse purchase.

A tactic I often use is calculating how much time it would take to earn what an item costs. For example, if you earn $25 an hour after taxes, buying a $250 pair of shoes costs you 10 hours of work. Only you can decide if it’s worth the equivalent of a long workday.

4. Get rid of something first.

Create a rule that you must eliminate one or two similar items before buying something new. For example, if you want to buy a pair of jeans, decide which of your existing jeans or other pants you’ll donate or throw away to make room for the new item. 

I usually eliminate two items for every new thing I bring into my closet or kitchen. That forces me to reevaluate what I already own and avoid buying duplicates.

5. Don’t buy anything you can’t return.

Sometimes, the most tempting purchases are the ones you can’t return, like a final clearance price on something you think is too good to pass up before a sale ends. Remember that there’s usually a reason a marked-down item hasn’t sold, like not fitting well or being different from the picture online.

We’ve all experienced how terrible it is to regret buying something you can’t return. At least having the option to return an item allows you to undo the damage once you realize you made a buying mistake. 

6. Reevaluate what you already own.

If you’re a compulsive shopper, you probably have a lot of stuff, such as a closet full of clothes or a kitchen full of gadgets you rarely use. So, instead of buying the next item you don’t need, reevaluate what you already have.

Sometimes, paring down is the key to figuring out what you actually use so you can find more satisfaction in those items instead of accumulating more. I’m a big believer in buying fewer but better quality things.

Another strategy is to organize your belongings better so you can see what you have. Marie Kondo’s best-selling book The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing can help change your mindset about clutter. She’s a proponent of only keeping what “sparks joy” and storing and displaying belongings strategically so you enjoy them more.

7. Plan your splurges.

If you’re exceptionally prone to impulse purchases, permit yourself to make smaller purchases regularly. For instance, if you plan for one new inexpensive item a month or a relatively expensive treat once a quarter, that may help you avoid random binge buying.

Setting aside a small amount of your budget as an impulse fund can give you a manageable and responsible outlet for spontaneous purchases.

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8. Give yourself a no-spending challenge.

Set up a personal challenge that cuts impulse purchases over a set amount of time. For instance, you might only buy essentials for an entire month or not purchase something specific, like clothes, takeout, or gadgets, for 60 days. 

Also, put reminders of your challenge in strategic places, like a sticky note on your credit cards or make them wallpaper on your phone. If you slip up, resume the challenge right away. You might even impose a good-cause penalty, such as matching any slip-ups as donations to your favorite charity.

9. Unsubscribe from retail newsletters.

The next time you see a retail newsletter in your email inbox with a tempting promotion or sale, look for the unsubscribe link at the bottom and break the cycle. What’s out of sight will be out of mind. Something you happen to see on sale that you don’t really need doesn’t save money—it just hurts your finances. 

10. Shop with a clear head.

Be sure to notice when and why you make impulse purchases. Are you sad, stressed, tired, tipsy, or all the above? Even being tired or hungry when you’re shopping can be dangerous because you may not think clearly. Instead, put off shopping until another day or time when you’re more rested and don’t have a grumbling stomach.

You’ve probably heard the term “retail therapy.” Spending to boost your mood might work in the moment, but it hurts you in the long run. It can lead to a vicious cycle where you’re upset or stressed and buy something impulsively; then, you get more stressed because you purchased something impulsively!

Shopping in the evening can be terrible if you’re home alone, bored, or impaired after a few glasses of wine. So, remember never to shop when you’re restless or having a bad day. Instead, call a friend, go for a walk, or take a hot bubble bath to cheer yourself up.

11. Never shop for entertainment.

If you regularly enjoy going to the mall or shopping on main street, but it’s hurting your finances, change your idea of entertainment. You’ll probably buy something when you put yourself in the center of shopping temptations.

So, stay away from outlets or your favorite stores when you have time to kill or hang out with friends and shopping isn’t in your budget. When you need something, shopping solo can be a more mindful experience that keeps you in control and calm compared to the chaos of shopping with friends or kids.

12. Read the reviews.

The next time you get tempted to buy something, read all the product reviews you can, especially the bad ones. While poor reviews can be exaggerated claims, they can also show you the truth about a product that makes you realize it’s not worth buying.

13. Minimize the damage.

If you’re in a store and feel overwhelmed with the desire to buy lots of stuff, consider taking one inexpensive item to the checkout to get out of the store with minimal financial damage. It’s not an ideal habit to follow, but stopping while you’re ahead may be a way to ease away from shopaholic tendencies.

14. Think about the last purchase you regret.

Before giving in to a shopping impulse, think about the last time you made a buying decision you regret. That may reveal a pattern in your behavior that you need to curb. Decide not to make another impulse purchase today that you’ll also feel sorry for.

Achieving your financial goals is all about feeling happy and secure. Use this step-by-step guide from episode 702 of Money Girl to set the right financial goals and achieve them sooner rather than later. Listen in the player below. 

15. Remember your goals.

The reason for curbing impulsive spending is to have more money to achieve cherished 

financial goals. So, write down your goals and keep them in visible places you can’t avoid if you choose the wrong path.

For instance, you might use a black Sharpie pen to write your goal on your credit cards. You could write them on sticky notes or laminated cards for your refrigerator, desk, or bathroom mirror. Make a screen saver or wallpaper for your mobile devices and computers that showcase your goals.

Creating visible triggers that prompt you to think about what you genuinely want can be a powerful way to sidestep destructive financial behaviors. Any strategy you can use to keep your goals top-of-mind will help you focus on what’s most important and reinforce your commitments. Your goals will guide your behavior, but only if you remember them.

The best way to resist a spending impulse is to give yourself time to settle down, shift your mindset, remember your goals, and reconsider the purchase.