Didn't realise I'd spent that much.

Rich1976

Money_and_Travel said:

NoodleDoodleMan said:

If these expenditures were essential - how come you are surprised at the amount ?

Because I didn't realise I'd spent so much.

Keep a budget and track and log all your spending. Mindlessly tapping the card throughout the month does add up. You could set yourself a spending limit and once you’ve reached it, that’s it until the following month.

if you used your debit card, would you just keep tapping away regardless of how low your bank balance was getting? The same should apply to credit card spending but in reverse.

TheBanker

DullGreyGuy said:

Vinknut said:

Money_and_Travel said:

Nasqueron said:

Your original post seemed to suggest you were concerned by the level of spend?

No, just surprised at how much I had spent.

Why were you surprised, do you not track your spending at all?

Someone can track their weekly or monthly spend but not then look at the annual or longer term numbers. A colleague was commenting that he goes to a little coffee shop near the office for his 2 a day hit saying how much cheaper it was than going to Costa etc at £1.50 -v- the c£4.50.

Clearly they are aware of the unit price of their spend but had failed to realise it was still c£720 a year of net salary going on it as they weren't thinking over that duration. 

I am the same - we have a little coffee kiosk outside our office who charge £3.40. Very tempting to get a coffee on the way in, and sometimes a pastry as well. But that's £20+ a week, and £80+ per month.

I can afford that, but it's a bit of an eye opener when you go through your credit card bill and add all this stuff up. 

sausage_time

Another way to think about this. 

Someone on median gross annual earnings for full-time employees of £37,430 (source: ONS) would have to earn an extra £139 to have £100 to spend after tax and national insurance (source: MSE Income Tax Calculator).  That coffee is costing you more than you think (and for those earnings, it's worse in Scotland).

NoodleDoodleMan

The OP might be better using a debit card for incidental low cost spending items - with the credit card for essential outlays like supermarket trolley and petrol etc.

Jami74

NoodleDoodleMan said:

The OP might be better using a debit card for incidental low cost spending items - with the credit card for essential outlays like supermarket trolley and petrol etc.

Why? I put every single spend on a credit card. Things don't cost less if you spend it via a debit card than credit card. If I used a debit card I'd have to transfer money from savings every time I bought something.

The OP has said they don't pay interest and that all spends were intentional. I think they were just making chatter and expressing surprise at how the numbers add up over time. It's a bit like when the supermarket app tells you that you bought cream cakes 36 times in the last year and you could have sworn they were a very occasional treat (and yes, I can financially afford a cream cake as part of my shopping budget, but try to resist for my health).

NoodleDoodleMan

Why not ?

Each to their own - there is no one size fits all "solution" to how we choose to spend.

Nasqueron

Jami74 said:

NoodleDoodleMan said:

The OP might be better using a debit card for incidental low cost spending items - with the credit card for essential outlays like supermarket trolley and petrol etc.

Why? I put every single spend on a credit card. Things don't cost less if you spend it via a debit card than credit card. If I used a debit card I'd have to transfer money from savings every time I bought something.

The OP has said they don't pay interest and that all spends were intentional. I think they were just making chatter and expressing surprise at how the numbers add up over time. It's a bit like when the supermarket app tells you that you bought cream cakes 36 times in the last year and you could have sworn they were a very occasional treat (and yes, I can financially afford a cream cake as part of my shopping budget, but try to resist for my health).

I suspect it's based on the idea that some people treat credit card as not real money and a debit card paying so the money is coming out of your account is more "real" and keeps people from spending as much

DullGreyGuy

NoodleDoodleMan said:

Why not ?

Each to their own - there is no one size fits all "solution" to how we choose to spend.

Generally, loss of opportunity given there are typically greater rewards given by credit card issuers than debit card ones. 

Fully agree its each to their own on how and on what we spend but personally neither of by debit cards would reward me for spend, a £2 spend is 2 MR points and typically get circa 2p per MR point

NoodleDoodleMan

I'm still getting comfortable at not having to use cash to pay for small value items - like the special offer mouthwash I bought this morning under £2.

Previously I'd only use a debit card to withdraw readies, as required, at the bank or ATM.

Using a short term loan option (aka credit card) was never on the agenda.

The modern generation (and some older converts) are OK with that of course - and why not ?