Yahoo Finance Cost-of-living Christmas savings for millions of struggling Aussies: From food and presents, to points, petrol and bill-busters
Your one-stop Christmas shop helper to keep costs down while making the most of the festive season.
The cost-of-living crunch is forcing many Aussie households to pull back on spending, and that generally means a lean Christmas. But it doesn't have to be that way.
Yahoo Finance has covered many ways to save cash this year, from how to snag the best deal on Christmas presents, put on a delicious, yet cost-effective, feast and even keep your bills down as the mercury rises over the summer break.
We will keep building this handy guide out so think of it as your one-stop Christmas shop helper to keep costs down while making the most of the festive season.
Anything else you want to know? Reach out at yahoo.finance.au@yahooinc.com
Where can I get the best and cheapest Christmas food?
Thousands of Yahoo Finance readers voted in a poll on which supermarket they'd decide to do their Christmas shop with. We've put Coles, Woolworths and Aldi to the test to see which could give you the best-value meal.
Christmas ham: A blind taste testing of eight Aussie hams found supermarket giant Coles had an "unpleasant and dry" offering for $15, Woolworths was a dollar cheaper and came in second. Find out the unexpected contender selling for $8 a kilo that took out the number one spot here.
Supermarkets head to head on budget spread: Woolworths claimed it could serve a family of eight for just $100 bucks so we compared their deal with Coles.
The competition on prices for the holiday period has been heating up, with barbecue classics like snags slashed from $7 to $5 and Lifesavers icy poles being dropped from $9 to $6. There are hundreds of others you can find out about here. Lamb was also a hot topic coming into Christmas, with most comparisons on par aside from two cuts Coles had cheapest.
Get the most out of your points: A promotion offering more rewards points didn't get too much attention, so don't miss this explainer on a simple daily habit to score new deals up until Christmas Eve. One Aussie mum turned the practice into $1,180.
How can I save money on Christmas presents?
While your presence is almost certainly present enough, you no doubt still want to spoil your nearest and dearest this Christmas. And we have some great hacks to make sure you're getting the best quality for the best possible price.
Before-shop checklist: Finance guru Emma Edwards, of the Broke Generation, explained four simple steps here to find where a present is stocked cheaper than anywhere else.
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How can I make extra money before Christmas?
Edwards also had some handy hints on how to make some cash by selling some of your pre-loved items (or perhaps even some unwanted Christmas presents).
How can I stay cool on a budget?
El Nino is now officially controlling our weather once again and, if the past few months are any guide, we could very well be in for a classic Christmas Day stinker.
Finder's tech and utilities expert, Mariam Gabaji, has some timely advice on how to keep your cooling costs down, as well as offering some tips on how to stay cool without reaching for the air-con remote.
But, if you can't get by without that sweet, cool air, our handy guide will help you secure the best energy deal in your state.
Where can I get the cheapest fuel?
No Christmas break is usually complete without some sort of road trip - even if it's just half an hour up the coast to have dinner with the 'other' side of the family. Fuel prices skyrocketed this year, largely thanks to oil-producing nations cutting supply. But, with a bit of planning - and this handy guide - you can make sure you're getting the best deal when you top up the tank.
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