Frugal Vs Cheap

[tmvijai]

I see lot of misunderstanding between being frugal and cheap. Many people use them interchangeably and many just confuse these 2 words.

They are totally different. In your mind, how do you see them different?

[Joan.of.the.Arch]

Cheap seems pejorative while frugal does not.

[ktmarvels]

For me being frugal is more about getting a good value on things whereas cheap is merely paying the lowest price.

[Broken Arrow]

Yes, exactly what ktmarvels said. Sometimes, the best value isn't always the cheapest price. In fact, sometimes, frugal is to buy the highest quality possible, even if it costs more.

To me, frugality is also choosing to be a productive part of society, and not a parasite to one. For example, frugality also sometimes translates to minimizing your carbon footprint. On the other hand, cheap simply means to benefit at the expense of others, and with no regards to the environment as a whole.

[disneysteve]

Originally Posted by ktmarvels

For me being frugal is more about getting a good value on things whereas cheap is merely paying the lowest price.

This topic pops up around here every few months. I agree with the above and what BA said.

Frugal means being careful with your money and getting good value.
Cheap means spending as little as possible no matter what.

Example: We started married life with some hand me down pots and pans. Then we got a pretty inexpensive set, maybe $50-60. That lasted a few years and gradually wore out. We got another inexpensive set, lasted a few more years. Finally, about 3 years ago, we went out and bought a high quality set for about $350. We use it daily and it still looks brand new. It will probably be the last set we ever buy. What we did before was cheap. What we have now is frugal. Looking back, it would have made more sense to buy the $350 set 15 years ago (when it was probably only $250).

[akrogers]

I definitely agree with KT. When I hear cheap, I think of "poor quality." If you have to replace something cheap every month because it was poorly crafted then you haven't saved very much money.

[GREENBACK]

Originally Posted by disneysteve

Example: We started married life with some hand me down pots and pans. Then we got a pretty inexpensive set, maybe $50-60. That lasted a few years and gradually wore out. We got another inexpensive set, lasted a few more years. Finally, about 3 years ago, we went out and bought a high quality set for about $350. We use it daily and it still looks brand new. It will probably be the last set we ever buy. What we did before was cheap. What we have now is frugal. Looking back, it would have made more sense to buy the $350 set 15 years ago (when it was probably only $250).

I had this exact same experience. It was a while ago but I pretty much stay with high quality(not neccessarily high price) on everything anymore and you usually get a much better value for your dollar in the long run. I do come from a long line of cheapskates(I used to be one) who break and replace junk all the time and that defines cheap to me.

[LivingAlmostLarge]

LivingAlmostLarge » Cheapo or Frugal?

In this post, a couple got married. BUT they were CHEAPOS! They had cake only for the bride, groom, and family, but NOT for the guests!

Um, a cake is $10 if you buy 2 boxes of Betty Crocker cake mix and icing. That's being cheap! They were being poor hosts PERIOD. You don't invite people to a wedding and serve some people food and NOT others.

[ActYourWage]

Originally Posted by LivingAlmostLarge

LivingAlmostLarge » Cheapo or Frugal?

In this post, a couple got married. BUT they were CHEAPOS! They had cake only for the bride, groom, and family, but NOT for the guests!

Um, a cake is $10 if you buy 2 boxes of Betty Crocker cake mix and icing. That's being cheap! They were being poor hosts PERIOD. You don't invite people to a wedding and serve some people food and NOT others.

I agree, things like these is what I see as being cheap.

[tmvijai]

This is cheapooo. For certain moments in our life we can't put a price tag including wedding. You don't have to spend lavishly but just spend enough to make you and other happy to wish you well for a better future.

I am glad to have started this topic. I see lot of thoughts from vetern contributors which is good to read and reflect on. Most of us do concur the same fact. Frugal is good, it is all about good value for the money whereas cheap is just being cheap.

At the same time, you do want to go for cheap stuff on certain things. DOn't you agree?

[disneysteve]

There are times when cheap is just fine. Non-frugal people often make the mistake of thinking they need to buy good quality for everything, and they spend lots of money in the process. If you are buying something that will get heavy use and that you expect to last for many years, you want quality. If, however, you are buying something for just occasional, or even one-time use, the cheap version might suffice. That's part of being frugal, too - buying just what you need, not more, not less.

[Broken Arrow]

Yes, what Steve just said.

That's swinging to the opposite end of cheap. Frugality is a fine line between the two.

[disneysteve]

Another part of the frugal lifestyle is being resourceful in how and where you acquire the things you want and need. I can think of numerous examples where we bought something that was of high quality and would have been of high cost had we bought it new in a regular store. Instead, we bought it either used at a yard sale or flea market or we bought it from an outlet store for a fraction of the original price. Just last summer, for example, I bought my daughter a "new" bike for $50 off Craigslist. A similar bike new would have been $200 or more. Another time, we were going to a wedding. The couple registered for Lenox crystal glasses. At Macy's, we could have bought 2 for what we wanted to spend. At the Lenox outlet, we were able to buy 6 for the same price, which made a much nicer gift. Other times, we've bought registry items at the outlets for half or less of original price which allowed us to give a $100 gift while only actually spending $40 or so. The recipients didn't know the difference and we saved a bunch of money.

[tmvijai]

Steve, you are bringing lot of good points to the table which I ditto it 100%.

Similar to your example, I can give just few things . I bought books for my CFP course in half.com for just 1/3 rd of their actual prices recently. Also we wanted to buy a 2nd fridge for our garage since our current 2nd fridge doesn't work. I found a good deal in craiglist for $65 and bought last week. my wife was happy. I am trying to get rid of the not really working fridge. At the same time, we wanted to buy a chest for my son. I wanted to go again to craiglist but my wife is bit sentimental and I agree with her. He is our first son, so lets buy a new one. I accepted it to buy new one but where, may be in IKEA.

As you said, frugal is just buying what you need not more or less, when you need and where you buy it. As BA, it is fine line between cheap and costly. You find the right balance. To stress steve's point again, it is also advantage to be updated on the resources and educative on the process to find good deals.

[michaelq]

"frugal" seems to have more of a sense of wisdom to it - smart allocation of money to minimize waste, while "cheap" seems to be more reactionary unwillingness to spend money regardless of the situation.

[tmvijai]

Originally Posted by michaelq

"frugal" seems to have more of a sense of wisdom to it - smart allocation of money to minimize waste, while "cheap" seems to be more reactionary unwillingness to spend money regardless of the situation.

I don't think I can totally agree with explanation of the "cheap" part. It is not unwillingness to spend money. You do spend willing buy items hoping to save money but turn out not worth for the money. On the other hand, you do willing buy cheap stuff which doesn't need to be spent more than that. So I won't say unwillingness spend money.

[SavingNut]

Originally Posted by LivingAlmostLarge

LivingAlmostLarge » Cheapo or Frugal?

In this post, a couple got married. BUT they were CHEAPOS! They had cake only for the bride, groom, and family, but NOT for the guests!

Um, a cake is $10 if you buy 2 boxes of Betty Crocker cake mix and icing. That's being cheap! They were being poor hosts PERIOD. You don't invite people to a wedding and serve some people food and NOT others.

My parents went to a wedding where the bride and groom ordered pizza and ate it infront of the starving guests. If you don't have the money to serve a meal then you have to plan the wedding acordingly.

[Save Money Hound]

I think being frugal is about being wise with how you spend your money.

When buying things, you want to buy things that you need, for a price that gives you good value.

So you may outlay significant dollars, but if it lasts you 10 years, you have probably gotten good value from it.

Buying things cheap may give you false economies. ie. you buy something cheap but it doesn't last long. So in the end it will cost you more!

I like the term frugal a lot more.

Cheap......well, i can take it or leave it.

[Radiance]

Steve said:

Another part of the frugal lifestyle is being resourceful in how and where you acquire the things you want and need.

This is really important, my path to frugal living has been filled with learning, things It just didn't occur to me to even try.

Silly example, who needs $2.59 lemonade? I hardly ever prepare lemonade at home. So when I go out I have water. One posible exeption is whine if the ocassion is worth the celebration.

And that leads to another difference, at least for me.
When I am cheap, I feel depressed, worried about the future, anxious.
Sometimes I need to be cheap and buy the cheapest bar of soap instead of a more 'economic' 6 pack package.

When I am frugal, I feel witty, clever and bobbly! Like when I refused to change my civic for a van only because I got pregnant.
Or when I started using free wi-fi at my club house instead of paying for a coffee at panera bread out of guilt because I was using their wi-fi.

So I believe there is an emotional difference between being cheap and being frugal. Yeah frugality!!!

[Goldy1]

Cheap: putting money before people. My husband's friend just canceled going to a ball game with him b/c he prefers to work his second job and doesn't want to take a night off work(I can' t judge but he is in a pretty good financial situation so it was just not being able to let go of more money esp since he can work as many or little nights a week as he wants at the second job)