How To Live On One Income

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Are you a couple or family living on one income? Us too! Here are my best tips on how to live frugally but still enjoy life on low income.

Many of us are finding ourselves living on one income, or living on a low income right now. I have personally been without income for almost a month, luckily my husband is still working. This is not the only time we’ve lived on one income; I worked while my husband was in school.

Losing your income isn’t the only reason! Sometimes one parent is on maternity/paternity leave, or maybe you are trying to live on one income and saving the other. No matter what your circumstances, here are my tips for living on one income.

Tips For Living On One Income

Budget

If you’ve been around here for a while, you had to know this would be tip #1! Budget the income that you have. Start with determining your income, and then determine your fixed expenses. 

Hopefully you will have some wiggle room for the variable expenses like groceries, and entertainment. 

We are still following the zero-based budgeting method that we’ve been doing for the last 3 years.

The first thing I did when I had to stop working due to the current pandemic was make an “emergency budget”. This budget is a bare bones budget compared to our usual, we are not saving as much as we usually do, and will have to cut back on some “wants” but it will get us through until I can start working again.

Reduce Your Expenses

If you are used to living on 2 incomes, and now you are living on 1, then you’ll likely have to reduce some expenses in order to live within your means. You may have to downgrade (or cancel) your cable, gym memberships, and any other subscriptions. In some cases you may have to think about moving to a less expensive home if the situation is permanent.

We have cut back on eating out and entertainment to help make up for the difference in income.

We are also focusing on reducing our grocery budget, since that is the most expensive line in our variable expenses! 

Check out our Budget Bites Recipes!

Decide On Your Lifestyle

Personal finance is personal, so this looks different for everyone. Deciding on your lifestyle will help you (and your partner, if you’re sharing finances) figure out what is important to you. For example my husband and I will still be saving some money for future travel, because that is important to us. 

Pay Off Debt

Living on one income with debt will be challenging. If possible, pay off as much debt as you can before going down to one income. If you’re living on one income because of job loss, you might not get the chance, but still make payments on your debt. 

Find Cheap / Free Hobbies

Living on a lower income doesn’t mean you have to give up fun completely! Finding hobbies and activities that don’t cost a lot will help you stay sane. Things like:

• Reading
• Gardening
• playing board games
• Running
• Baking
• Writing
• Yoga
• Painting

You get the idea! Maybe you bought some craft stuff a while ago and never got around to doing it, or maybe you have a bicycle in the garage! There are always things to do!

Check out these ideas for free date nights!

Barter

Everyone is skilled at something, and you may be able to barter with someone else! See if you can barter with your friends to save money on things you would usually pay for. This will help you (and your friends) save money.

Final Thoughts

Living on one income can be scary, especially if you are used to two. I won’t lie, it has been stressful for me too. I hope these tips will help you prepare for living on one income!

PS. Now that you’re living on one income, when you’re back up to two incomes maybe you can save the other one! That’s a great way to start your journey towards FI/RE (financial independence,retire early!)