Saving money used to mean clipping coupons or writing checks to yourself, but not anymore, as Gen Z has turned budgeting into an art form—it’s the kind that you make with a phone & three Chrome extensions. Rather than simply being “smart with money,” they’re able to avoid full prices in a way that would surprise most people. Many in the older generations likely skip most of these, mostly because they don’t need to save so desperately. If you’re over thirty five though, chances are you’ve never even heard of most of these.
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Rotating Trial Subscriptions With Friends
Older people might just pay for Netflix & Disney+ every single month, but with Gen Z, one person signs up for a free trial and shares their account with their friends so they can watch everything quickly. Then, they cancel, and someone else takes the next turn—in doing so, nobody’s paying more than they have to, and they always know when that “7-day free” trial ends. Some even keep spreadsheets to track who’s signed up for what and when to cancel.
Stacking Cashback With Browser Extensions
Many Gen Zers will shop online with three tools running in the background, and while older generations might stick to cashback sites, Gen Z uses browser extensions that hunt for deals & apply coupons. Some of these extensions will give them money back on top of discounts, and Gen Z knows which ones double up—it’s honestly impressive. They’ll wait for days when the bonuses are higher, or even switch browsers and clear cookies to activate separate deals.
Using the Internet to Swap Textbooks
Rather than paying $120 for a textbook like the older generations did, Gen Z gets them for free from a Discord channel where someone drops a PDF. One person buys the book, and they’ll split the cost with others, then share it through Google Drive, with the channels being private to verified students. This way, only people in that school can access the posts.
Earning Gift Cards From Surveys And Microtasks
Gen Z will squeeze as much as they can out of random minutes—when they’re waiting in line, they’ll do a 2-minute Google survey, and when they’re bored on the bus, they’ll click through a Swagbucks quiz. The goal is to get gift cards, which may only be $5 or $10 here & there, but it does add up. Many older people just call that “wasting time,” yet lots of younger people are obsessed with the Reddit threads comparing which apps pay out fastest and how to hit the thresholds faster.
Selling Free Items On Depop
The younger generation has a sixth sense for spotting free stuff in local Buy (or Pay) Nothing groups. They’ll get things from there, take two photos, and then throw them on Depop. While it may only be a $25 payday, it’s a good way to make money, especially since many older people wouldn’t even think to do that. Gen Z just casually treats it like profitable recycling, and some of them will follow local listings with keywords & alerts so they don’t miss anything that could sell.
Following “Dupe” Influencers
Instead of following brands that push $100 skincare, Gen Z finds creators who post the $10 drugstore version that works just as well, and there are entire TikToks comparing ingredients side by side. They’ll look at spreadsheets & reviews, as well as side-by-side tests, to make sure they’re buying smarter, rather than buying less. Many creators have Amazon storefronts that list verified dupes only, updated weekly, which Gen Z will follow religiously.
Buying Groceries Through Flash Sale Apps
When food stores want to clear stuff out fast, Gen Z will use apps like Too Good To Go or get $2 meals from Flashfood before anyone else even knows it dropped. They know exactly when deals go live and set alerts to go to the store on the way to class or home. In fact, some younger generations plan their snacks around what’s available that day—if the date says it expired yesterday, yet it smells fine, it doesn’t matter because they’re eating it.
Subscribing to Burner Email Newsletters
You’ll see lots of Gen Zers with three Gmail tabs open, signing up for yet another “welcome discount,” as they have burner emails on standby that they’ll use for coupons. They’ll subscribe, claim the 15% off, then delete the email account—rinse and repeat. There are some platforms that allow you to route them all into one inbox so it’s clean, and if a site requires phone verification, they know exactly which free SMS tool still works.
Using Bots to Scrape Prices
Gen Z doesn’t wait for stores to email them about price drops because they have bots doing it for them 24/7, whether they’re on Telegram or Discord. They’re locked on whatever item they want, like limited sneakers or that Stanley cup, so that the second a price dips, they get a notification about it. They found the setup in a TikTok or a random GitHub link someone dropped in a comment, which saves them a lot of money.
Downgrading Before Billing
Right before that monthly charge hits, Gen Z will cancel their account—not because they hate the service, but because they know how this goes. They know they’ll get a dozen “We’ll miss you” emails showing up with 50% off if they rejoin in the next 7 days, so they’ll downgrade and wait. And if they don’t get the offer, they just use a new email & restart with another free trial, since there’s no need to pay full price for anything unless absolutely necessary.
Disclaimer: This list is solely the author’s opinion based on research and publicly available information.
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