How to save $3,000 in 2025
What could you do with an extra $3,000 in your budget? Take a holiday? Buy some new appliances? Or maybe give your savings a boost? We think most households have the ability to make some financial tweaks that could see more money staying in their bank account this year.
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Here are some practical ways you can start spending less.
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Change your car insurance company
Potential saving: $670
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There are big differences in what car insurance companies charge for similar coverage. Instead of accepting the premiums offered by your regular provider year after year, spend some time rather than money on checking whether there are cheaper deals out there.
Our car insurance survey found the difference between the highest and lowest premiums for a family of four was $56 a month – $670 a year. A middle-aged person has the potential to be saving $516 a year. Just make sure you check the policy to make sure you’re getting the same or better cover.
There are lots of other tricks for reducing your premiums, such as taking a higher excess and paying annually rather than monthly.
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Shop around for groceries
Potential saving: $825
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Do you go to the same supermarket every time you need a grocery top-up? You might be surprised how much you could save by swapping supermarkets regularly or splitting your spending between chains.
We researched what we’d pay for a basket of 22 grocery items across 8 weeks. Buying our list of groceries at Pak’nSave was $14 a week cheaper than at New World – even using the New World Clubcard. Across a year, that’s a potential saving of $700. Woolworths was more expensive again – $825 more expensive a year than Pak’nSave – even using an Everyday Rewards card. These numbers show the possibility for some serious savings if you’re willing to shop around.
If it wouldn’t cost you much more in petrol, and you have the time, you could split your shop across supermarkets to pick out the best prices from each. We like to use the Grocer app to do this – it takes a bit of time, but you can make a list of where you’ll get the cheapest price for each item.
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Tweak the way you’re using power
Potential saving: $870
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There are some big savings to be made if you’re willing to make a few changes to the way you use power.
You can save $320 a year by setting your heat pump between 19°C and 21°C and leaving it there. Turning the temperature up really makes a difference to your power bill. It’s better to turn up the fan on your heat pump instead to get the warmth moving around your room faster.
Switch off your appliances at the wall to save $100 a year. Appliances with a stand-by light are often the biggest power suckers when not in use. Switch them off when you’re not using them.
You can save $260 per person in your household by cutting shower lengths from 15 minutes to 5. A 15-minute shower adds about $1 to your power bill. A shorter shower can save 66c. If you’re showering every day, that’s $5 a week, which adds up.
Do your laundry in cold water rather than warm water to save $50 a year. Washing in warm water doesn’t make much difference to the cleanliness of your laundry, so for most washes, cold water is all you need.
A warm towel after your shower might be nice, but your heated towel rail will be costing you nearly $3 a week. That’s $140-odd a year.
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Drop a streaming service
Potential saving: $240
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Have you taken a look at how many streaming services you’re paying for lately? It can be easy to lose track of how many you are subscribed to.
If you can say goodbye to one, stopping that small payment of $20 a month will save you $240 over a year. It doesn’t have to mean missing out on the shows everyone is talking about though – just do some service hopping and choose which streaming service you’ll give your money to each month.
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Change your power company
Potential saving: $494
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It can be frustrating to watch your power bills go up while news articles announce record profits for the big power companies.
You can take back some of the power by finding the cheapest power plan for you. Save on average $494 using free Powerswitch comparison website.
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Today’s Mind-Bender is the Last of the Year! Can You Guess It Before Everyone Else? 🌟🎁🌲
I dance in the sky with green and gold, a spectacle few are lucky to behold; I’m best seen in the south, a celestial sight—what am I, lighting up the New Zealand night?
Do you think you know the answer? Simply 'Like' this post and we'll post the answer in the comments below at 2pm on the day!
Want to stop seeing these in your newsfeed? No worries! Simply head here and click once on the Following button.
Poll: Is it ok to regift something that you have been given?
🎁 Holiday Gift Chat!
Do you ever regift?
What’s your take on asking for a receipt if a gift doesn’t fit?
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78.7% Yes! It's better to regift what I don't need
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21.3% No. It's the thought and effort that matters
Charities turning away high numbers of volunteer applications
Charities are turning away people wanting to volunteer amidst a flood of interest they say is linked to the high rate of unemployment.
It comes as some businesses receive thousands of applications for paid roles and people look for experience anywhere they can.
The advocacy organisation Volunteering NZ has been tracking the trend. Spokesperson Margaret McLachlan said there has been a considerable rise in applications for volunteer roles across a range of charities.
Many application forms asks people to divulge if they are job hunters.
"Over the last year or so, they are seeing more people coming in who are saying they are in that category. They are looking for work but doing volunteering while that process is taking place."
"As unemployment increases and the cost of living, times are tougher for everybody."
At the same time, she said community organisations supporting social services were busier and needed more helpers.
McLachlan said depending on the organisation, they might want to do a police check, a reference check and an interview.
"In some cases it can be a process to go through and not always, and that can take some time.
"It's actually the same barriers that a person might find in finding a job, can also apply to volunteering. It's not always a easy option."
SPCA had 120 op shops and animal rescue centres across the country in which volunteers worked.
General manager of retail Cathy Crichton said they received about 1300 extra applications for volunteer roles, a 32 percent increase, from June to November 2025, compared to 2024.
"There's definitely a nudge forward which is very exciting and we're very grateful."
But it meant they were not accepting any more volunteers in some areas.
"Because the applications are up it's a unique scenario. But at this point in time, in smaller locations, we've actually got a hold in 19 locations in New Zealand where we are at capacity - and that's very rare and it's a very new trend."
Crichton said anyone seeking volunteer work should think creatively about what skills they can offer - it could be in administration or marketing.
"We'd love to welcome as many people as we could because the more hands on deck the more we can do and the more we can contribute to the community."
She said people were self-motivated to apply for volunteer work.
The unemployment rate rose to 5.3 percent in the September quarter, meaning 160,000 people were jobless. The next quarterly figures are out in February.
"There's a willingness to give back and contribute to the community. Unemployment being high really does encourage people to engage with the workforce and get experience," Crichton said.
"It really is about staying connected with the community and meeting others."
She said they had also seen an increase in young people seeking volunteer work experience.
"It's a great opportunity to get work experience and a reference and there's an appeal there as an employer...I really do think it adds value to a CV."
Stats NZ data showed over half of New Zealanders, 53 percent, volunteered during March 2025 and of those, 27.6 percent volunteered through an organisation and 40.8 percent volunteered directly for another person.
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