Shop online and save £££

Using the internet to shop for pretty much anything can soon see the savings stack up!

With just about everything going up in price at the moment, trying to keep your outgoings to a minimum can be a tad tricky.

However, when it comes to the cost of hot water and energy, you can save a lot by simply opting for an online tariff.

In fact, according to recent research, while the typical household now faces an energy bill of £1,239 a year, up 3.8% from £1,194 in September, those who are online face an annual bill of £1,010 – that’s £229 less!*

How it breaks down

The table below shows exactly how this £229 saving breaks down – so you’ll be able to compare how much, on average, is spent on different household equipment for a standard plan against an online plan.

Costs based on a medium user consuming 3,300 kWh of electricity and 20,500 kWh of gas, averaged across all regions. Standard plan with customer paying on receipt of bill. Online plan paying by direct debit. Prices correct as at 5/1/2011.

So, as you can see, opting for an online tariff really can help to save the pennies. Yet, despite this, only 13% of British households are on online energy plans!

Providing you have internet access, of course, switching to an online energy tariff really is pretty straightforward – and I can guarantee it will be worth the effort.

Simply use the lovemoney.com energy comparison tool to search for a better tariff and once you’ve done that, get switching. If you’re worried about how long this process will take, make sure you read A step by step guide to switching energy. Note that if you pay by direct debit, you’re also likely to save money.

Even more savings

Of course, choosing an online energy tariff isn’t the only way you can save money by using the internet... as I shall now reveal!

Mobile phone tariffs

With mobile phones getting funkier by the day, the cost of using one is going up. However, try to avoid getting lured in by adverts on the high street. Choosing your phone tariff online will generally work out to be a lot cheaper as most mobile operators offer better deals on the internet than on the high street. What’s more, it will also allow you to compare tariffs more easily so you know you’re definitely getting the best deal.

Take a look at comparison site Recombu which has nifty little tools to scour a wide range of deals. You can use the slider tools to choose how many minutes and texts you need, together with how much you want to spend, and they’ll find a tariff to suit you.

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Not only that, but by choosing an online tariff, you should also avoid being charged for paper billing. Three is now charging £1.50 a month for paper bills! So make sure you stick to paperless billing and check your bills online.

Holidays

Using a comparison website such as Yahoo Travel, Expedia, or kayak is a great way to help you save money when you’re booking a holiday. That’s because these websites will help you to compare the cost of hotels, flights and car hire – so you know you’re getting the best deal available.

It’s also worth examining the package holiday options that many of these websites offer as often the website will have negotiated cheaper deals with airlines and hotel chains. So this may work out to be better value. Find out more in The seven top websites for holiday bargains.

In comparison, if you go to a travel agency on the high street, you’ll only be given their deals – unless you fancy traipsing around as many travel agents as you can find! So not only will you save money online, you’ll also save time.

Savings accounts

You’ll often find that if you’re after a new savings account, you’ll get a better deal if you bank online. For example, right now, the two most competitive easy access savings accounts are the Coventry BS eNotice Account paying 3.05% (find out more in New market-leading savings account) and the Post Office Online Saver, paying an interest rate of 2.90%. You can only access these accounts online.

Online banking is also a great way to keep track of all of your accounts. And fortunately, lovemoney.com has its own online banking tool so you can easily monitor exactly what you spend where!

Grocery shopping

Grocery shopping can be a big drain on your finances. However, food is something we can’t go without. So if you’re looking to slash your bills, get online!

Take a look at nifty comparison website mySupermarket, which compares how much a basket of goods would cost at four of the major supermarkets – Tesco, ASDA, Sainsbury’s and Waitrose/Ocado. This makes it really easy to see where your basket of food comes out cheapest!

What’s more, the website will also tell you when you can ‘swap and save’ by substituting certain products with cheaper alternatives.

If you are doing your grocery shop online, you’ll also be able to take advantage of voucher codes. This is particularly useful because you’ll be charged a delivery fee of around £3 to £5 if you’ve ordered your shopping online. So using a voucher code can offset this fee. Good websites to check out include HotUKDeals, vouchercodes.co.uk and myvouchercodes.co.uk, and you can also keep an eye out for our weekly Frugal Food blog for the latest deals.

Of course, voucher codes don’t have to be restricted to your grocery shop - you can use them whenever you shop online for anything from clothes to DVDs to furniture! So shopping online really can make the savings stack up!

* Average household bill based on a medium user customer using 3,300 kWh of electricity and 20,500 kWh of gas, on a Dual Fuel plan, paying quarterly by cash or cheque with bill sizes averaged across all regions and the big six suppliers. Bill size September, 2010 was £1,194. Online plan is based on the above user profile, but on an online plan paying by monthly direct debit.

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