49 Zero-Waste Ways to Save Thousands of Dollars

People often ask me if zero-waste living costs more. I always say it’s a package deal. Overall, I spend much less money than I did pre-zero waste.

For example, reusables cost more up front but pay for themselves several times over in the long run. Some food costs more, like organic produce at the farmers’ market versus non-organic produce at a discount grocery store. But because of my family’s heightened awareness, we no longer waste food. We also don’t buy snack food and we eat a plant-rich diet which costs much less money than a meat-centered one.

Like I said, package deal.

If you’re not convinced, I present below 49 of the many ways in which a zero-waste lifestyle can save you piles of cash.

1. Food waste

• Food that the average American family of four throws out every year: $1500
• Cost of food you waste if you don’t waste food: $0

2. Vegetable broth

• One unrecyclable TetraPak of vegetable broth: $3.79
• Scrap vegetable broth: $0

3. Scrap vinegar

• One bottle of Bragg’s Apple Cider Vinegar: $14.99
• Scrap vinegar: $0

4. Protein

• A pound of organic, grass-fed, pastured beef: $9.99
• A pound or organic chickpeas: $2.29

5. Popcorn

• Store-bought containing several ingredients and packaged in a plastic bag: $3.49
• Bulk kernels popped in oil in a pot on the stove: $0.40

6. Cereal

• One bowl of highly processed cereal: $1
• One bowl of steel cut oatmeal, bought in bulk: $0.25

7. Lemons

• From the grocery store: $1 each
• From my tree: $0

8. A pound of blackberries

• From the grocery store: $8.00
• Foraged or found through Falling Fruit: $0

9. Produce wash

• Commercial produce wash that does nothing: $3.48
• Homemade version that removes some pesticides: $0.05

10. Small jar of fermented kimchi

• Store-bought: $10
• Homemade: $2

11. Food packaging

• With packaging: no discount
• Without packaging: 5 cent discount in some stores for each bag or jar filled

12. Kombucha

• Store-bought: $4 per bottle
• Homemade: $0.25 per bottle

13. Kombucha starter kit

• Store-bought: $79.95
• Growing your own SCOBY: $4 for a bottle of kombucha to grow the SCOBY
• Finding a free SCOBY on Craigslist: $0

14. Water

• Jug of water: $2.29
• Tap water: virtually $0

15. A cup of tea

• In a plastic-lined paper to-go cup with a plastic lid at my favorite café: $4.60
• In my own cup at my favorite café: $3.60
• In my own cup in my own kitchen: $0.25

16. Cast iron pans

• New in store: $30
• Vintage Griswold at estate sale: $2

17. Jars

• Set of six fancy new jars in store: $34.95
• Basic jars from restaurants or bars or recycling bins: $0

18. Gadgets to keep your avocado fresh

• Landfill-in-transition plastic Avo Saver: $10.55
• Glass jar containing half an onion chopped up that you’ll need anyway when you make guacamole with the avocado: $0

19. Salad spinner

• Big commercial plastic thing: $29.95
• Cloth bag filled with greens that you spin over your head outside: $0

20. Systems to warn you when your food is about to expire

• A smart fridge: $5,800
• Your brain and your senses: $0

21. Dinner with friends (8 people)

• At a restaurant: $200
• At home: $100 plus leftovers to enjoy later

22. Goodie bags

• A bag filled with self-destructing toys and cheap candy wrapped in plastic: $5
• Saying thank you for coming as you walk your guests out: $0

23. Lunch at work

• To-go from a restaurant: $12
• Leftovers from your dinner party: $3

24. Sandwich wrapping

• Single-use plastic sandwich bags: $5.22
• Furoshiki wrap using a napkin (see below): $0

25. Napkins

• Single-use paper napkins: $9.95
• Cloth napkins sewn out of scrap fabric: $0

26. Paper towels

• Eight rolls of paper towels: $14.97
• Unpaper towels made from an old flannel bedsheet: $0

27. Menstrual pads

• Single-use disposable: $9.99
• Homemade reusable cloth pads sewn out of scrap fabric: $0

28. Makeup remover pads

• Single-use disposable: $5.39
• Homemade sewn out of fabric scraps: $0

29. Tissues

• Single-use disposable: $1.89
• Handkerchiefs made out of fabric scraps: $0

30. Baby wipes

• Single-use disposable: $13.49
• Washcloths you already own: $0

31. Drying hair

• Cheap blow dryer: $19.99 plus electricity
• Air drying: $0

32. Hair color

• Professional dye job: $120
• Box of dye: $18.99
• Au natural: $0

33. Deodorant

• Store-bought chemical-laden crud in hard plastic: $6.99
• Homemade: $0.50

34. Mouthwash

• Commercial brand containing nasty ingredients and packaged in a plastic bottle: $6.59
• Homemade: $0.25

35. Personal lubricant

• Store-bought featuring clever marketing: $28
• Aloe vera plant grown from a cutting from a friend’s plant: $0

36. Jewelry

• 2.12 carat Tiffany setting platinum engagement ring: $137,500
• Grandmother’s wedding band: $0

37. Clothing

• New pants: $60
• Secondhand pants: $4.49

38. Dealing with worn clothing

• A replacement pair of pants when the above show some wear: $60
• Mending the above or embellishing with embroidery and whatnot: $0

39. Shopping for stuff you don’t need

• At the mall: $400
• At a clothing swap where you also find stuff you might not need but you’re keeping things out of landfill: $0

40. Home cleaning

• A gazillion different cleaners: $30
• Baking soda and vinegar: $5

41. Laundry products

• Dryer sheets: $9.99
• Phthalate-infused fabric softener: $9.99
• Forgoing this junk: $0

42. Drying laundry

• Running dryer for an hour: $0.35 to $0.70
• Wear and tear on clothes caused by dryer: $$$
• Hanging laundry to dry: $0

43. Transportation

• Driving car all over the place: $$$
• Riding bike all over the place: $0

44. Vacation for family of four

• Flying halfway around the world and staying in a mediocre hotel: $5,000
• Camping in the woods for a week near you: $500

45. Ice for camping trip

• Plastic bag filled with ice: $3.18
• Giant blocks of ice you freeze in stainless steel bowls in your freezer: $0

46. Sporting gear

• Expensive gear you use only occasionally: $$$
• Gear you rent occasionally: $

47. Yoga

• At a studio: $20 per class
• In the living room: $0

48. Watching a movie

• At the theatre with popcorn and soda in throwaway containers: $30 if you go alone and buy the small snacks
• Streaming something actually good because all the good ones cost extra: $4
• Borrowing DVDs from the library: $0

49. Lawn care

• A rider lawnmower: $2,099
• Two neutered male goats: $200
• Ground cover: $0