When it comes to cutting costs, consumers always look at the big stuff. Postponing that vacation. Keeping your car a few more years. Nixing the addition on the house. But it's often the little things that can make an even bigger difference. For instance, Joseph Montanaro, a certified financial planner for USAA Financial Planning Services, says he saved $130 a month just by kicking his daily Dr Pepper habit. That's a savings of $1,560 over a year.

We calculated the savings you might see from making various adjustments over a period of one year, from carpooling to work, to drinking a cheaper cup of coffee, to taking a quicker shower. If you do all the things we suggest here, you could save at least $5,000 over a year's time. That's real money.

So, what lifestyle change can save you the most cash? Read on.

How much can you save over one year if you . . .

1. Cut your daily shower to 10 minutes from 15 minutes?

$102. A 10-minute shower uses about 25 gallon of water (that's assuming the showerhead emits 2.5 gallons of water a minute). That means a total water and energy cost of 57 cents a day, or about $208 a year, according to Seattle City Light's Conservation Resources Division. By contrast, a 15-minute shower consumes 37.5 gallons of water with a total energy and water cost of 85 cents. Over a year, that 15-minute shower costs you slightly more than $310. So get out of the shower faster to save some money.

2. Reduce your home's water heater setting to 120 degrees from 140 degrees?

$125. That's if you use an electric water heater. The annual savings would be somewhat less -- $75 -- if you have a gas water heater, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's EnergyStar program.

3. Brew your own cup of coffee instead of picking up a latte at Starbucks?

$912. A tall latte at the local Starbucks will run you about $3 a cup, or $1,095 a year, if you go there every day. If you brew your own at home for 50 cents or less per cup, you'll pay nearly $183.

4. Prepare your own lunch rather than buying out?

$1,460 to $3,650. If you make lunch from last night's leftovers, you can avoid spending an extra $4 to $10 a day, says Dwight Raiford, a senior financial planner with MetLife.

5. Hit the water cooler at work instead of buying bottled water?

$260 to $390. If you can avoid paying for the bottled stuff (at $1 to $1.50 a bottle), you can save at least $5 to $7.50 for each five-day work week. Yet one more reason to gossip around the water cooler.

6. Carpool or work from home one day a week instead of driving into the office each day?

$423. Let's assume a gas price of about $4.07 a gallon (We know. It's much higher in a lot of places and it's not going to stay at $4.07 a gallon.) Let's also figure on a daily round-trip commute of 30 miles and that a full-size car or SUV can get about 15 city miles to the gallon. An employee who logs on from home or catches a ride with a co-worker a minimum of once a week can avoid spending at least $8.14 at the pump a week.

7. Cut your lawn yourself instead of hiring a lawn service?

$1,040 to $4,680. You can trim costs substantially by cutting your lawn yourself. Lawn services generally charge $20 to $40 for a weekly cutting for an average lawn, and as much as $90 if you throw in leaf blowing and hedging, etc. But you'll have to subtract what it costs to fuel your mower. Obviously, you'll have to use a manual mower to get the most savings.

8. Polish your nails at home instead of getting a weekly manicure?

$520 to $1,040. Skip the salon and buff your nails yourself, and you'll pocket $10 to $20 a week.

9. Order a film from a movie-rental service instead of going to the nearest multiplex?

$36. This assumes that a movie ticket is about $7 these days (yes, such places exist. It can be more like $10 or up in many places). It also assumes that you go to the movies once a month, and that DVD services like Netflix.com, Blockbuster.com and Intelliflix.com offer plans for as low as $3.99 a month. More benefits: The flat monthly DVD service fee often includes more than one rental a month, and the popcorn you pop may be cheaper and healthier than the stuff at the local theater. And we won't even begin to discuss the cost of a baby-sitter.

10. Use compact fluorescent bulbs in your lamps and light fixtures instead of the old incandescent type?

$120. If you replace just one incandescent light bulb with a compact fluorescent one, you'll save $6 in electricity costs over a year, according to the EnergyStar program. If you've got 20 bulbs in your house, those savings will start to look even brighter.

一讲到省钱，消费者总是先从大件入手。推迟休假、旧车再用上几年、不再为房子添置新东西。其实，往往是小消费带来的影响更大。比如说，USAA Financial Planning Services注册金融规划师约瑟夫(Joseph Montanaro)表示，他改掉了每天都要喝Dr Pepper的习惯，结果每个月可以省下130美元，一年下来，可就是1,560美元呢。

我们的计算是基于在一年的时间内，你通过调整各种生活习惯所能节约的资金，从拼车上班、自制咖啡，到缩短淋浴时间等等。如果你按照我们在这里的建议去做，一年之内就可以至少省下5,000美元。这可是实实在在的钱。

那么，怎样改变生活方式才能为你带来最大的省钱效应呢？不妨往下看。

通过以下改变一年之内可以省下多少钱？

1. 将每天的淋浴时间从15分钟缩短到10分钟

102美元。通常，10分钟的淋浴需要消耗大约25加仑的水（假设淋浴喷头每分钟喷射2.5加仑的水）。根据Seattle City Light资源节约部门的数字，这意味着，每天的水电成本为57美分，一年就是208美元。相比之下，15分钟的淋浴需要消耗大约37.5加仑的水，水电成本为85美分，一年就是310美元以上。因此，洗得快点，就能省钱。

2. 将家用热水器的设置从华氏140度调整到120度

125美元（假设你使用电热水器）。根据美国国家环保局(U.S. Environmental Protection Agency) EnergyStar计算的数字，如果你使用的是燃气热水器，一年可以省下75美元。

3. 自己煮咖啡，不再去星巴克(Starbucks)买拿铁

912美元。星巴克大杯拿铁的价格为3美元左右，假设你每天都买的话，一年下来就是1,095美元。如果你自己在家煮咖啡，每杯咖啡的成本最多50美分，一年下来你只需支付183美元。

4. 自带午餐，而不是在外就餐

1,460-3,650美元。大都会保险公司(MetLife)高级金融规划师德怀特(Dwight Raiford)表示，如果你用前天剩下的晚餐制作午餐的话，每天可以省下4-10美元。

5. 工作时使用饮水机，而不是购买瓶装水

260-390美元。如果你不去购买瓶装水（每瓶大约1-1.50美元），按照每周工作5天计算，一周至少可以省下5-7.50美元。而且，还有另外一个好处，使用饮水机，你还可以和同事闲聊。

6. 每周至少有一天拼车而不是自己开车上班

423美元。假设汽油的价格是每加仑4.07美元左右（我们知道很多地方的油价比这要高出很多，而且油价不会一直保持这个水平）。我们还假设每天往返30英里，一辆标准尺寸的汽车或者SUV每15英里耗油1加仑。如果你从家里或者途中搭同事的汽车上班，每周一次，一周你就可以省下8.14美元的油钱。

7. 自己修剪草坪，不再雇人做

1,040-4,680美元。如果你选择自己修剪草坪的话，可以大大节约成本。一般来说，除草服务公司每周修剪一次面积一般的草坪，收费在20-40美元，收拾树叶要90美元。如果你需要的话，费用可能高达90美元。不过，你需要见到除草机的燃油成本。很明显，你得使用人工除草机才能获得最大的省钱效应。

8. 自己在家修指甲，而不是每周在外享受一次修甲服务

520-1,040美元。不去美容院而是自己在家修指甲，每周可以省下10-20美元。

9. 租DVD看，不再光顾电影院

36美元（假设票价为7美元。当然，更普遍的情况是很多地方的票价是10美元甚至更贵）。我们还假设你每个月只看一次电影，Netflix.com、Blockbuster.com和Intelliflix.com等提供的DVD服务的月租金最低为3.99美元。租电影看还有更多的好处：DVD服务的月租金常常包括每个月可多次租赁；你自己在家制作的爆米花可能比当地电影院提供的更便宜、更健康。此外，也不用讨论临时请保姆照看小孩的成本了。

10. 使用荧光灯泡，抛弃老式的白炽灯泡

120美元。根据EnergyStar的计划，你只需将家里的一只白炽灯泡换成荧光灯泡，一年下来就可以省下6美元的电费。如果你家里有20只灯泡的话，省下的钱就更可观了。

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