Great family memories rarely come from the most expensive options. Cutting cable for a digital antenna or streaming service, finding free entertainment through library programs and local parks, and planning holiday shopping months in advance all save real money without sacrificing fun. Small touches like dressing up an ordinary dinner with real plates and candlelight, or stocking up on discounted holiday candy and decor, stretch a tight budget further than most people realize and create memories that last.
This article updated June, 2026, with new tips and creative ways to save money.
It’s a myth that in order to have fun, you must spend money — no matter what your kids tell you! Over the years, we’ve spent a fortune at Disneyland, complete with several years of annual passes, and guess what? Some of our very, very best memories aren’t from Disneyland but from our primitive, family camping trips. My kids talk about kayaking in northern Idaho and the time we almost starved to death at Crater Lake (long story), but now that I think of it, they rarely mention Disneyland.
Hmmm…think of all the money we could have saved.
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But entertainment isn’t just about Disneyland vs. camping trips, it’s also the everyday things we do, such as watch TV, go to movies, and celebrate holidays. Here are some of my own tips for managing these things on a tight budget.
- Get rid of cable TV. Put a digital antenna up and you’ll be amazed by how many channels it picks up. Our house is heavily shaded by trees, but we put our antenna in the attic, and believe it or not, it works just fine. You can add a booster if you have reception problems. Read more ways to cut household expenses here.
- Completely give up TV! I know that’s a completely radical idea, but I grew up without a TV in the house and turned out just fine. Expect a time of mourning and complaints of boredom, and that will probably be from your spouse!, but give it a couple of weeks, and gradually, that empty time will be filled with other activities, learning new hobbies, and maybe even more book-reading!
- A few solid alternatives to cable if you still want live TV channels: a streaming device like a current-generation Amazon Fire Stick or Roku, paired with a service like YouTube TV, Hulu + Live TV, or Fubo. All of them run cheaper than traditional cable, though prices have crept up over the years, so compare current plans before committing to one.
- For sports fans who simply cannot give up their cable channels, a streaming option like Sling TV or YouTube TV can still save you money over traditional cable. Sling gets you ESPN and a solid lineup of other channels for around $46/month. Not super-frugal but still cheaper than most cable packages. I’ve found it easy to use with only occasional, brief streaming snags. Whatever service you choose, compare current plans and pricing before committing, since this space changes fast and today’s best deal may not be next year’s.
- If you don’t have cable or any other TV device, for the really big games and tournaments, head to a sports bar. Limit yourself to 1 beer and enjoy the happy hour food prices. Altogether, you’ll likely end up spending in one, fun-filled evening less than what a month of cable would cost.
- For the ultimate in cheap video entertainment, rent DVDs from the library.
- Stop buying DVDs of movies and TV shows. All too often, those are watched once and then only occasionally after that. It just doesn’t make sense to buy when far more cheaper options are available. Check thrift stores for DVDs if you really must have “hard copies” of your favorite shows.
- Ready for one more option for cheap TV viewing? Use the Chromecast app on your smartphone to watch anything on the internet.
- Make a list of cheap places to go for entertainment and outings: library, parks, free days at the zoo and museums, etc. It’s a myth that you have to spend a lot of money in order to have fun.
- At-home date nights don’t have to cost anything at all when you keep your focus on why you want a date night in the first place — to spend some quiet time connecting with your sweetheart. Send the kids to grandma’s house or a neighbor’s for a play date and enjoy the peace and quiet however you like.
- Another seriously cheap date is “going for a drive”. When I was a kid, this was something people did — they got in their cars and went on scenic drives together. For date purposes, this gets you away from the house and kids, the car is a quiet place for conversation, listening to music, singing along, and being together. The only expense? A few gallons of gas.
- Library apps like Libby and Hoopla let you borrow ebooks, audiobooks, movies, and even stream some TV completely free with just a library card. If you subscribe to Audible, check this out as a fantastic and free alternative.
- Rotate streaming subscriptions rather than keeping them all running simultaneously. I just learned about this a week ago from a very clever and super-frugal woman. Subscribe to one service for a month, binge what you want, cancel, switch to the next one.
- Create a gift list in a notebook or on your phone and do your shopping for birthdays, weddings, an holidays far in advance. There’s nothing quite like having all your holiday shopping finished before the days turn cold and then being able to fully enjoy the beauty of the holidays without that feeling of panic as you scramble for last minute gifts. I really like this app for both iPhones and Android. Even though it’s labeled “Christmas List”, I use it year round to track all type of gifts.
- Celebrate holidays a day or two after the official dates and buy treats, paper goods, etc. highly discounted.
- I like to buy red and green M&Ms or Hershey Kisses after Christmas, and then use the red candies, plates, and napkins on Valentine’s Day and the green ones with our traditional St. Patrick’s Day meal. Do the same thing with Valentine’s Day and Easter candy — pink/blue are perfect for baby showers, yellow/green are nice to set out for Mother’s Day or a ladies afternoon tea party.
- Discounted chocolate candy can last a lot longer than you think if you vacuum seal it in canning jars. Here are instructions for doing that.
- Buy one gift card each month and stash them away for the holidays. At that time, pull them out and you have 12 gifts to give, OR use the cards to do your gift shopping!
- Many cities and library systems now offer free museum and attraction passes through library card programs (often called something like “Discover & Go” or similar). Patrons reserve free tickets to local museums, zoos, and attractions through their library website. AllTrails and similar apps for finding free local hiking and outdoor activities.
- Buy-nothing groups and local Facebook Marketplace/swap groups for gifts have become a real, mainstream practice. I’ve seen TVs, board games, books, Halloween costumes, and lots more given away for free in our own local Freebies Facebook group. Search Facebook for the name of your town, subdivision, or general area along with terms like “give freely”.
- Cashback browser extensions (Rakuten, Capital One Shopping) that automatically apply to holiday shopping can make shopping for gifts extremely frugal.
Related Reading With More Frugal Tips
- 18 Frugal Living Tips to Enjoy a Freedom-Filled Life
- 31 Frugal Food Tips to Save Money on Groceries and Eating Out
- Extreme Frugality: When the Money Situation is Dire
We haven’t had cable in several years, and we really don’t miss it a bit. The kids watch a few current shows online, and we buy cheap DVD’s when we can find them (but only if they’re shows or movies that we’ll watch repeatedly). My biggest budget saver, though, is by starting my Christmas shopping no later than March. I try to keep money on hand at all times so that I can take advantage of sales, and I’m also fortunate enough to come from a family that likes used books. This wouldn’t work for small children whose interests change rapidly from one month to the next, but it’s a lifesaver for a family of adults. It also has the added benefit of providing gifts for forgotten occasions or last-minute invitations.
One thing the kids enjoyed when money was extremely tight was when we’d dress up the dinner table for no reason. We’d use the best dishes, spread a matching tablecloth, light some candles or pick a bouquet of wildflowers, and drink our milk or Kool-Aid out of wineglasses. It made hot dogs and macaroni & cheese taste so much better, and we spent more time relaxing and conversing with each other.
Your dressing up for dinner reminded me of the candlelight dinners we had with our kids when they were younger. They loved it!
I gave up cable about 20 years ago. Since I live in a smaller town, I don’t get any TV from the “local” stations in the area, even though I’m not that far from a large metro area.
I am perhaps the oddity rather than the norm, but I have about 600 movies on DVD. I have about 200 TV series on DVD and I watch them all the time! It is my only entertainment other than reading books, and I have a pretty extensive library of those as well. Cookbooks, fiction, learning how to…books, Educational, medical, health, survival, a LOT.
I have discovered that some of the movies I bought, I don’t watch as much as I thought or I find that I have “outgrown” the topic, so I sell those or donate to Thrift stores. But others I watch all the time. Sometimes I watch a specific genre, or a selection of similar topics: like right now, I’m watching all the female “kick-butt” movies: Atomic Blond, Peppermint, The Net, Lucy, etc.
I try to buy when on sale, and nothing over about $15. Some years I don’t buy any, other years, I find an older actor I want to watch more of their movies and buy several in one year.
This really is my only entertainment, and I don’t feel bad about spending money for this.
My TV is not hooked up to ANYTHING except the dvd player. I don’t WANT it hooked up to anything but the dvd player. I have a desktop computer, not a laptop and don’t like even watching videos from YouTube on it, it isn’t that comfortable to sit at it. I much prefer to sit in the comfort of my recliner with maybe a sugar free, probiotic soda in hand and relax.
When my mom was still alive after dad passed, we used to take short drives, along with a picnic lunch and had a good time.
As a child, mom, dad, and often my mom’s parents would go to the beach and spend the day. It was only about an hour away. We also camped a lot and dad would fish. Sometimes we would camp over 3 day weekends. Those were good times but it is so different now. All the motorhomes and large trailers…and FULL campgrounds which often you can’t get reservations at. Too many people.
I, too, would begin shopping early and often had everything gift-wise by October.
Gifts to both of my daughters (the only ones left) are quite often homemade, but this year, I’m buying some replacement items my daughter lost in the January 2025 Palisades fire.
Those are all great ideas!