The ongoing cost-of-living crisis has many Australians feeling like they are spending more than ever — and getting far less in return. For Amanda Dean, it led her to make radical changes to increase her household income by $20,000 a year.
With her two children, aged 10 and 12, the Melbourne mum had a sudden realisation that as her family gets older, they were “going to use a lot more money” than previous years.
Amanda, a law clerk, decided to become really intentional about boosting her cash flow with a few quick and easy changes.
She claims the decision brought $20,000 in cash into her life in 2025 using tactics any family can copy.
She started beating the supermarkets at their own game by making the most of loyalty schemes, using cashback apps when making online purchases and selling unused items around the house.
Making these small tweaks, she said, had extra cash pouring into the family’s bank accounts day by day.
“Knowing that my kids are getting older, there are all these bills coming up,” she told Yahoo News. High school, braces and a big overseas holiday are just a few of the family’s plans.
“Knowing so much money was going to go out, I like to set myself goals to see what I can actually achieve that year in terms of hustling.”
While she admits figuring out how best to get more bang for her buck took a “little while”, it quickly became “second nature”.
Amanda takes her kids to markets so they can sell their unwanted toys. Source: Supplied
Mum’s incredible supermarket hacks to save money
Getting the most bang for your buck at the supermarkets is one of Amanda’s top suggestions for saving money.
Checkout hack for ‘free’ items
Amanda keeps an eagle eye on items as they scan through the checkout.
“If something scans incorrectly, it’s going to be free,” she said, referring to Australian supermarkets’ scanning code of practice. If an item scans higher than the shelf price, the first item is generally free.
Woolworths ‘fresh or free’ policy
Woolworths also has a “fresh or free” policy whereby if customers are unsatisfied with the quality of fresh produce, including produce, meat, deli, bakery and seafood, within 48 hours, the supermarket will refund and replace the item.
Grocery shopping through cashback apps
Amanda says if she is doing her grocery shop online, “it doesn’t take much” to input the supermarket into a cashback app like Top Cashback.
Cashback apps work by making money through affiliate marketing commissions, which pass on a portion to the user, up to about 10 per cent of the spend.
“You can shop on Amazon, Woolworths and Coles,” she said, adding that booking hotels for holidays is another great way to use cashback apps.
Loyalty at the supermarket can be costly, Amanda warns. Source: Getty
Capitalising on loyalty programs
Amanda says the more loyal you are to one particular supermarket brand, the fewer offers and discounts a shopper will receive.
In 2025, Amanda says she accrued $1,000 worth of FlyBuys points, and another $1,000 in Everyday Rewards points by “shopping strategically”.
“If you’re loyal to one, they don’t offer you as many bonuses,” she said.
Amanda argues that shoppers should keep shopping at the same supermarket until a promotion ends, and then switch to the other major retailer.
Shopping in the evening for markdowns
Amanda also waits to shop in-store until later in the day to capitalise on markdowns.
“I shop in the evening to get markdowns and stick them in my freezer so we don’t have to pay full price on meat or anything we want,” she said.
The mum said she recently grabbed $79 worth of items for under $19.
“Just check the markdown sticker, and it will tell you when it was printed, which gives you a time when your local store usually discounts items,” she said.
Check social media for crowd-sourced discounts
Another handy trick Amanda follows is checking social media groups before heading to the shops.
“There are bargain pages and debt-free pages that post tips and share the hauls. They say what time it was and where to give others ideas on how to get the same deal,” she said.
Selling unwanted items around the house
Last year, Amanada sold $8,000 worth of unwanted household items on Facebook Marketplace and eBay.
“If we don’t need it anymore, it gets listed,” she said.
Last week, Amanda said she sold a guitar used by her son for just $10 less than what she paid for it five years ago.
Her advice for selling items for top dollar is to keep them in good condition, give them a quick clean, and take photos.
“Running a lint brush over an item of clothing can increase the price significantly,” she suggested.
She also takes her kids to local market stalls so they can learn to be savvy, too.
“I take my kids so they can learn and take their toys to sell, so they can buy more suitable toys,” she said.
Ask questions people are ‘afraid to ask’
“Everything you save is more money in your pocket,” she said.
Sometimes, she says, it comes down to asking questions “a lot of people are afraid to ask”, such as simply asking for a pay rise.
“People have worked at their jobs for years but have never asked that question,” she said, adding it worked for her.
Other simple requests include calling up energy providers, private health insurance and banks to ask for better rates.
“Often they will give it to you, and that extra money can be put towards whatever is needed,” she said.
This year, Amanda has set herself the goal of saving another $20,000.
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