30 Smart Ways to Save Money on Clothes (and Look Stylish & Fashionable!)

Fortunately, there are plenty of tips and tricks you can use to make shopping for apparel a whole lot cheaper.

In today’s post, I’m going to give you a complete guide on how to save money on clothes and accessories (even a few ways to get free clothes or at least as close as you can get to it!)

I’ll cover ways to:

• Save money when you’re shopping
• Buy clothes when you have little money
• Get the most out of your clothes so you don’t have to buy them as often.

Give these tips a try and you’ll be able to have a stylish, practical closet that doesn’t cost you a fortune.

How to Save Money When Shopping for Clothes

You want to go clothes shopping, but you don’t want to spend a lot of money.

تو, what can you do?

In this section, I’m going to give you tried and tested tips that’ll save you money next time you go shopping for clothing.

1. Buy stuff that suits your style

My number one tip is to only buy stuff that suits your style.

That means that before you even set foot in a store or browse a clothing website, you should define your style.

I know what works for me and what colors I like to wear.

At 5’8, overly fussy clothes, with bows and frills or anything overly patterned just don’t suit me as I’m on the taller side.

I like to stick with a fairly neutral pallet of black, grey, and white, and then throw in a couple of colors that I know suit me, which are usually variants of red, and burgundy.

And that’s it. When buying clothes, I don’t tend to stray from those colors.

تو, it’s really important to know what suits you and what you like to wear.

Now, I’m going to tell you why defining your style and sticking with pieces that suit it will save you a lot of money.

A couple of times, I’ve been browsing online, and I’ve seen a piece of clothing, but it’s not my style.

مثال کے طور پر, I saw a pastel pink dress, with a flap on the front that wrapped around. I thought, well that’s not really my style, but let’s try something different. I bought it, it didn’t suit me, and it was a total waste of money, and I had to pay to return it.

I’ve found that any time I see a piece of clothing that isn’t my usual style, but I buy it anyway thinking maybe it’ll suit me and it’ll be nice to try something different, it doesn’t pan out.

I know what suits me, I know what colors and cuts I like, so I should just stick to them.

Doing so means that I don’t waste money.

Define your style, be confident and comfortable with it, and stick with it.

Doing this also helps you to create a wardrobe on the cheap, bringing me to my next point…

2. Think about what your wardrobe needs, rather than what you want

One of the things I’ve discovered over the years is that you should buy what your wardrobe needs, rather than what you want.

To find out what your wardrobe needs, ask yourself what you struggle to find each time you get dressed.

You might find that you have loads of jeans to choose from, but struggle to find many t-shirts or tank tops to pair with them.

In that case, you need to stock up on tank tops.

I’d write a list of the clothes you have. This will help you to see where your wardrobe is lacking and find those categories where you don’t need to add any more.

Next time you go shopping, you’ll be able to purchase those pieces you actually need and won’t waste money adding another pair of jeans to the ten pairs you already have at home!

3. Shop the clearance section online and offline

When I come to buy something, I always look at the clearance section of a website first. The same goes when I’m shopping in-store.

I do most of my clothes shopping online. Having a quick scan of the sale or clearance section first has saved me a lot of cash. If I know I’m looking to buy a sweater, for example, I’ll see if there’s one I like in the sale section first before I browse the rest of the site.

You won’t always find the item you want, but often you will. I’ve gotten sweaters, t-shirts, and dresses for more than half price. In fact, I once got a dress that was supposed to be $300 for just $50!

While you can check clearance aisles in-store, I find that retailers have a much wider selection of sale items online.

4. But remember that cheap isn’t free

Okay, so remember I said to only buy what your closet needs, rather than what you want?

Well, keep that tip in mind when shopping the sale section. Sure, you can save a lot of money as I explained above. لیکن, if you buy something just because it’s on sale that you weren’t planning to buy, then you’ve wasted money!

If you buy a $100 dress for $50, when you don’t need a dress, you haven’t really saved $50. You’ve spent $50 that you didn’t need to!

تو, don’t buy something just because it’s on sale.

5. Avoid trends

Trends come and go fast. With new designs from the fashion houses and designers who inspire clothes you see in stores like H&M and Forever 21, coming out every autumn/winter and spring/summer, trying to keep up with trends is a quick way to burn through your budget.

Don’t buy items just because they’re currently in style. Like I said at the start of the article, define your style and stick to clothes that suit you.

You’ll find that if you buy something that looks trendy now, it’ll look dated by the end of the year. It won’t get much wear, and that’s a waste of money. When you avoid trends, you can develop a timeless style.

And you won’t have to part with cash each time a new season rolls around.

6. Buy inexpensive basics

I like a good spaghetti strap tank top because you can pair them with everything when it’s hot during the summer, and wear them as an extra layer under a sweater to stay warm in the winter.

Would I pay a ton for one though? Nope. I like to buy plain tank tops from lower-cost stores, like H&M, Target, and Old Navy.

Your basics don’t need to have a designer label or be from a well-known brand. They’re basics!

When it comes down to it, a tank top is a tank top, and a pair of leggings is a pair of leggings.

I’d highly recommend that you buy basics from generic brands.

تو, stuff like:

• Sweat pants
• Pajamas
• Leggings
• Tank tops

Doing this will save you a lot of money. Plus, these basic items tend to be versatile. تو, they pair well with a lot of your other clothing items and you’ll get a lot of wear out of them.

7. Skip the expensive workout gear

Workout gear is one area where people waste a lot of cash. Brands like Nike and Adidas are so expensive, and really, you’re paying for the name.

You can pay just $15 for a hoodie from Old Navy and you’d pay about $50 for one from a well-known brand like Adidas.

The thing is you don’t need branded workout gear. A hoodie is a hoodie. A pair of track pants is a pair of track pants.

You’ll get the same workout, regardless of whether you’re wearing a fancy outfit from a well-known brand or an old t-shirt and sweatpants.

تو, pass on brands like Nike and Adidas and buy your workout gear at cheaper places, like Target, Walmart, and Kohl’s.

8. Shop at discount stores like TJ MAXX

Discount stores can be a treasure trove of quality clothes.

I’ve found lots of great pieces at low prices at TJ Maxx, Ross, and Marshalls.

My grandmother is notoriously fussy when it comes to clothes, and I bought her a sweater for Christmas from TJ Maxx, and she loved it!

I’d recommend you take your time searching through racks, as there is a lot of stuff in these stores that are not that great.

But you can find some diamonds in the rough if you take the time to search through a bit.

9. Women should consider buying from the men’s section

Sadly, men’s clothes are still often cheaper than women’s. That’s why I sometimes check out the men’s section. I’ve bought pajamas from the men’s section before, and they were way cheaper!

Things like pajamas, t-shirts, and hoodies are pretty universal, so don’t be afraid to check the racks in the men’s section first.

If you’re petite, consider looking at the kid’s section! My sister who is only about 5’2 often looks in the kids/teenager section and gets some great finds at low prices.

10. Install Wikibuy and automatically get the best prices, coupons and more

You should definitely install Wikibuy if you’re shopping for clothes online.

It’s a browser extension.

Install it, and it’ll find you great deals for online retailers. It will automatically compare prices when you’re shopping on Amazon with other retailers, like Walmart and Target.

تو, you can make sure that you get the best deal.

That’s not all though.

The extension will also find coupons for you, with the click of the “try codes” button. It will test out coupons to find one that actually works.

Now, this is so useful when you’re buying clothes online.

You know how annoying it is to try coupon after coupon before you get one that actually works!

Coupon codes are updated in real-time, based on which ones save other customers the most money.

Another great aspect of Wikibuy is that you can earn credits when you buy stuff on sites like Walmart and eBay. You can exchange these credits for gift cards!

I did a full review of Wikibuy, which you can read here.

11. Shop at thrift stores

Okay, so if you don’t mind wearing secondhand clothes, you might want to visit your local thrift store.

Lots of people I know get their clothes from thrift stores, and they’re in pretty good condition. My sister, for example, picked up a flannel shirt for just $5!

Now, thrift stores do have a lot of junk, but if you have a good dig through, you’ll likely find a great piece for your closet.

Obviously, some stores that sell used clothing are focused on vintage clothing, which is more expensive. Stick with your regular thrift store for some great deals.

12. Buy clothes when they’re out of season

One of the things that have saved me the most money on clothes is buying them when they’re out of season.

Here’s what I mean by that:

A swimsuit is going to be much cheaper to buy in the winter than it is in the summer.

And a sweater is going to be much cheaper to buy in the summer than in is in the winter.

That’s because these clothes aren’t necessarily in demand all year round.

تو, stock up on sweaters in July and get your swimsuit in December.

It sounds funny, but it works. I once got a dress worth $100 for just $50 because I bought it in November when it wasn’t really the season for dresses.

I find that lots of stores put items on sale when they’re off-season.

تو, consider what your closet needs and buy those items in the off-season. Not only will you save money, but you’ll also be prepared for the next season!

13. Check washing and care instructions before you buy

I hate clothes that need to be dry cleaned. I never buy them because it’s not just the initial cost of actually buying the item of clothing that you have to consider. You also have to pay every time you want to get the thing cleaned, and you have the hassle of getting to the dry cleaners.

Why bother?

Instead, go for something you can wash yourself at home.

This saves you so much money.

Read the label before you buy an item of clothing.

Doing this will tell you whether it’s something you’ll keep paying for because it’s dry clean only or whether you can wash it at home, saving you a lot of money.

14. Use coupon sites

If you wanna spend less on what you wear, this is a no brainer. Coupon websites are awesome because they offer great deals on tons of different clothing stores and retailers who sell clothes.

You’ll find coupons for places like:

• Walmart
• Target
• Macy’s
• Old Navy
• Forever 21
• H&M
• ASOS

Some of these deals offer great discounts.

Here are some awesome coupon sites:

15. Shop with a discount gift card!

Imagine getting free money to spend on clothes?

Well, with discount gift cards you can!

Gift card resale sites sell gift cards for a lower price than what they’re worth.

This means you can pay just $20 for a $30 gift card.

How great is that?

You have $30 to spend on clothes even though you only paid $20 for the gift card!

Discounts do vary, but you can find some pretty awesome deals for lots of different retailers.

Here are some great sites for buying discounted gift cards:

16. Buy clothes that fit you now

Always buy what fits you now. Some people are looking to lose weight, so they buy stuff that will fit after their planned weight loss. But buying stuff that doesn’t fit you now often results in an item sitting unused in your closet.

Plus, you might find that when you exercise, you put on muscle. So sometimes even when you lose a little fat, you may gain some muscle. تو, your body composition might change, but you’ll wear the same size.

It’s better to wear clothes that are comfortable for you now, rather than thinking about items you might need in the future.

If do you happen to lose weight in the future, you can then buy clothes that fit your new shape.

Buy the right size for you now, and you won’t waste money on stuff that you can’t wear.

17. Rent items you need for a special occasion

Consider renting an item if you only need it as a one-off.