George Kamel - Are These "Poor People Habits" Frugal or Cheap?

Episode Date: November 12, 2025

In today’s video, I’ll be performing an exploratory procedure on the difference between frugal and cheapby reacting to a new article from USA Today. Next Steps: • 🎥 Watch my video 12 Things Totally Worth the Money (Even Frugal People Should Buy These). • 📈 Are you on track with the Baby Steps? Get a free personalized plan. • 💵 Start your free budget today. Download the EveryDollar app! Connect With Our Sponsors:  • Get up to 40% off Cozy Earth with code GEORGE. • Get 20% off when you join DeleteMe. • Go to FAIRWINDS Credit Union for an exclusive account bundle!   Explore More From Ramsey Network: 🎙️ The Ramsey Show 🍸 Smart Money Happy Hour 💸 The Ramsey Show Highlights 🧠 The Dr. John Delony Show 💡 The Rachel Cruze Show 🪑 Front Row Seat with Ken Coleman 📈 EntreLeadership   Ramsey Solutions Privacy Policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

There's definitely a line between being frugal and being cheap. Buying used instead of buying new? Frugal. Cooking instead of eating out? Frugal. Using a washable family cloth instead of buying toilet paper? Time to seek professional help. In today's video, I'll be performing an exploratory procedure on the frugal cheap distinction

by reacting to a new article from USA Today titled, Turn Off Those Lights. These poor people habits never die. End quote. For each so-called poor people habit on the list, I'll give you my take on whether it falls. more on the frugal side or the cheap side. Let's dive in. Number one, turning off the lights when when you leave a room. Switching off lights and empty rooms is a time-honored tradition in cost-conscious

homes. Nowadays, however, turning off lights might not save as much money as you think. Reporters at Wirecutter ran the numbers on a popular energy-efficient LED bulb. They found leaving it on for 20 hours would cost you about three cents. I don't know why they did it for, like why not go 24 hours, guys? Like, why not put in the work? just go a full day is three and a half cents. That would have been simpler. I mean, based on the math, I'm gonna go, this is cheap.

I don't think it's worth saving three cents. Now, I think it's just a good human decency thing to turn off a light if you're not in a room. It just feels insane to just leave lights on all the time. Because what else in life, like, are you gonna be sloppy about? You know what I mean? You're probably the type that's gonna leave things soaking in the sink because you don't wanna clean it.

I think there's just a laziness to not turning off lights. So as far as frugal versus cheap, I'm going. Hell cheapo. Next on the list, we've got picking up coins on the ground. Are we still doing that? It feels like a trap now. You know what I mean? Like they're putting anthrax on coins or something.

I don't know what they're doing. It says many of us would bend over to pick up a quarter on the pavement. But how about a penny? Because of inflation and now cost the government more to make a penny than the coin is worth. What does that have to do with picking up the coin? It's still worth a penny, guys. Why are you including that info in there? All right, a U-Gov poll from several years ago found that just over half of Americans would stop to pick up a penny.

Younger folks are less inclined to stop for loose change, which suggests the habit may be fading away. I mean, I just feel like people don't use change as much. Like, what am I going to do with this? It's just going to end up in a junk drawer. You know, when are you going to go to the CoinStar and finally empty that coin jar to get a $20 gift card to Lowe's? When are you doing that? Not going to happen. So for this one?

Ah, is it frugal or cheap to pick up coins off the ground? I'm going, you know, I don't think it's cheap, but I don't think it's frugal either. But if I had to put one in a category, I'll go cheap. Final answer, I'm going. Cheaping it real. Save a buck, sure. Make a penny. Not worth it.

Save a book, make a penny. Next on the list, ordering water when dining out. This tip makes sense if you don't want to overspend any kind of flamethe. flavored beverage seems to cost more than ever when you're eating out. Restaurants sell soft drinks at a 1,125% markup. That's insane. That's according to the takeout. You're mostly paying for service, not soda.

Yeah, I mean, I agree with this one. I do think the, I mean, restaurants already have like a 300% markup, but I think the drinks is where they're making the most of the money. Food, food's expensive. But what it costs for the carbonation and the syrup is, like, five cents compared to the three dollars they're charging you so that percent adds up so is this frugal or cheap 100% this one is frugalicious and by the way i do this when i feel like it mostly because i feel better than everyone for being healthier

sometimes i'll get a you know a seltzer if i'm just feeling crazy a little bubbly water but if they charge me three bucks for seltzer water you might as well get a soda might as well get yourself a little dr pepper a little treat all right next Next on the list. Arguing with yourself over every non-essential purchase. This person is unwell. Arguing with like how loud? Few consumers think twice about buying staples, bread, milk, toilet paper, and such.

When it comes to discretionary purchases, however, some cost-conscious consumers wage a fierce internal debate. If something costs more than 50 bucks, one Redditor wrote, it literally takes me a couple weeks to talk myself into buying it. I think this person needs a budget. I highly recommend just downloading the every dollar app and then putting a line item for the thing that you want. Label it, whatever. I don't know what you're buying out there for over 50 bucks. Air pods? No clue.

But just put it in the line item on the budget and then you don't have to feel bad about it. And labor and toil internally for weeks over a $53 purchase. $49, they'll do that all day long, apparently. But over 50, something triggers in the brain to go, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, bud. We're broke here. Slow down. So arguing with yourself, um, yeah, I mean, I think both cheap and frugal people would pause before making a big purchase.

But if you're constantly toiling over the price of things, I think that would put you in the cheap category. So this one is definitely, Commander in Cheap. Next, on this amazing list from USA Today slash Reddit slash the George Camel YouTube channel, squeezing all of the toothpaste from the tube. This habit falls under a bro.

broader category that might be termed using every last drop. That's not a category. If you're the type who swirls water inside a seemingly empty dish soap bottle or uses centrifugal force to liberate the last of the ketchup, you're in every last dropper. Someone had a creative writing class in college and made good use of it. Centrifical force to liberate the last of the ketchup. I've never heard that in my life. That's strong. When the shampoo or conditioner is running down, I always add water to make it lasts another week. First of all, I don't think it's doing what you think it's doing if it's all watered down. You know, that's how people got scurvy back on the Oregon Trail. So I would use caution if you need something to cleanse and to clean and to be like anti-microbial, I would just

get a new bottle. Plus, I can tell when I'd use that pump soap and like my mother-in-law has poured a bunch of water in it and now it's just barely soapy and it's just mostly water. Water. Hard pass, bro. Hard pass. So this one definitely falls on the you squeak when you walk category. So this one is definitely Star Trek. Cheap Space Nine. All right. Next on this list, we've got checking the clearance racks first. As many savvy shoppers know, the biggest discounts in many mall stores are often not the ones beneath the sale signs. Instead, they're hanging from clearance racks. A motley assortment of leftovers the store is trying to get rid of. Okay. According to Snail Pacer, a savvy shop. should walk the entire perimeter of the store keeping your eyes peeled for signs that say 75% off or more or 50% off already reduced prices. Wow. And the best clearance racks often sit in your changing rooms. These are new facts for me. I'm learning a lot today. I'm iffy on this one. Do I check the clearance racks first? Okay, here's where I'll tell you. If I am in a TJ Max, a Marshals, or a Ross dress for less, God forbid. I would check the clearance racks first there. I feel like, you know, there's some often overlooked. brands thing, you know, the size small. There's not a lot of small dudes out there shopping for

for chic looks. And so I can find some good deals if I'm in one of those stores. So this one I wouldn't say is cheap. This one I think is a good frugal hack. So congratulations. Frugal friends. This one is going to be marked. Too frugal, too furious. Next on our very helpful list, we have collecting hotel soaps and fast food napkins. One mini bar of hotel soap. Oh, mini bar. I was thinking mini bar like the fridge with alcohol. What does that tell you about me? I've never darkened the door of a mini bar, okay? You see the prices on those things? It's highway robbery. It's saying that that little hotel bar of soap can last up to 10 days. Wow. According to a blogger, apparently she ran experiments to determine this. What do we do? Guys, is this what we're blogging about now?

How long you can make hotel soap last? Assuming the hotel restocks her room with two little bars each day, that's generous. A four-night stay will net me eight to ten weeks of free soap, she writes. The same principle applies to fast food napkins. Some restaurants give you enough to mop up a whole cup of old price soda. All right, fast food napkins are largely garbage. I mean, yeah, you can keep them in your car glove compartment. That's usually where they end up. But I'm not like taking those inside my house. They're so scratchy. Hotel soaps, if they include the little like the shampoo, conditioners, I'll take those home. But the bar of soap, I'm generally like opening it and I'm not in a hotel long enough to get restocked.

So that one stays in the hotel. I'm not taking like a used bar of soap in like a baggy home. It's just not that expensive. So this one, is it frugal or cheap? Ah, I mean, I would say it leans frugal. I think cheap is a strong word for like taking something that is free that can be utilized later on. So congrats once again to my frugal friends.

This one will be marked as. All right, next on our list, we've got keeping leftover nuts and bolts from furniture kits. Okay, you're reading my mail now, guys. I don't know. What is, what toxic trade is it that I'm like, I might need this one day for this $7 thing I got on Amazon in case the bolt falls out. This is me. This is me in a nutshell. When you purchase a piece of furniture that requires some assembly at home, it typically comes with extra hardware.

Penny pinching consumers bulk at throwing it out. I take offense to that sentence. I have a bin of these, one editor wrote, right next to my gift bag full of used gift bags and tissue. Are we all the same person? Is that what's happening? Are we in a simulation? This isn't real. What is real?

Yeah, I'm 100% guilty of this. But does it make you cheap? I don't think it makes you cheap because it's not like it's more just thoughtful. You don't want to be in a rut and go, I need that old bolt from that thing. Where am I going to get that? I got to contact the company on Amazon. That's probably out of business by now. You know, they're not going to be able to help me out.

So I don't think this one is cheap. I think this one leans frugal. So once again, we're on a real role here, guys. This one is... Too frugal to function. Speaking of nuts and bolts, let's go over the nuts and bolts of what makes a good bank. No fees, competitive APY in your savings,

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And right now, you can take advantage of their smart bundle, complete with a checking account and a high-yield savings account, and you can get started today by going to fairwins.org slash Ramsey or click the link in the description below. Now, as we've already seen, a few habits on this list are a complete waste of time. But you know what else is a waste of time? You manually searching for and deleting your personal info from websites it shouldn't be on. And that's why I recommend Delete Me, another sponsor of today's video.

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Reusing containers for any storage need. This habit sparked a lively Reddit discussion about repurposing glass jars as drinking glasses, reusing strawberry containers for random produce and even washing out plastic storage bags. That's a step too far in my book. Quote, I don't think I ever saw a Tupperware container at my house, said Chip, a writer and analyst.

It was just normal to have every single margarine tub or sour cream container set aside to hold leftovers. How much margarine are you eaten, Chip? Let's put down the margarine, my friend. This one, I mean, it depends on the container, but I rarely keep a container. I don't know, maybe it's because my wife is slightly crunchy now and like reusing the plastics and washing them just gives her the hebi-jeebies. We tried. I think we've gotten rid of most of the plastic, like Tupperware type containers in our house, and we've tried to switch to glass. So unless it's a really nice container, like one time I got these little creme brulets at Costco, came in a little glass containers, and they were nice containers.

I thought, these are perfect for a little charcutory board, you know, put some nuts in there, some chocolates and kind of assemble it. So we kept those. Outside of that, reusing like sour cream tubs, that's 100% cheap. So sorry, Cheapos, this one is definitely... One giant cheap for mankind. Next on the list, we have shopping. Jumping at thrift stores and yard sales. Thrifting seems to be trendy. In one recent survey, thrift store shoppers reported saving an average of over $2,000 a year. How are they track?

How are they, I want to know how they're tracking this. Are they really looking up like the retail price for every item they purchased in a given year and then self-reporting? I have, I take umbrage with this survey. The thrifting trend appeals to both cost cutters and advocates of sustainability. One renter commented, I try to not buy anything new if I can avoid it. Yeah, I agree. This one goes beyond just like cost-saving measure. I think people that just don't want to be wasteful,

or maybe they can find, they like the adventure of finding, like, a brand or a thing at a better price that someone discarded or didn't want anymore. So for that reason, this one is neither cheaper frugal, but I think if you wanted it to lean one way, it'd go frugal. So, this one is frugal slack. All right, last but not least on our list, comparing prices per unit. This is from a super nerds out there. In supermarket parlance.

Parlance? Where'd you go to school, man, NYU? You paid a premium for this degree. Unit price is what a product cost per ounce or pound or liter. Most stores post unit prices on shelves. Comparing them can be a great way to save money. One Redderter wrote, I remember the day I discovered this at the grocery store.

It blew my tiny mind. I like the honesty there. I think it expanded their brain is what actually happened scientifically. This is something I do. I don't think it makes me cheap to compare prices per unit. I think it helps to understand what things actually cost instead of just seeing a container of something and a price and then deciding that's too much or too little.

Because if that's the case, we would all go to Costco and be like, this is too much money. This is crazy. But when you actually break it down, Like, take the price divided by the ounces or the amount of things in it, that'll tell you, like, hey, this bag of Halloween candy is costing me 42 cents per little candy bar. So then you know, at Walgreens, it could be a better deal if it's on sale versus Costco, but how are you going to know unless you crunch the numbers? So I have been known to pull out the old calculator on my phone and do price divided by ounces and go, okay, that's a pretty good deal. And if you buy something a lot, you'll start to realize the patterns here and you'll know if it's a good deal or not.

So that'll help you. Avoid just going, well, it's on sale, so therefore it's a great deal. Maybe. Maybe not. So this one definitely not cheap. This is just smart. So if I had to put in a category, it would be... Live, laugh, frugal.

Now, going through that list was a blast, but let's be real. I won't be there every time you're shopping or making money decisions unless you order one of these. And as beautiful as this guy is, he hardly has my cantankerous spirit or my unbeatable Riz, or surprisingly, my height. And that's why you need to keep in mind these three questions when you're deciding if something is frugal or just plain cheap. Ask yourself, is cost the only thing you're thinking about? Now, cost does matter to frugal people, but so does value and quality. And when you're being cheap, the lowest price always wins, even if it breaks in two days and you have to buy it over again.

Number two, does it take away from other people? Now, Frugal saves you money without shortchanging others. Cheap leaves a $1 tip in Venmo request your friends for gas money after a trip across town. Don't do that. And finally, number three, does it lower your quality of life? Frugal chooses smart tradeoffs that keep life enjoyable. Cheap will sacrifice comfort, health, or hygiene just to save a few bucks. So, next time you're about to cut your own hair to save $20 using a floby, just pause and ask yourself these three questions,

and slowly put down the floby. Okay, real frugal people aren't afraid to spend money if they're getting legitimate value. In fact, I recently made a list of 12 things that frugal people should buy because they're totally worth the money. You can click here to watch it next or use the link in the description.

That's it for today. Be sure to like the video, subscribe to the channel, and share this with a friend who needs to stop buying reusable diapers. I don't care how little house in the prairie you are. It's disgusting. Thanks for watching.

See you next time.