Savings guide to freebies and discounts in 2020
It’s no secret that Aussies love a bargain. But with family finances tighter than ever, saving on the fun stuff has never tasted sweeter.
Whether it’s a free Whopper burger on your birthday or 60% off a pair of Apple Airpods, there are plenty of places to save.
To make life easier, we’ve compiled the ultimate list of savvy ways you can snag discounts and freebies on everyday items, including food, drink, fashion and entertainment.
Birthday freebies
Businesses certainly make it easy for you to pamper yourself on your birthday, with a large number of outlets across Australia offering treats in the form of free food or gift vouchers. To score the freebie or discount, you’ll generally need to join their loyalty program - either by downloading their app, grabbing their loyalty card in-store, or signing up to their newsletter/marketing communications.
Hot tip: Tempting as it may be to use a birthday gift voucher you’ve received from David Jones, Country Road or Dymocks, it’s best to think twice before buying that maxi dress or pretty notebook. You’re actually spending more than you’re saving, if the only reason for your purchase is to get the $10 or $20 off (plus, you might find an even cheaper deal by shopping around online rather than sticking with the store you got the voucher from).
As for birthday offers that are actually free, most are food or drink related. To redeem these offers, remember to bring along your loyalty card, app or email voucher. You may also be asked to show your photo ID.
Store | Freebie* | Valid dates | Any conditions (besides signing up)? |
---|---|---|---|
Baskin Robbins | Free scoop of ice cream | Unspecified | No |
Boost Juice | Free juice | Up to 2 days before or after your birthday | No |
Chatime | Free bubble tea from their standard permanent menu | Any time during your birthday month | Must buy 1 full-priced drink in the three months before your birthday |
Gelatissimo | Free scoop of ice cream | On your birthday, and 4 weeks after that | No |
Hungry Jacks | Free Whopper burger | Unspecified (but you’ll receive the offer 3 days before your birthday) | No |
Krispy Kreme | Free four-pack Original Glazed doughnuts + $10 off your next online order | Up to 7 days after receiving the offer email | Must join the loyalty club 4 weeks before your birthday |
Muffin Break | Free muffin | Any time during your birthday month | No |
Mrs Fields | Free Soft Baked Signature Cookie | Up to 7 days before or after your birthday | No |
Nando's | Free regular meal | Any time during your birthday month | Must verify your email before the start of your birthday month, plus make a transaction in the 6 months before your birthday month |
San Churro | Free churros for 2 people | Any time during your birthday month | Must sign up at least 1 month before your birthday month From 1 Jan 2021: must make a full-price purchase in the 12 months before your birthday month |
Zone Bowling | Two free games of bowling | On your birthday only | No |
*Note that while these offers are available at the time of writing, they may be subject to change.
Discount websites
Gones are the days when shopping around involved keeping an eye on catalogue discounts every week or trekking from store to store to compare prices. Nowadays, bargain hunting can be done from your computer desk, with online communities like OzBargain and marketplaces like Catch.com.au offering the convenience of searching for discounts from a single browser.
These sites are updated constantly, but if you aren’t bothered monitoring them every few hours for new offers, you can opt to have daily emails delivered straight to your inbox. OzBargain also lets you set up search alerts for particular items or brands.
Meanwhile, other discount websites cater to specific product types. For instance if you’re looking to treat yourself to a greasy comfort meal or a dinner out with family, then Frugal Feeds or Groupon might have special deals you wouldn’t find just by heading straight to the restaurant or ordering over UberEats.
Browser extensions
Not too eager for your inbox to be flooded with hundreds of promotional emails? The good news is there are handy features you can add to your browser that will do the heavy lifting of sifting through discounts for you.
Once installed, extensions like Honey and RetailMeNot Deal Finder will scour the net for any relevant coupon codes or cashback offers and then automatically apply them to your purchase at checkout. Easy as!
Both these add-ons work for Chrome and FireFox browsers, while Honey is also available on Safari, Opera and Edge.
Price match
‘Big ticket’ items like smartphones, cameras and fridges could leave you thousands of dollars out of pocket, but this is a trick to ensure you never have to pay full price again.
So how does price matching work? Once you can find an item for a cheaper price, just show the deal to an employee in-store and they should let you purchase that same product at the lower price. Many electronic and white goods retailers such as Harvey Norman and JB Hi-Fi have a price match policy, while Officeworks takes things to the next level with a promise to beat the competitor’s price by 5%.
To successfully price match, look for a competitor offer that’s:
- In stock
- Australian (grey or direct import products not sold through an authorised Aussie-based reseller won’t be accepted)
- Not part of a cashback or coupon offer
- Not a clearance item (but items on sale should be acceptable).
How much should I budget for the fun stuff?
That depends on a range of factors, including your income, expenses and savings goals. While every household’s budgets will look different, a useful method to follow is the ‘50/20/30’ rule:
- 50% of your monthly paycheck goes into essentials (e.g. rent, utility bills, debt repayments, groceries)
- 30% goes into ‘fun’ (e.g. entertainment, eating out)
- 20% goes into personal savings.
However this rule-of-thumb can be adjusted according to your needs. For instance, if you’ve recently experienced a pay cut or you just want to buff up your rainy day fund, you may instead decide to dedicate 35% to savings and only 15% to fun.
Wondering where to stash those dollars you’ve spared, thanks to discounts and freebies? Your best bet may be a savings account with a high interest rate and monthly conditions you can realistically meet. Scroll down below for a snapshot of what’s on offer right now, or for a more comprehensive list, head over to our high interest savings accounts page.
Compare high interest savings accounts - last updated February 28, 2021
Bonus Saver Account
Maximum rate
standard interest rate
Govt Deposit Guarantee
1.20% p.a. (for $0 to $250,000)0.10% p.a.(for $0 and over)Yes up to $250,000Bonus rate when at least $20 is deposited each month and five Visa Debit transactions are made each month using linked Everyday or Glide transaction accounts.
CompareCompareBonus Saver Account
Winner of a Mozo Experts Choice Award 2021 in the Regular Saver category.^ No monthly account fees and no minimum balance requirements.
- account fee per month
- $0.00
- Maximum rate conditions
- Bonus rate when at least $20 is deposited each month and five Visa Debit transactions are made each month using linked Everyday or Glide transaction accounts.
- Access
- BPay, Phone banking, Internet banking
- Minimum balance
- $0.00
- Other restrictions
- Must link to a transaction account
Read our Mozo Review to learn more about the Bonus Saver Account
Serious Saver
Maximum rate
standard interest rate
Govt Deposit Guarantee
0.30% p.a. (for $0 to $1,000,000)0.15% p.a.(for $0 and over)Yes up to $250,000No withdrawals in the month. Bonus rate for first 4 months, reverting to 0.15% rate after*
CompareCompareSerious Saver
$0 monthly account fee. Link to any Australian bank account.
- account fee per month
- $0.00
- Maximum rate conditions
- No withdrawals in the month. Bonus rate for first 4 months, reverting to 0.15% rate after*
- Access
- Phone banking, Internet banking
- Minimum balance
- $0.00
- Other restrictions
- -
Read our Mozo Review to learn more about the Serious Saver
Flexi Saver
Maximum rate
standard interest rate
Govt Deposit Guarantee
0.25% p.a. (for $0 to $5,000,000)0.05% p.a.(for $0 to $5,000,000)Yes up to $250,000Increase balance by at least $300 in the month
CompareCompareFlexi Saver
No upfront or ongoing fees. Unlimited free transactions. Great for regular contributions.
- account fee per month
- $0.00
- Maximum rate conditions
- Increase balance by at least $300 in the month (excluding interest)
- Access
- BPay, Branch access, Phone banking, Internet banking
- Minimum balance
- $0.00
- Other restrictions
Read our Mozo Review to learn more about the Flexi Saver
Online Saver
Maximum rate
standard interest rate
Govt Deposit Guarantee
1.10% p.a. (for $0 to $500,000)0.35% p.a.(for $0 and over)Yes up to $250,000Bonus rate for the first 4 months from account opening
CompareCompareOnline Saver
No account keeping fees. No minimum balance required. Unlimited phone and internet transactions.
- account fee per month
- $0.00
- Maximum rate conditions
- Bonus rate for the first 4 months from account opening
- Access
- Phone banking, Internet banking
- Minimum balance
- $0.00
- Other restrictions
- Must link to a transaction account.
Read our Mozo Review to learn more about the Online Saver
Fast Track Saver Account
Maximum rate
standard interest rate
Govt Deposit Guarantee
1.05% p.a. (for $1 to $250,000)0.05% p.a.(for $1 and over)Yes up to $250,000Ongoing bonus rate applied if in the previous month $1,000 or more is credited to the linked Day2Day Plus account and 5 eligible transactions are made by the linked account.
CompareCompareFast Track Saver Account
Earn 1.05% p.a. Bonus Interest in the following month on your Fast Track Saver Account balance. Earn Bonus Interest on your savings, with no minimum balance required.
- account fee per month
- $0.00
- Maximum rate conditions
- Ongoing bonus rate applied if in the previous month $1,000 or more is credited to the linked Day2Day Plus account and 5 eligible transactions are made by the linked account.
- Access
- BPay, Branch access, Internet banking
- Minimum balance
- $1.00
- Other restrictions
- Bonus interest rate criteria is effective from 1 February 2020.
Read our Mozo Review to learn more about the Fast Track Saver Account
^See information about the Mozo Experts Choice Savings Accounts Awards
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