Going out to dinner with a cheapskate is the worst. If you’re not gonna tip the server, just stay home and eat a Hungry-Man Salisbury Steak TV dinner (my TVD of choice).

Take a look at these AskReddit stories about extremely cheap people going to great lengths to save a buck and try to think of someone you know who might be included in this Frugal Hall of Fame.

1. That’s genius, come on

Use a “buy 1 get 1 free” coupon at a work lunch outing (where each employee pays for his/her own meal).

When the check came, she paid nothing… just gave the server a coupon.

2. “Most bang for his buck”

Used to go to the bowling alley with my buddies weekly. There was a juke box there. 50 cents a song or three for a dollar.

He would put in a dollar and play Free Bird three times because its a nine minute song and he felt he could get the most bang for his buck that way. Seriously made the entire building listen to free bird for 27 minutes every week.

It was unbelievable.

3. Was it worth it?

My mom bought a box of Q-tips at the drugstore. She later found out they went on sale.

She then proceeded to drive all the way back to the store, returned the Q-tips and bought them again for the sale price.

She saved $0.50.

4. Hahahahahaha

A relative gave my younger sister a birthday card. When she opened it she was thrilled to find $50. He was surprised to see her holding a $50.

He asked her to hand the card and $ back to him. He pocketed the $50, put $20 into the card, and handed it back to her.

Apparently he put the $50 in by mistake and couldn’t just roll with it.

5. Buffet

There’s a place in our town that does an all you can eat seafood buffet. My granddad loves it and around once a month he invites everyone in the family to go. We all do because its nice to catch up and see everyone.
My granddad has a sister who is incredibly tight with money. So tight it’s cringe-worthy. Because she refuses to pay for a seafood buffet, and because he wants everyone to be together, my granddad pays for his sister to come.

A little while ago we all noticed that for a little old lady, whenever she comes to the seafood buffet, she carries a comically large handbag. Turns out that she was filling her handbag with plastic food containers (think Chinese takeaway) stacking her plate full of seafood, then transferring it into the plastic containers and essentially bringing home a week’s worth of seafood every time she went out.

6. Lowlife

Caught a friend of my husband’s taking tips off our group’s table. He said he forgot his phone on the table and went back as everyone walked out the door.

I realized he did this every time and stayed inside and watched him pocket everyone’s tips. I stopped him and asked if he was going to put it back or if I should let everyone know.

He put it back.

7. Thanks, Dad

Dad gave me $50 one night when I was headed to town to hang with some friends. I refused it but he insisted. Fine, I took it. Used it.

Then 2 days later on the way to take me to the airport he stopped at the bank. I said “why are we stopping here?”

He said “to get back the $50 I lent you.”

8. Underpants

Bought underwear in XXL when only M was necessary.

M wasn’t in the $1 bin.

9. Never heard of this one

Washing and reusing foil… like for months.

And dear God, don’t crumple or rip it, it’s like you’re destroying a prized possession.

My in-laws are weird.

10. A common occurrence

I have a friend who used to take his girlfriend to the mall and to Costco to get full on the free samples.

11. Mother!

Mom used to switch price tags.

I mean, we were shopping on the clearance rack, and she would STILL switch the $2 tag from the shirt she didn’t want to the $3 shirt she did want.

Uh, mom? That’s stealing.

12. Red Lobster

My first boyfriend, many many many years ago, took me on a date to Red Lobster.

He insisted that I fill up on their biscuits for dinner and save my actual dinner for later.

…What?

13. Smoke ’em if you got ’em

Taking spent cigarette butts out of the bucket in front of the local bars to smoke.

I didn’t realize this was a thing, but our town has multiple guys that make their rounds multiple times a day.

14. High roller

My friend dated this guy for around six months who CONSTANTLY, and I mean like daily/nightly, would take her out for food at restaurants.

He put on a very convincing front of having a lot of money, nice car, apartment, etc. There wasn’t a specific pattern, but they would cycle through the same places every so often.

It came to an unfortunate end when they were out at a steak place, and the waitress came back and informed him that the gift card he used was declined. Turns out, he would call and complain to the manager of any restaurant they’d just been at and would demand a gift card as compensation for the “bad” service. He did this with every. single. place. they went to and every.time.

He didn’t even have enough money to actually pay for the bill.

She had to cover it.

15. Gotta watch the big game

Buy a TV mainly for watching the Super Bowl and then returning it after super bowl sunday smh.

16. Nice tip

Dude comes to a gathering at a Mexican restaurant after everyone has ordered.

Does not order anything, proceeds to eat only chips and salsa, also finishing up things people don’t eat. Leaves 2 stamps on the table as “tip.”

17. This is really good

The day after our house got TP’ed by the football team for homecoming, my moms outside collecting the stuff (which was admittedly better quality than my family normally bought) and spinning it around our bathroom roll…

“What? it’s still good!” – Mom

18. Thank you, Jesus!

My sister was very pregnant when she got into a car accident that wrecked her van.

The insurance company paid her more than the van was worth.

This did not stop her and her husband from telling their church they needed a new van. The church bought one for them.

Hallelujah.

19. Business expense

I use to work at a hotel as a cook. The owner of this place was an old man named Dr. James.

Every so often he would come into the restaurant and order random off menu items, usually it was a tomato and cheese sandwich. Something ridiculously cheap.

He owned the place and could have just gotten it for free, but he would have them ring it up with the “manager’s discount”, and take the receipt so that he could claim it as a business expense.

20. Not frugal. CHEAP

Working at a government facility where people make 100k on average is where I saw the cheapest of them all.

Daily a 50-ish well dressed man would hit the vending machines.

Each one checked for forgotten change.

Could call him frugal but nah I’ll stick with cheap.

21. I like this story

My husband’s grandpa decades ago took home a seed from a lemon that he got in his free water at a diner and planted it.

Fast forward to present day the tree that grew from the seed is a monster that’s taller than their house and makes more lemons than the whole family could ever hope to use.

They give the lemons out to neighbors too.

22. Cheap fantasy

Years ago I was roleplaying with a girl who wanted to pretend we were having a romantic dinner in a restaurant.

She suggests I order some champagne and I distinctly remember thinking to myself.

“Champagne? That’s going to be expensive. Maybe I can talk her into a less expensive wine.”

23. Gross

When the ketchup bottle was almost empty my mom put a little bit of water in it to make it go further.

24. “Are we cool?”

Two friends of mine were dating, but are no longer. They were having lunch at a sandwich shop. The girl pays for her sandwich– it must have been between $5 and $7. The guy had something similar. I don’t know if he thought she was paying or something, but he didn’t have any money, and she was using the last of her cash.

So naturally, he goes to the manager, this cool hipster-type guy with a lumbers*xual beard, takes out a five pice (half a gram of weed) and gives it to him. The manager looks at him, looks down at the five piece, back up at him, takes it and says “thanks?” My friend says “so are we cool?” The manager gets confused for a moment and says “No. What, you don’t have money?”

The girlfriend cuts in and says “Just wait here, I’ll go home and get more money.” I can only imagine my friend awkwardly waiting there while his girlfriend went to get money to pay for his sandwich. After they left, my friend was annoyed that the manager kept his weed, and wanted to go back to get it.

25. Also gross

I friend of mine and I used to stay until the very end of parties and drink all the leftover alcohol.

Not beers in the fridge or leftover wine bottles or anything like that.

Like, undrunk solo cup leftovers.

26. Times are changing, Granny

My great grandma back in the 90s when I was super young used to hang up toilet paper after taking a piss on the towel rack to re use. Bleh.

She grew up during the great depression. She would also wash off paper plates and clean off dishes (the rinse part) in the same soapy water she just washed them in.

Was always fun getting a cup of water in a cup that sudded over.

27. I hate hippies

First time in Boone, North Carolina eating at a burrito restaurant. 7 or 8 college kids sitting at a table eating complimentary tortilla chips and salsa, drinking water.

A couple gets up and leaves, the guy leaves behind 1/4th of a burrito. One of the kids from the other table runs over and grabs the remainder before the couple has even made it out the door.

It was the first time I had ever heard the term “trust fund hippie”, but I think it captured the moment perfectly.

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