Loopholes are everywhere.
But finding them can be time-consuming.
Or they can be a straight-up accident.
Sometimes corporations don't even realize the ways they've given out great deals.
In the early days of the internet, scheming for loopholes was a favorite pastime, but companies caught on.
They're still out there though, just waiting to be discovered.
Redditor Aarunascut wanted to discuss the best "deals" they've stumbled upon and utilized, so they asked:
"What was a loophole that you found and exploited the hell out of?"
I love a good loophole.
I would always use the free gym trial memberships.
They've caught on now by using better tracking.
Alas...
Rinse & Repeat
coins GIFGiphy"You used to be able to order dollar coins from the mint."
"Pay for it on your credit card, free delivery."
"Get sky miles."
"Take dollar coins to the bank, deposit, and pay off bills."
"Repeat."
AMLT1983
I Love Pizza
"I run a recycling center and when Mountain Dew did the win an Xbox One with codes under the soda bottle caps we got a total of 20 Xbox ones. Every worker got one that year. Also, Casey’s Pizza had a thing going that you collected 10 tabs off the large pizza box you’d get a free pizza. We had free pizzas weekly for years till they stopped doing it."
Otis_Firefly
Her Code
"During my first year teaching, teachers were each allowed 1500 photocopies a month. I had 150 students. That wasn't enough. One day, a coworker announced that she was leaving for a different opportunity. I asked her for her copier code. They never deleted her code, so I had 3000 copies per month for the last 5 months of the school year."
driveonacid
Sacagawea
"Older vending machines like the ones in my high school and car wash used to take golden dollars (yes, the Sacagawea coin), count them as a dollar and then spit them back out. You could buy the whole machine with one golden dollar. My friends and I exploited this for 7 months senior year until they swapped all of the machines out."
MapUnitKey
"Interestingly almost all of the US dollar coins ended up in Ecuador as they also use the US dollar. It was super weird but convenient as an American going there and I guess it really messed up their economy. I had always wondered where they disappeared to though. Major issues with counterfitting them too, any shiny one was basically useless even if it was real."
ember3pines
Coded
Girl Cheese GIF by Pizza HutGiphy"When Pizza Hut first started online ordering they gave me a code for a free pizza for ordering online for the first time. Turns out the code also worked if you just ordered as a guest and kept working."
Stone_Reign
I miss the Pizza Hut deal days.
Online coupons used to give away the whole company.
$1.50
Make It Rain Loop GIF by Chris TimmonsGiphy"My bank thinks the vending machine at work is an ATM and refunds my 'atm fee' automatically... Chase bank if anyone wondered. I noticed I was always getting like $1.50 returned to my account here and there and then I realized what it was."
homerinthebushes
Past Services
"Back in the 80s, we found vending machines that were not regularly serviced that would overflow the coin box and spill quarters on the floor. We used to scrape them out from under the machine with a stick. Was a good time to be a latchkey unattended minor."
weakplay
"Vending machines in college (Ireland early 2000s) had a flap at the bottom that was supposed to stop you reaching your arm up to steal. But it also had a sensor used to determine if had something been dispensed. So if you held it shut, the machine would think nothing had dropped and you could order as many things as you wanted, then refund your coins and release the flap."
BrianHenryIE
Senior Year
"My senior year of high school a Chick-fil-A opened in our town and to advertise the grand opening they put a free chicken sandwich coupon in the yellow pages of the phone book. No purchase, no stipulations. For whatever reason there were like 1,000 phone books stored in a storeroom off the gym. Me and my buddies ate a chicken sandwich damn near every single day of senior year."
Panther90
Switched with Michelle
"At a former job management rearranged the schedules to expand our call center hours from 7 am to 9 pm. It was still an 8-hour day, you just started later. We had a meeting to discuss if we could pick our own hours so employees didn’t run the risk of working until 9 pm then having to be back the next day at 7 am. Management gave us a hard no-on that. But we were allowed to swap with a co-worker."
"A few of us got together to review the monthly schedule and noticed that 5 people were in the rotation who hadn’t worked there for years. (Seriously!). So, whenever we had to work a late schedule that we didn’t want we 'switched with Michelle.' This went on for almost 2 years before management scrapped the whole idea."
Crazy_from_the_heat
The King
burger king GIFGiphy"Burger King used to have an app where you’d shake your phone and it would sometimes display a free item. A guy at work wrote his own app that looked identical to Burger King, but would only ever show a Whopper Meal. Every lunchtime he’d go to Burger King and get a free meal."
RedLeader7
I love a free meal.
Especially a free meal at any "cost!" LOL.
"What's a really cheap item you can buy that can make you look incredibly rich?"
It's All About The Presentation...
"I have a family member who always asks for empties of fancy bottles of alcohol and then just refills them with the cheap stuff."
"You'd be impressed if you look at his bar, but IT'S ALL A SHAM!"- michaelnpdx
Destination is Everything!
"Not exactly an item, but travel."
'Americans grossly overestimate the cost of international travel and think you have tons of money because of it."
"I just spent a few days in a Scandinavian capital."
"Direct flight from NYC was less than $300, and hostel bed was less than $20."
"Most Americans spend far more than that traveling to Miami or Vegas or what-have-you, yet ooooh and aaaah and comment on my finances when they see where I go."- white_genocidist
Not Funny Reaction GIF by BounceServing Its Actual Purpose...
"A Butter Cookie tin that has the actual cookies and not sewing materials."- Outerace
How Can You Afford That...
"Join seat-filler clubs for NYC theater shows for like $100/year and you can get tickets to Broadway and Off-Broadway shows for $5 a ticket, actually free + $5 processing fee, for up to two tickets per show they offer."
"Then just Instagram or Facebook how cultured you are as you go to shows every day for $5 each."
"Invite someone and tell them it's your treat and they'll think you're loaded."- jesuschin
things gatsby GIFThe Power Of A Perfectly Fitted Blazer...
"I’m late to the party."
"Spend money on getting your clothes tailored."
"I’m a money manager."
"The old school wealth doesn’t wear anything that stands out."
"However, their clothes always have a perfect fit."
"The flashy guy that comes in with the big watch, driving the sports car usually has a ton of debt."
"Money talks."
"Wealth whispers."- Recent_Mirror
Mysterious Origins...
"My colleague has these golden earrings with zirconia drops."
"I thought she either stole them from a grandma or her boyfriend must have given them to her but she told me those were actually really cheap from a drugstore."- Twirlingbarbie
Blinking Brown Girl GIF by sanneGiphyIt's All In The Ambiance...
"Under cabinet lighting."
"I have rechargeable led strips that I bought for $30 on Amazon, held up by magnets."
"They light up the backsplash/counter below and scream 'I had this custom lighting done by an electrician'."- Lunar_Gato
Bar Cart
"Liquor cart. We have a wooden cart that sits in the corner of our house and it always has 3-4 bourbons on it, with cocktail glasses hanging below and a nice decanter. When guests come over thats where we place the napkins and limes and oranges, things to go in a drink. It cost maybe 75$ but looks fancy as hell and we always get compliments on it when we have guests over." - Badlands32
Three times the softness
"Apparently 3-ply toilet paper. One of my friends was at our house last year and after a bathroom trip, she told another friend, "Ooh, they've got money; they've got the good stuff." - User Deleted
Blood-Free
"Lab-created diamonds, they say it can even fool professional diamond dealers, it isn't as cheap as what others posted but it can still save a lot of money." - nmagic
Trash Upgrade
"Trash bags for your bathroom trashcan ... instead of grocery bags." - Mountain___Goat
Black Card
"A credit card that is black in color. It doesn't have to be a "black card", just black." - grumpymessi·
"Amazon Prime credit cards are black and made (at least partially) of metal. They're thicker and more hefty than a normal credit card, too. I've gotten lots of comments on mine, although more of the "that's a cool card" variety than the "you must be rich" variety." - Mirrormn
"I know a guy who has the actual Amex black card and it's pretty insane. No spending limits, monthly gifts (like expensive wine or nice headphones, etc.), access to pretty much any airport lounge. That's just the stuff he's told me about."
"Idk if it's as exclusive as it used to be, but he had to spend like $250,000 a year on that card to get invited. (He used to card for business expenses, but he got to keep it for personal use too.)" - tarheel343
Wax Sealed
"We send all of our correspondence out with a big wax seal on it. Looks like we're old money when we send out our Christmas Cards." - Outrageous_Claims
"Monogrammed stationery is also not too expensive. The more understated the design, the better." - RandomRavenclaw87·
Fruit
"A pineapple. You just also have to buy a time machine that would get you a few centuries back in time and you'll be all set. Rich people used to rent pineapples that would be put on display at parties." - sapunec7854
Pets
"I assume anyone with a really weird pet is hiding an immense amount of wealth." - User deleted
Needless to say, someone's wealth and status in no way indicates the type of person they are.
Though, there's also nothing wrong with appearing like you live the high-life, and turning those around you green with envy every once in a while.
Particularly if your entire ensemble cost less than $50.
"Strength lies in nights of peaceful slumbers..."
"A side sleeper pillow."- introverting_vibes
Brightens my smile.
"Water Flosser/Pik."
"I can't believe how much crap gets stuck in the mouth."
"Even after using regular dental floss and then using a water flosser just to see what would happen, I still spit out stuff."- FonzieScheme_
Camera Teeth GIF by Big Brother 2022"How does your garden grow?"
"A book on gardening on a budget."
"I had nothing to do in my life at the time and needed a hobby."
"It was soothing and I felt like I accomplished something when I reused old furniture to make garden beds, I was depressed but gardening gave me a reason to get out of bed in the AM."
"Can’t leave my spinach thirsty right?"
"I ate healthier, I meet friends and now it’s a passion for me."- CloudberryCover
Say what you will about screens...
"A second monitor."
"Programming and schoolwork became so much easier."- Arrowkill
Extra clean and refreshing.
"I just got a water filter for my shower head."
"Now the water doesn't smell like chlorine."- luckeegurrrl5683
Old Spice Yes GIFGiphy"I got the power!"
"Bought a jump pack for $50-$70ish."
"It jumped my car 4 times on one charge and still reported a 3/4 charge level."
"Super easy to use, just hook it in, push the power button, and then start the car, and it can charge phones and such too."-smiling_at_cheese
"Soldering Iron."
"Any broken technology you got could be fixed with these!"
"Careful though cause they burn hotter than a glue gun."- philipde
lisa simpson sneezing GIFAnd now I'm walking on air!
"Orthopaedic insoles."- Jamaqius
Hydration is key
"My PUR water faucet filter has changed my life, I was carrying in 4x 3&2x5 gallon jugs of water weekly."
"At 68, it was getting harder on me each week."
"Now I turn on my kitchen faucet & flip the tab on the filter, I have as much water as I want & my hip, knees & back don't suffer."- Relevant_Quantity_40
Say goodbye to achy joints
"Midol"- MyNameIsMinhoo
Talk About a "Quick Fix".
"A prefilled toolkit."
"Instead of rummaging through a box and hoping you have the specific tool you need and then trying to somehow do it without it you just take it."- asdanjer
Master Builder Hammer GIF by Registered Master BuildersGiphyAlways within arms reach.
"A belt loop key ring and holder."
"I clasp my key chain to the ring, and clasp my car keys to the holder."
"It makes a lot more sense once you see a picture of it."- morahman7vn
A Wardrobe can never grow too big.
"Just some nice looking statement clothing peaces."
"I feel way better every time I dress up now. and I actually have stuff to dress up with it improved my mood and just my confidence."- duckwithtoast
Make room for mushrooms!
"A $10 book on how to grow and forage edible mushrooms."
"That was 5 years ago, now it is my full hobby and soon to be business."- Sad-University-2332
psilocybin mushrooms shrooms GIFGiphyPerfect for emergency snacks.
"For my fellow dudes, small second-hand freezer to store a ton of meals in."- Jimselpixel
Don't need to pay up to stay fit.
"A fitness tracker."
"Mine was a bit more than $100, but there are plenty that you can get for less than that."
"It really helped me become more conscious of how little I was moving on a day to day basis, and motivated me to walk and exercise more."- Wegzuwerfendes_Konto
Glasses Wow GIF by OriginalsAlways one step ahead.
"Kasa smart plug."
"It turns my espresso machine on in the morning and afternoon so it's ready to go when I want to make my coffee."
"No more waiting 15+ minutes, and I can turn it on/off from my phone too."
"Add the delonghi espresso machine that cost $80 when I got it three years ago and you're still under $100, though now something comparable is $100."- anteaterKnives
Next time you look at a bargain bin, keep an open mind, and take a look.
You never know what its contents might have in store.
Redditor Imawildedible asked:
"What is some 'poor people food' that you will eat no matter how wealthy you get?"
Tomato Mayo Sandwich
"On behalf of my father."
"He grew up in genuine poverty (non-canned meat only on Sundays kind of poverty) in the South, and so tomato and mayo sandwiches on white bread were a staple for him."
"Fast forward 60 years, I went to visit him a few weeks ago for his birthday and watched him get home from the gym in a luxury sedan, walk into his nice house, plug his new iPhone into the charger, and promptly make a tomato and mayonnaise sandwich for Saturday lunch."
"He told me that, no matter how far away he gets from his childhood, he’ll always crave that sandwich."
- Womens_Lefts
Immo Wegmann on Unsplash
Popcorn
"Microwave popcorn, which fueled my entire time in college."
- Iamwinning2022too
"To me, microwave popcorn is the luxury. My parents weren't poor or lacking a microwave, they just were really price-conscious and never saw the need to spend on bags when a big ol' jar of kernels was cheaper by the ounce."
"I was amazed when I was at sleepovers and those parents just used a bag."
"So convenient! No shaking! No melting butter beforehand! No cleanup! Everyone got their own bag! And it has an exotic, artificial taste just like the movie theatre!"
"I prefer the pan-made now (more flavor control, and the bags are irreparably salty), but man, nuker-corn seemed like it was just so cool."
- SymmetricalFeet
GiphyTacos
"Tacos!"
"They're alwaysso cheap to make, and many times cheap to purchase."
"Tacos just make you feel happy. I don't know what it is."
"They also seem to fill you up!"
- jabba-du-hutt
GiphyPB&J
"Peanut butter and jelly. Never forget the ones who were there for you when you had nothing."
- I_Love_Small_Breasts
"Have you tried a grilled PB&J? It's insane."
- TitaniumReinforced
"Variations on peanut butter sammiches are all must tries:"
"PB & Honey"
"PB & Nutella"
"PB & Banana (& Honey)"
"PB & Fluff"
- RonYarTtam
GiphyRice
"Rice with fried egg and soy sauce."
- damnwhale
"Rice with pretty much anything and soy sauce."
- t_e_e_k_s
Rice
"Rice with just soy sauce."
"This was literally the only thing I ate as a kid, my parents would tell me I refused to eat anything else even at restaurants unless it was rice with soy sauce."
- Aschentei
Mgg Vitchakorn on Unsplash
Frozen Pizza
"Frozen pizza. I LOVE pizza - fancy pizza, good pizza, mediocre pizza."
"But something about controlling how your own frozen pizza comes out and devouring it will always be satisfying."
- Eldrick84
"I actually like the super cheap Totino’s pizza."
- YetAnotherJules
"I buy those bad boys by the box at Walmart. Had one for dinner tonight. They are so cheap but always seem to just hit the spot when you're hungry and don't want to get together a meal."
‐ Archer1407
GiphyPotatoes
"Any and every variation of potatoes. I’m like Bubba from Forest Gump with them."
- swagga74
"When I was a kid my mum always used to put potato in her curries. As I got older I couldn't understand why other people didn't do this or why this wasn't an option in restaurants."
"Was then told this was something poor people did to make their food last longer."
"So I learned to cook this for myself and it's the only way I like to eat curry. Potatoes rock but are also enemy as I get older as my belly is constantly rewriting it's boundary."
- Dark_Moe
"Potatoes are an astounding source of potassium."
"Sweet potatoes are almost as good by the same metric. WAY better than bananas."
- thenerj47
Eric Prouzet on Unsplash
Franks & Beans
"My favourite would have to be beans and wieners."
- C_Woodswalker
"My family calls it beenie weenies."
- DJisanotherRedditor
"Franks and beans here."
- Aperture_TestSubject
GiphyMac & Cheese
"Cheap powdery 39cent Mac & cheese."
- JamesTheMannequin
"We had a big family growing up so one of my moms specialties was tuna Mac."
"Add a can of tuna fish, and that canned peas/carrots mix. Boom balanced meal 😂"
- PrimaryImpossible467
GiphyCup Noodle
"Cheap instant noodles for the win."
- neuroticteletubby
"Sometimes, when I am feeling risky, I buy the EXPENSIVE instant noodles."
- JollyNeedleworker1
"I have an awesome Asian market by me with aisles for different countries but my favorite thing is the two big rows of nothing but instant noodle meals."
"Half of them have zero English and weird pictures so I never know exactly what I'm getting. It's sort of a ramen lottery for me to grab a few random packs when go. I love it!"
"Some of them get crazy though. Some have a chemical pack included that'll boil the water for you."
"Some are a bit larger bag with a dozen or more little bags of stuff inside, and those can be a challenge to figure out what you're supposed to do."
- diiejso
GiphyWhile several of these suggestions aren't exactly poverty meals, most are still fairly inexpensive.
So did your cheap eats make the list?
What's your favorite inexpensive meal?
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