People Are Saying Enough Is Enough: Here's 25 Things They're No Longer Buying Because They've Become Overpriced

Recently, I wrote a post where I asked BuzzFeed Community members to tell us what things they now refrain from spending money on because of how expensive they've gotten.

The post received so many comments that I decided to do a second part, which also includes many responses I didn't use in my original post:

1."Streaming services. It used to be that you could have three or four at a time, and they would altogether cost you less than $40 a month. Now, each one is approaching $20 a month, with the price rising every six months. Even the ad-supported ones are getting expensive. The quality isn't there either to justify paying monthly for them. I just wait to subscribe to one when there are two or three shows I want to watch, keep it for a month while I watch them, and then cancel it."

2."Potato chips. A bag of chips shouldn’t be $7 or more!!! Corn chips, potato chips, cheese puffs…all of them have gotten wildly expensive! Fughetaboutit."

3."Coffee. OMG, the money I wasted on second-rate cups of coffee and bad service, not knowing who sneezed in the cup or how clean the water was. I now make my own cold brew. It's fresh. It's just as I like it. It's about $1 a cup, and in the long run, it doesn't take as long as stopping somewhere and waiting in line to pay."

4."I make almond milk. I bought a $30 machine off Amazon, and almonds are $7 at Costco. What used to cost me $60–75 monthly now costs $7. I can also make almond flour and yogurt. It's wildly easy."

5."Theme parks. In addition to the really expensive ticket prices, there is the cost of parking, food, and paying extra to skip/shorten lines (not including anything extra like souvenirs). Worst of all, those parks are crowded ALL year round. For a family of four, it really isn't worth it when you can just take that money and spend it on a long weekend getaway somewhere."

6."Cable. It’s so much cheaper to get a few networks than cable. The only people I know who have it are my grandparents."

7."Clothing from thrift stores. A men's Dickies jacket with a hole in it cost $45 at my local thrift store. For that much, I could buy a new jacket without any holes in it."

8."Camping. Used to be a great way to spend a summer weekend for not a lot of money. The 'glampers' ruined it."

9."Going out to eat. Groceries are expensive enough. I can make a gourmet meal at home that can last a few meals for a fraction of the price of a restaurant meal."

10."NFL games. It's $1,000 for a small family for cheap tickets, a small bite to eat, and parking. This is so disappointing because I always wanted to take my boy when he got old enough at least once a year. That is mostly out the window."

11."Gluten-free bread. My kids have celiac disease, so it absolutely has to be GF. A single GF loaf is half the size of a regular one and between five and seven dollars. When my first child was diagnosed in 2020, a GF loaf was $4, which was still expensive but somewhat doable. Now, I just make my own bread. It's ridiculous."

12."Paper napkins, plates, etc. The prices are just prohibitive. We didn't use them heavily to begin with, but at these prices, we'll just wash dishes and use cloth napkins."

13."Home improvement or fixes. Using YouTube, I was able to research a replacement part for my stove (the full front display panel) from Amazon and installed it myself, saving the need for a repair person or a new stove purchase."

14."Hamburgers at a restaurant. They used to be one of the budget options, now they’re pushing $20! My husband and I look for a single menu item that we can share. Burgers are hard to share so we rarely get them."

15."It pains me to say it, but my husband and I decided just today to cut out flavored coffee creamer. We don't even use that much. We literally measure out a tablespoon per cup, but it's through the roof. I would rather just use cream and sugar than buy cruddy coffee."

16."Spotify Premium! It used to be, like, $9, and now it’s $14?! And the free version is worse than it was a few years ago."

17."Using the post office for me. I used to love sending postcards from abroad and, of course, holiday cards. After price hike after price hike (hello, Republic of Ireland, you are still in the EU, so stop basing your prices on the UK!) I had to give up. I get it; we're all doing things digitally now. Good luck during a power cut. Do we always have to throw the baby out with the bathwater?"

18."Alcohol and beef. We're predominantly a chicken/veggie household unless there's a sale. It's so much cheaper to buy a whole bird. I miss steak and whiskey."

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—anonymous

19."Movie theater snacks. When I was a kid, the best part about going to the movies was getting popcorn, candy, and a drink. Now, you could go out to dinner for the amount they charge, not including the price of the movie tickets. It's easy to just stop at a dollar store and bring your own snacks in your purse."

20."Taking drives on the weekends. Gas has gotten too expensive. Now, I even plan my errands to be close to each other in order to minimize the amount of driving I do."

21."New clothing for my kids. It used to be that a couple of stores were cheaper than buying second-hand for children's clothing, so I just bought new stuff there. Not so anymore. Now, they have marked up the 'regular' prices so much that the 'sale' prices are more than the regular prices a couple of years ago. I spent the bulk of my childhood wearing second-hand clothing because we were genuinely poor. Now, my kids are wearing it because of the rampant greed-flation."

22."Date nights are a thing of the past for my spouse and me. Unfortunately, with the cost of everything else, we can no longer afford a babysitter, even once a month. It's really wild because we make much more than we did 5–6 years ago when we used to have a sitter a couple of nights a month, but we now can't afford it at all. Now, we sneak out to the porch with a glass of wine and talk while looking at the stars. We still find ways to connect. It just takes a little more effort."

23."Name-brand beauty products. I don't mean expensive brands, but ones you can find at, like, Target or the drugstore. The prices have slowly crept up over the last few years, now I just buy the store-brand of the same product. The ingredients are the same, and it can end up costing significantly less."

24."Listerine mouthwash. Like, when did it start costing $9 for a bottle? I now have to buy the store-brand stuff, which is just as good for, like, $4."

25.And lastly, "Food trucks. They used to be a cheap and fast option to grab food, which made sense, given the lower overhead. Now, you're paying more for them than a brick-and-mortar restaurant. And you're lucky if they have napkins or utensils. I absolutely refuse to give them my business anymore."

Note: Some responses have been edited for length and/or clarity.

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