Ferrari 
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I will never buy another Volvo. My husband and I both have them now…and they are the 4th and 5th ones we have owned. But their prices have gone through the roof, and I also think their quality is not what it was like with my first one.
When I go out to eat, I won’t pay for anything that I can cook myself at home. Why bother!
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Out-of season fruit and veg. If it has to be imported from another country, I’ll wait. Asparagus is a prime example, or corn, which should only be bought fresh from the farm stand in August.
Run of the mill cocktails. I am not paying $15 for a G&T that I can make at home with good gin and fever tree. See also: Manhattan, Paper Plane, Martini, and so on. If I have the ingredients at home, why buy it at a bar?
Simple clothing. I am in full support of paying the people who make clothes more, but a $65 cotton/poly blend tee shirt is not going to happen.
Right now - airfare anywhere. 
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Cocktails and wine in restaurants/bars. If I want a drink when I go out, I’ll order one cheap beer. I just can’t justify paying sky high prices for drinks.
A couple weeks ago, I refused to buy blueberries. They looked awful & cost a fortune. Luckily, Aldi got a shipment of decent berries at a fair price a few days later.
We don’t go out to restaurants often due to the rising prices. We do go to comedy shows every week, though. The venue is reasonably priced, and we feel that it’s worth it (laughter is a necessity for us).
I was going to reorder my eye cream today because the company is having a sale - but it’s gone up way too much, and I won’t pay even the sale price. I’m sure I can find a good product at a better price.
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I rarely stay in luxury hotels. I just can’t stomach spending $700/night + for somewhere to sleep. I’m also pretty cheap about clothing - I buy a lot at TJ Max (or Quince). Back in the old days clothes were much better made (and made of natural fiber) - now, even expensive stuff is terribly made. I’m not going to spend $50-75 for a t-shirt. I’m happy to spend money on food and travel because I get tremendous enjoyment from it.
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I’m very “bougie” my kids would say. I do 5 star hotels if they are in a location I want. I need a NICE bathroom. That’s my main priority amd a very comfortable bed. We fly first/business only. We eat at VERY expensive restaurants ( we eat at less expensive ones too….Im a fan of dives that have great food… So for example for my birthday trip to NYC we ate one day for lunch at a place that was more than $200/ person. But for dinner the next night at a noodle place in Chinatown that was $50 total for 5 of us. ). However I will NOT pay for Sweetgreen because I consider it outrageously expensive. I also won’t buy luxury cars. Meaning nothing more expensive than a Toyota.
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I like safe and convenient hotels. Sadly, this has meant that the price of these places has been getting higher and higher, especially when I am attending conferences. I still will pay for the closer location, to save our energy for the events we are attending. If not going to meetings/conferences, I will look for good, safe, clean hotels. Holiday Inn is fine for us; free breakfast is something we like to have when possible.
I admit, I like finding nice things at good prices at discounts, TJMaxx, Nordstrom’s Rack, Ross. I do look at the quality and if it isn’t good quality, I don’t buy it, regardless of the price. I agree that quality has gone downhill, so I am pickier about prices (especially for clothing).
I will buy food that we cook and enjoy—locally raised chicken eggs, locally raised & carved meats, locally grown veggies & fruits are worth it to me. I do look at prices and when it seems too high, I may just buy a different product.
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Is Sweetgreens a salad place? How expensive are they??
My kids are all grown and with just two of us at home I’m more willing to splurge on good quality food. Our eating out routine is local places that you go up and order. I will splurge on a good cookie and an iced matcha latte.
I love my farmers market but if I’m near Costco I’ll buy the organic strawberries which are 1/4 the price of the farmers market. I’ve given up on blueberries and have switched to wild frozen. I hate spending a lot on blueberries and find them flavorless. I wanted blackberries this week but I wasn’t willing to spend 8.99 on a small clamshell that was likely tasteless.
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I checked airfare for one of our summer trips. It was double what we normally pay, so that trip probably won’t happen. The other two trips are closer, so we’ll probably drive the 12-14 hours each way. It’s going to be a long summer.
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DH still likes his 2L caffeine free Diet Coke. Fortunately we often get supermarket coupons for a free bottle. In the old days, I would not buy it if it was over a dollar. I would typically wait for the $.89 sale. Now the cheapest I can find it when it’s on sale is either $1.79 or $2.50. Won’t spend more than that and often it’s double that price
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I take pleasure in optimizing for value, so there are many things that I don’t buy because of price. However, this is often choosing the best value alternative, rather than not buying anything in the item/service type.
For example, I’d never purchase a sticker price new cell phone from a traditional retailer. Instead I get a new Galaxy Plus each year for better than free each year. This year the series of transactions were similar to below. I am getting paid approximately $1000 to receive a new Galaxy S26+ instead of paying $1000. I also am paying $0/year for unlimited data on Verizon network with my S26+. I’d never purchase data directly from Verizon at sticker price.
New Galaxy S26+: Paid $1100 - $700 trade in + $10 cost of trade in phone = $410
New Galaxy S26 #1: Paid $900 - $700 trade in + $10 cost of trade in phone = $210
New Galaxy S26 #2: Paid $900 - $700 trade in + $10 cost of trade in phone = $210
Old Galaxy S25+: Sell on eBay for $650
Used Galaxy S26 #1: Sell on eBay for $650
Used Galaxy S26 #2: Sell on eBay for $650
Net Gain = $650 + $650 +$650 - $410 - $210 - $210 = $1100 (ignoring fees)
I’ve never purchased a new car in my life. It’s not an unflexible rule. Instead each time I’ve wanted to buy a car, I found that the best value on the criteria that was important to me occurred with lightly used. Buying a few years old with relatively low miles permits high perceived reliability, while avoiding the steepest portion of depreciation.
This applies to relatively less expensive items as well. For example, another post mentioned ice cream. I’d never pay sticker price of $7.50 for the 1.5 quart cartons at grocery store (VHCOL area). Instead I average ~$1.50 by stocking up during sales, stacking discounts/coupon, sometimes combining with 50% off section, etc.
Some posts mentioned hotels. I doubt that I’d ever purchase lodging at a 5 star hotel. 5 star luxury is not important me, so better value occurs with more basic lodging. However, I am not opposed to paying what I consider to be a high rate for a unique experience for which there is no adequate substitute – good value is not the same as cheap. An example that I am considering is $300/night White’s Landing beach lodging (glamping) on Catalina Island. It sounds like a one of a kind experience, and I don’t see a better alternative mid point for breaking up the hike across island on trans-Catalina trail.
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The issue with hotels is the taxes and fees. Most cities rather tax out of state travelers than local residents so the hotel taxes/fees are outrageous and much higher than the traditional sales tax.
I am a frequent business traveler so we’ve always used points. The benefit of using points is not only the cost of the room but you also dont get charged any fees and taxes (other than parking if applicable).
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$2 for an orange, no thank you
$45 for a t shirt. Nope
$25 for a pair of socks. Not my thing
Cost of gas is factored into every potential trip, now.
Garden plants. Dividing what I have, not buying anything new.
Upscale chocolate chips – $11 for a bag? Can’t do that.
$60 crib mattress pads? Yeahhh, the consignment shop has them for…$12
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Concert tickets! I’m not spending $500 each to be in general admission, outside, to see someone 25 years past their prime.
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We don’t have very expensive/extravagant tastes, so usually I don’t mind picking up something overpriced once in a while. But for some reason I just can’t pull the trigger on buying a stupid chuck roast for ~$35 lately. It’s a POT ROAST people, didn’t that used to be a “poor man’s cut”?
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My family likes to eat Greek yogurt with berries for breakfast. This week a pint of blueberries was $6.99. I bought them anyway, and I’m kicking myself. Went to a brunch yesterday at a friend’s house, my closest friend group. Everyone brought something, lots of berries involved. No blueberries, because they were so expensive this week. I was the only sucker.
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My husband was just telling me it would cost $200 for him to see the stray cats, and he still hasn’t gotten over paying $35 to see them in the 80’s (he bought late, his friends paid $15).
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Don’t miss this:
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I had to research why blueberries are so high right now. Shortage in Peru who distributes 50%of the crop due to El Nino. And import/tariff fees. And it’s a superfood so in high demand.
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