How to read your favourite magazines for next to no money

Magazines are an enjoyable and entertaining luxury that many of us like to indulge in. The key to making it a guilt free indulgence is to come up with ways to spend less on magazine subscriptions. If you are particularly creative you may be able to indulge in your magazine obsession for no cost or even make a profit from them!

Some suggestions on how to spend less on magazines are as follows:

Think strategically when renewing subscriptions

If you have a current subscription that is about to expire don’t jump at the first renewal letter unless the offer is particularly good. Subscription companies tend to send out renewal letters a couple of magazines before the subscription end. Typically the offers they send get more inspiring as your renewal date closes in.

Use your talent to secure a free subscription

There are many publications which offer annual subscriptions as a prize for small monthly contests. For example, write a small article, submit a joke or complete a crossword puzzle and you may find yourself receiving a free copy of the magazine delivered to your door.

Make use of those rewards schemes

Gift vouchers to magazine subscription sites are offered by credit card rewards programs, online survey companies, online shopping networks and other loyalty schemes. Why not get a voucher to put towards your magazine subscriptions.

Take advantage of trial offers

If you do read a magazine regularly and plan to subscribe anyway then take advantage of trial offer schemes. Some subscription companies offer up to 6 issues free to start you off. Just make sure you read the fine print which usually requires you to continue purchasing the magazine for a period of time.

Look out for combination offers

If you buy more then one magazine that falls under the same category then watch out for companies offering combination packs. For example, Cleo and Cosmo are often sold at great discount as an annual bundle subscription price.

Shop around

Sign up to all the different magazine subscription companies to receive all of their offers. The typical annual subscription saving versus the individual cover price is around 10-30% but the offers from subscription companies do not necessarily stop there. At different times they will offer; free gifts, discounts off the normal subscription price, extra issues for free and competitions to win prizes. The rule of thumb is always wait to buy your first subscription when there is some extra incentive because there are bound to be incentives at some point if not several times a year.

Investigate all the free publications

Don’t discount free publications, maybe they don’t have the brand name and glossy covers of the top name magazines, but there are many free magazines which have great articles in them. Publications are available in virtually every category such as style and beauty, home, food and many specific personal interests. Typically they don’t have any more advertising then the big glossy magazines do anyway.

Catch up on your reading whilst standing in the grocery queue

An oldie, but a goody is to read all the gossip whilst waiting in the grocery store line. This works especially well for gossip and entertainment magazines where you just want to scan the key points rather then read an in depth article. Large grocery stores don’t tend to kick up a fuss like small newsstands when you read without buying.

Organize a magazine swap club

Why not set up a magazine swap club with friends and family? If say 4 of you got together and each bought a subscription to one magazine you would be able to read 4 new magazines for the price of one. Alternatively if money is particularly tight split the cost of one magazine between several of you.

Read the online version

Many of the top magazines now feature all of the current months feature articles on their website; in addition you can usually view popular past articles. This might not be a substitute for a magazine you can read in the bath or on public transport, but if you like several magazines then perhaps read some online and only indulge in one or two paid copies. You won’t miss out on any of the latest information, but you can save a lot of money by making a partial change to the format you read in.

Don’t discount your humble library

Many large state libraries have all the latest magazines you can sit down and read at their facility. A lot of local libraries often have current or very recent copies of magazines that you can borrow free of charge. The key to borrowing the latest magazines is to scan the shelves regularly and if possible put your name down on request forms to make sure you get to read the latest addition as soon as possible.

Resell your magazines to raise funds

Once you have finished reading a magazine instead of letting it gather dust, sell it! You can find buyers directly on online auction sites like eBay or sell copies to your local book exchange or secondhand book store. If you finish with your magazine and sell it whilst it is still the current copy then you can get a coupe of dollars back off the cover price. If you bought your magazine subscription with an incentive voucher or had won a subscription then you could actually make money by reselling your magazine each edition!

Ask for a magazine subscription as a gift

If you love receiving a magazine every month then why not suggest it as a present when someone asks what you’d like for your birthday, Christmas or another occasion.

Check out Book exchanges/Secondhand bookstores

Many second hand bookstores sell magazines and you can find current or recent copies. If you befriend the staff they might be happy to let you know when they get anything in you like, or tuck it away under the counter for your visit.

As you can see there are numerous ways to save money on the cost of a magazine. No matter how tight the budget is there are still ways to indulge in this luxury if you are willing to put the effort in!