Why does it feel like you’re always spending more than you meant to?

No, you’re not imagining it. Modern consumer life is full of supermarket tricks, subscription traps, hidden fees, dark patterns, and pricing tactics designed to get more money out of you.

Luckily Consumer senior investigative journalist Chris Schulz knows all the psychological tricks companies use to drive overspending, and the practical ways you can fight back.

From supermarket layouts and loyalty pricing, to hard-to-cancel subscriptions, hidden online fees, insurance costs, and power bills, this episode breaks down why saving money now can feel like a full-time job, and where you can actually make real gains.

We’re talking:

what “dark patterns” are, and how online shopping traps you into spending more
how subscription traps and hard-to-cancel services cost you money
the best ways to compare supermarket prices and cut your grocery bill
how to review your insurance and avoid overpaying
why almost everyone could save money on their power bill

This episode of Making Cents is proudly supported by Odoo. Go to https://www.odoo.com/r/hpl now and try it for free, for 15 days.

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This podcast was filmed & produced by Fanaticals

Video editing & content production by Lana Byrne

Audio engineering by Tash Chittock