What is “spaving” and can it cause overspending?

If you’ve ever bought two to get one free or added one other item to your cart to fulfill the free shipping threshold, you’re “spaving.” Spaving is spending extra money to seemingly lower your expenses, but while it may appear to be you’re saving a couple of dollars, it actually costs you extra money.

For example, it may appear to be spending a bit of more on free shipping is not a foul idea, since shipping can sometimes cost as much because the item you are buying! But those so-called savings will still find yourself being greater than your original budget.

We’ve all been there—we buy two of an item and think, “Well, I’ll use both anyway, but did I originally intend to spend that much? What if I just keep adding another item?” It seems easy within the moment, but overspending can cause you to go over budget and into debt.

So what exactly is spaving? Spaving is a play on words, a mix of the words “spending” and “saving.” You see spaving deals on a regular basis: buy two, get one free; free shipping after spending a specific amount; add additional items to finish a bundle at a “discount,” or buy a specific amount and get a free gift card or other variety of discount.

Ultimately, spamming is only a solution to get you, the buyer, to spend extra money, often disguised as a way of urgency or as a solution to get a greater deal. The problem with spamming is that you simply find yourself spending more to get the supposed discount. Think about it: If I add one other item that costs $20 to save lots of $7.95 on shipping, I haven’t really done myself any financial favors.

I learned this lesson the hard way once I fell for a buy two get one free deal on a couple of pairs of leggings I had purchased. I used to be beginning to get serious about Pilates and was on the lookout for recent leggings. I discovered a pair I liked and saw they were on sale buy two get one free. Great! I had three recent pairs of leggings to wear to class. They were great until they arrived and I came upon they were practically see-through, which is not appropriate for a category where you’ll be stretching your lower body to the ceiling in front of a room stuffed with other people. And in fact, because it was such a “great deal” they couldn’t be returned, so I simply didn’t have the cash.

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So how do you avoid being fooled by spaving?

1. Make a shopping list and stick with it.

If you are buying one thing, stick with buying that one thing. Even if it’s on sale, buying two rarely costs lower than buying one. If you are shopping online, ensure there is a return policy.

2. Wait before buying.

Impulsive buying will all the time cost you more. Other than food, you rarely need anything straight away. Take a break—whether overnight or for twenty-four hours—and see if the urge to purchase stays strong.

3. Do the maths.

Numbers don’t lie. Words may say you are getting an amazing deal—FREE shipping!—but they’re actually over-analyzing the numbers. If it doesn’t make sense, don’t do it.

4. Look around.

Instead of shopping for the primary option straight away, it could also be less expensive to match offers, reap the benefits of different sales, and even arrange an alert to notify you when an item goes on sale.