The Internet is a great resource to help you save money online.  Here are 20 simple yet effective ways to save money online.

1. Online banking – pay your bills online; no reason to spend money on stamps.

2. Online postage – even with online bill paying, you’ll still need postage for things like sending greeting cards or packages.  Save yourself time and gas money by skipping a trip to the post office.  Instead, visit the Postal Service to order stamps, packing materials and prepaid shipping labels.  Or use the shipping label service at PayPal.com.

3. Planning on college? Save big on application fees by checking out Porcelina.net.  It’s a site that lists all U.S. colleges that offer free applications.

4. We all know about online travel; most trips are already booked online.  But make sure you’re getting the absolute lowest fare by using a search engine that checks multiple sites.  Try www.kayak.com or www.sidestep.com.  And if you fly Southwest, remember their flights are often not listed on other sites, so go to www.southwest.com to check their fares.

5. Be a tourist in your own town – find the official website for your local visitors bureau and check out their special offers for local attractions.  For example, in Philadelphia, http://www.gophila.com/Phila/EventsCalendar/ is the site for finding out about local events, including free events, and there’s a link for half-price ticket offers for shows and concerts.

6. Watch popular TV shows for free online at Hulu.com and consider cutting out your cable bill.  Also check out

7.  Watch classic films online for free at Archive.org.  Many great titles include the excellent film noir “D.O.A.” and the screwball comedy “My Man Godfrey”.

8. Download and enjoy legally free music – the iTunes music store offers a couple of free songs and sometimes a free video, with new free offerings updated each Tuesday.  Also try Amazon.com for lots of free mp3 downloads at:

9.  Shop for cheaper loans, mortgages and credit card rates at www.bankrate.com or www.interest.com

10.  Plan your post-Thanksgiving shopping with http://bfads.net/, for the advance scoop on the best Black Friday and Christmas sales.

11. Open up an online checking account.  The fees are usually lower and you can earn competitive interest rates.  Check out IngDirect.com

12.  Find the cheapest phone plans, internet plans and other services at www.myrateplan.com and stop overpaying now.

13.  Buy groceries online – even if they charge you a delivery fee, you’ll likely spend less because you will stick to your shopping list and avoid impulse buys.

14.  Join the FreeCycle network.  Find your nearest chapter, join it online, and get free stuff from your neighbors.  Give your unwanted stuff away, too.

15.  Check out special discounts you may be entitled to – many shopping sites offer discounts to students, AAA members, seniors, government employees, and members of certain other organizations.

16.  Go on Craigslist.com and check out the ‘free’ heading under the ‘for sale’ section.  You may be amazed at the good stuff people are giving away.

17.  As mentioned on this site before  – order food at wholesale prices from www.angelfoodministries.com.    It’s a non-sectarian program run by volunteers at local churches.  You need not be a church member and there are no qualifications or applications; everyone is eligible.

18.  Get an excellent suite of free software from Google.  Google pack includes Mozilla Firefox browser, Picasa photo software, Skype for free voice and video calls, Star Office (compatible with MS office), and more.  The full pack is Windows-only but if you’re a Mac, they still offer some software at http://www.google.com/mac/.

19.  Find the cheapest gas with GasBuddy.com or MSN Auto.

20.  Free wi-fi, woo-hoo!  WifFiFreeSpot.com

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