5 Best Financial Habits for Gamers this Pandemic

While Pandemic caused incredible financial stress and 

uncertainty. It also led many consumers like James, who buy In-game items online and gaming currencies, to form new financial habits worth keeping, including saving more and spending less on games. 

Here are five habits to consider sticking with even as life starts to return to normal:

1. Spend less, Save more

Well, not every gamer is going to like this one. As new titles are released every month, players’ increase in every game across all gaming platforms is alarmingly high. And with gamers increasing, the game devs have to make sure that they are on the right track of time. As this pandemic arises with newer cases worldwide, it is better to save more than spend less. 

“If your job was eliminated or you reduced your pay, then you’ve probably decreased spending and gotten used to a lower monthly budget,” says Eric Simonson, certified financial planner and owner of Minneapolis firm Abundo Wealth. “As soon as that income returns, it would be an amazing opportunity to keep expenses the same but save all of that new income.” 

Natalie Slagle, the founding partner at Fyooz Financial Planning and a CFP based in Rochester, Minnesota, says: 

“For those who were furloughed or laid off, the 

No. 1 priority is replenishing savings. We 

encourage them to sustain that habit so their cash 

flow can go toward building up their emergency 

fund at a higher rate than what was possible 

before the pandemic.” 

That way, it’s easier to handle the next crisis, whether it’s income loss or an unexpected expense, without taking on more debt. 

So gamers, better save up for now.

If it’s hard to stop buying games, the there’s always an alternative to save as much as you can for looking for cheaper prices, websites such as Gamecamp provide a list of video game retailers from which you can see which one provides the best deal. For example CoD cd key price can vary from $8 to up to $60!

2. Stick with a budget

You see that they released another skin pack for your favorite gun on Valorant, and yeah, they cost so much, but it doesn’t matter ‘cause you have a budget in you anyways. But should you buy it? 

In the NerdWallet survey, 39% of those who adopted new habits they plan to carry into 2021 said that one of those habits was sticking to a budget. 

“So many people have looked at their budgeting and spending during [the pandemic], often for the first time,” Simonson says. “It’s important to stick with this post-pandemic since keeping a budget is part of a healthy financial plan.” 

Many people turned to budget to regain a sense of control that the pandemic took from them, he adds. “The financial habits you’ve been forced to learn and adopt have the power to create huge, positive, lasting change if you stick with them,” Simonson adds. Continuing to budget makes it easier to generate long-term savings and avoid debt, for example. 

3. Minimize In-game Items

Yes, minimize. Others may disagree, but minimizing your spending in these times is really an important matter. This also includes balancing your budget for gaming and other things that you need to buy every day. 

Among survey respondents, 40% said one of the new habits they plan to continue in 2021 was cutting back on gaming spending.

4. Earn while you play

As this pandemic continues, the difficulty of finding the right job is also increasing—everything’s increasing (also the price of in-game items). Not everyone can earn with the regular wage as they enjoy 

their game ‘cause no one can want if they’re thinking about their debts, right? 

Others use boosting services while they rank up while doing other things. 

Based on the study, just over a quarter said they picked up a side hustle or extra work to make money among those who developed new financial habits. Kevin Mahoney — a CFP and founder of Illumint, a financial planning firm for millennials based in Washington, D.C. — says earning a side income can help provide financial stability during uncertain times, which is why he encourages his clients to consider it.

5. Use auto-pay for bills

Smith, who tweets about personal finance from the handle @badgirlfinances, says she plans to continue using autopay for bills, even when the pandemic is long over. In some cases, autopay comes with a small discount, too. 

“It helps me stay organized because I know on a certain date, money has to come out to pay the bills,” she says. 

This article was written by NerdWallet and was originally published by The Associated Press.