Ever felt like this? It’s nighttime, tired after a long day of work or classes, you collapse onto your bed to scroll through social media. Suddenly, an ad pops up for limited-edition sneakers or the latest gadget with a huge discount that’s only valid tonight. Without thinking, your fingers move fast: click, add to cart, checkout, pay. It feels so satisfying—like a reward for your hard work today. However, the next day, when you see your dwindling bank balance or bulging credit card bill, that satisfaction turns into deep regret. “Why did I buy this? My old shoes were still fine,” you think.
If this scenario sounds familiar, you’re not alone. This phenomenon is called impulse buying, and almost everyone has experienced it. In this fast-paced digital era, temptations to shop are everywhere, from e-commerce app notifications to ‘poison’ from influencers on TikTok. However, letting this habit continue can be dangerous for your long-term financial health. Savings meant for the future can disappear just for a moment of satisfaction. Therefore, it’s crucial to understand how to stop impulse buying to avoid being wasteful and regretting it later.
This article will thoroughly explore psychological strategies and practical tips you can apply starting today. We won’t be talking about complicated economic theories, but rather real steps relevant to the daily lives of young people in Indonesia. From tricks to resist when seeing twin-date discounts to how to use technology to curb spending, everything will be discussed here. The ultimate goal isn’t to make you stop shopping entirely—because we all need entertainment—but to help you take full control of your money. Come on, check out 7 potent strategies on how to stop impulse buying to secure your wallet!
Why Do We Often ‘Slip Up’ and Buy Things?
Before diving into solutions and how to stop impulse buying, we need to understand the root of the problem. Understanding these triggers is a crucial first step in learning how to stop impulse buying. Why does it feel so hard to resist the ‘Buy Now’ button? Is it because we’re wasteful? Not necessarily. Often, there are psychological and environmental factors that trigger these desires without us realizing it.
The ‘Self-Reward’ Trap That Goes Too Far
The term self-reward is very popular among Gen Z and millennials. The concept is positive: giving yourself a reward after working hard. However, this concept is often misinterpreted as justification for all kinds of consumptive spending. “I’ve been working overtime all week, so I deserve to buy a new bag for 3 million Rupiah,” even though your monthly salary is just enough. When self-reward is done without a clear budget, it turns into a financial time bomb. You feel entitled to spend money as compensation for stress or fatigue, when in fact, learning how to stop impulse buying teaches us to find other forms of reward that don’t drain our wallets, like getting enough sleep or binge-watching movies at home.
The FOMO Effect and Twin-Date Discounts
Fear of Missing Out (FOMO) is the main enemy of financial planning. E-commerce marketing strategies are very smart at exploiting this, especially during twin-date events (like 11.11 or 12.12). They display countdown timers, dwindling stock (‘Only 2 products left!’), and discounts claimed to be ‘the biggest of the year’. Our brains respond with panic: ‘If I don’t buy it now, I’ll miss out!’ In reality, the item might be discounted again next month. One of the key steps in how to stop impulse buying is to realize that discounts will always be there, and the opportunity isn’t truly lost if you don’t buy it today.
The Convenience of Digital Payments (Cashless)
Digital payments like QRIS, e-wallets, and PayLater features indeed make life easier, but they also make us less sensitive to our spending. In financial psychology, there’s a term pain of paying—the ‘pain’ we feel when handing over physical cash. When using cash, we see the bills decreasing in our wallets, so our brain sends a signal to stop. However, when you just scan QRIS or click PayLater, that pain disappears. Money feels like an abstract number on a screen, not the real result of your sweat. Unconsciously, the balance is gone. Recognizing this convenience trap is an important part of learning how to stop impulse buying.
Stress and ‘Retail Therapy’
Many people use shopping as an escape from negative emotions like stress, sadness, or loneliness. This is often called retail therapy. The sensation of buying something new triggers dopamine release in the brain, providing a momentary pleasure that can mask those bad feelings. Unfortunately, this effect is only temporary. After the item arrives, the initial problem (stress or loneliness) still exists, plus a new problem: no money left. If you often shop when you’re in a bad mood, it means you need to find strategies for how to stop impulse buying that focus on emotional management, not just money management.
7 Ways to Stop Impulse Buying So You Don’t Waste Money
Now that we know the triggers, let’s get to the core discussion: how to stop impulse buying? The strategies below are designed to create ‘barriers’ between desire and the act of buying, giving you time to think clearly.
1. Apply the 30-Day Rule
This is one of the most classic yet highly effective methods for how to stop impulse buying. The rule is simple: if you want to buy something that’s not a basic necessity (a want), don’t buy it immediately. Postpone it for 30 days. Jot down the item on a wishlist along with its price and the date you found it.
During the 30-day wait, the intense emotion you felt when you first saw the item will subside. You’ll start thinking more logically: “Do I really need this?”, “Do I have something similar at home?”, “Would the money be better saved?” Often, after 30 days pass, the desire to buy the item disappears completely. This method is very effective for filtering out fleeting desires from needs or wants that truly add value to your life.
2. Remove E-commerce Apps from Your Home Screen
The principle is simple: out of sight, out of mind. One of the biggest triggers for impulse buying is easy access. If shopping apps are on your phone’s home screen, your fingers will automatically open them when you’re bored. Sudden discount notifications are also a big temptation.
As a practical step on how to stop impulse buying, try deleting e-commerce apps from your phone, or at least move them into a hard-to-reach folder and turn off their notifications. If you genuinely need to buy something, force yourself to open its website via a browser on your laptop and log in manually. These small barriers (having to open the laptop, remember the password, etc.) give your brain a pause to rethink before checking out.
3. Create Separate Accounts for ‘Treats’
We often overspend because all our money is mixed in one account. We feel like we ‘still have a lot of money’ because the balance looks large, even though it includes money for rent, electricity, and savings. A technical method for how to stop impulse buying is by separating accounts.
Create one account specifically for daily needs and bills, one for savings (with the card left at home), and one account or e-wallet exclusively for ‘treats’ or entertainment. Transfer the budgeted amount to this ‘treat’ account at the beginning of each month (e.g., Rp 500,000). If the balance in the ‘treat’ account runs out, that’s it, you can’t shop again until next month. This forces you to be more selective in choosing what you want to buy.
4. Record Every Expense in Real-Time
Awareness is the key to change. Many people shop impulsively because they’re unaware of how much money they’ve spent this month. Recording expenses is a crucial part of how to stop impulse buying that opens your eyes to your own financial reality.
This is where MoneyKu can be your best friend. As a financial tracking app specifically designed for young people, MoneyKu helps you record every transaction quickly and easily. With clear category features and attractive visuals (who doesn’t love a cute cat theme?), recording expenses no longer feels like a chore. When you want to buy a Rp 300,000 shirt, try opening MoneyKu and looking at your spending summary for the month. If you see the ‘Shopping’ category graph is red or has exceeded its limit, that’s a real warning signal to stop. Getting into the habit of recording in MoneyKu before or immediately after a transaction will make you think twice before spending money again.
5. Change Your Mindset: Calculate Item Prices by Work Hours
This is a very powerful psychological trick for how to stop impulse buying. Instead of looking at the price in Rupiah, try converting it into your work hours.
For example, your salary is Rp 5,000,000 per month with total work hours around 160 hours (40 hours/week x 4 weeks). That means your wage is about Rp 31,250 per hour. If you want to buy a Rp 1,500,000 bag, calculate: Rp 1,500,000 divided by Rp 31,250 = 48 work hours. Ask yourself: “Is this bag worth nearly 6 full workdays (48 hours) of my hard-earned sweat?” Often, the answer is no. This perspective makes money feel more valuable and harder to part with just for an unimportant item.
6. Unsubscribe from Email Marketing and Store Notifications
Our email inboxes are often full of newsletters from online stores offering ‘Special Discounts Just For You’. These are powerful shopping triggers because they create a false sense of urgency.
Take 15 minutes to unsubscribe from all those marketing emails. Also, turn off promotional notifications from ride-hailing apps or marketplaces. By reducing exposure to ads and offers, you reduce the temptation to shop. This is a preventive step in learning how to stop impulse buying—preventing the desire from arising in the first place by blocking its triggers. A ‘clean’ digital environment will help you stay focused on your financial goals.
7. Use Cash for Entertainment Categories
As discussed earlier, cashless transactions often don’t feel ‘painful’. To work around this, revert to cash for spending categories prone to impulse buys, like eating out, grabbing coffee, or buying clothes.
Take your allowance in cash at the start of the week. Put it in your wallet. When you see the physical cash dwindling by Wednesday, you’ll automatically curb your spending to make it last until the end of the week. The physical sensation of handing over bills creates a more real connection to the money’s value, making it a highly effective strategy for how to stop impulse buying for those who struggle to control card swipes or QRIS scans.
Case Study: Sarah and the Midnight Discount Trap
Let’s see how these strategies on how to stop impulse buying are applied in real life.
Meet Sarah, a 23-year-old fresh graduate working at a digital agency in Jakarta. Sarah had a bad habit: whenever she felt stressed due to client revisions, she’d open shopping apps late at night. She felt that checking out cute items—like phone cases, face masks, or pajamas—could make her feel better. The prices weren’t much, maybe only 50,000 or 100,000 Rupiah per item. But because she did it almost every other day, by the end of the month, Sarah was always confused why her salary was gone, even though she felt she hadn’t bought any luxury items.
Her turning point came when Sarah wanted to go on a trip to Bali with her friends but realized her savings were zero. She started making changes. First, she deleted shopping apps from her phone. Second, she started using how to manage monthly finances with a simple budgeting method and recording every small expense in MoneyKu.
The results surprised Sarah herself. She only then realized that her ‘small’ expenses added up to 2 million Rupiah per month! With this data, Sarah started applying the 30-Day Rule. Every time she wanted to buy trinkets, she’d jot it down first. A month later, she looked at the list and laughed—most of those items she no longer even wanted. Within 3 months, Sarah managed to save up for her Bali ticket and even started setting aside an emergency fund. Sarah proved that mastering how to stop impulse buying isn’t about being stingy, but about redirecting money to things that truly bring long-term value and happiness.
Common Mistakes When Trying to Save Money
On the journey of applying tips on how to stop impulse buying, it’s natural to make mistakes. Here are some pitfalls to watch out for so you don’t give up halfway.
Being Too Extreme to the Point of Suffering
The most common mistake is immediately cutting all entertainment budgets to zero. “Starting tomorrow, I won’t buy coffee at all!” The intention is good, but it’s unrealistic. Just like strict diets that often fail, overly punishing budgeting will lead to you ‘revenge spending’ later on. The key is balance. Still allocate funds for fun, but within reasonable limits.
Focusing Only on Cutting Expenses, Forgetting to Increase Income
Saving money is important, but there’s a limit to how much you can save. If you’ve applied all the advice on how to stop impulse buying but still feel short on money, the problem might be with your income. Don’t forget to look for opportunities to increase your income, whether through side hustles, investing in your ‘neck up’ (learning new skills), or negotiating your salary.
Not Having Clear Financial Goals
It’s hard to resist shopping if you don’t know what you’re saving for. Without clear goals, the accumulated money will feel ‘idle’ and tempting to spend. You need strong motivation. Try reading articles about tips for beginner savers to help you set realistic goals, whether it’s buying a dream gadget in cash, for a vacation, or early retirement funds. These goals will act as automatic brakes when you’re tempted to shop impulsively.
Underestimating Small Expenses (The Latte Factor)
Like Sarah’s case, many people underestimate small expenses. “Ah, it’s just 20,000 Rupiah.” But 20,000 Rupiah multiplied by 30 days is 600,000 Rupiah. Ignoring these small expenses is often the cause of subtle leaks in finances. Stay vigilant and record everything, no matter how small.
FAQ: Popular Questions About Impulse Buying
Is impulse buying a mental illness?
Occasional impulse buying is normal and human. However, if this habit becomes uncontrollable, damages relationships, causes significant debt, and is used as the sole way to cope with emotions, it can lead to Compulsive Buying Disorder (CBD) or oniomania, which is a mental health disorder requiring professional help.
How do I refuse friends’ invitations to go shopping or expensive hangouts?
Be honest and polite. Say, “Sorry, I’m in saving mode this month,” or suggest more budget-friendly alternatives, like, “How about we hang out at the park or cook together at home instead of going to the mall?” Good friends will support your financial goals.
What’s the difference between impulsive buying and compulsive buying?
Impulse buying is usually triggered by external stimuli (discounts, seeing an item) and is spontaneous. Compulsive buying is more driven by an overwhelming internal urge to relieve anxiety, often regardless of the item itself, and is followed by severe guilt.
What apps are good for curbing overspending?
Besides banking apps for monitoring your balance, financial tracking apps like MoneyKu are highly recommended for learning how to stop impulse buying. Its visualization features help you see the real impact of every Rupiah you spend, acting as an effective brake before you decide to shop again.
Conclusion
Changing habits isn’t easy, especially if they’ve formed over years. However, by consistently applying the 7 tips on how to stop impulse buying above, you can gradually take control of your finances and master how to stop impulse buying. Remember, the goal isn’t to live miserably without shopping at all, but to ensure your money is used for things that truly bring long-term value and happiness.
Start with small steps today. Delete one e-commerce app, or begin recording your expenses in MoneyKu. The more you practice delaying gratification, the stronger your financial discipline muscles will become. Imagine how peaceful your life will be when you have sufficient savings and are free from post-purchase guilt. One of the best destinations for the funds you save from impulsive buying is building a emergency fund. This fund will act as your safety net during urgent needs, so you don’t have to go into debt. Let’s start shopping wisely now for a brighter future!
