Call up phone savings
Average savings: $35

The average family spends $90 a month for a home phone, cell phones, pagers, and phone cards, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. When we examined real phone bills, we uncovered savings from $15 per month for budget callers to $55 per month for heavy users.

How to do it. Peruse your last few months' phone bills to assess how many minutes you typically use on landline and wireless calls. Comparison shop among cellular service providers, the local phone company, independent long-distance carriers, and your cable TV company. Don't buy more than you need, such as an unlimited cellular plan if you rarely go over 900 minutes per month.

Consider all possible money savers, such as measured local service, prepaid phone cards and cell phones, cut-rate long-distance carriers, VoIP service, and landline/Internet/TV packages.