Although we are not technically in a recession, it’s starting to feel like one. As gas prices and unemployment continue to rise, we’ve rounded up a collection of useful advice for the current period of economic austerity.

Consumer Reports offers a lot of valuable advice in their recent piece, Spend Less on Everything. Some suggestions: Use shopping bots and online coupon sites to find the best deals, consider using VoIP, and check Consumer Reports’s website for advice on insurance, electronics, and cars before purchasing them.

Some broader, common sense tips come from Survive a Recession: making sure you don’t get fired, having or building an emergency fund, trying to eliminate debt, living frugally, and pursuing additional means of income.

The Simple Dollar lists Forty Ways to Reduce Your Monthly Spending, including insulating your hot water heater, reviewing and reducing your subscriptions, and starting a garden.

Although we wrote about this in 2006, it’s just as valuable today: Free Money Finance gathers 301 of its money-saving tips, including guidance on choosing car insurance, cutting your own hair, and saving money on babysitting, into one cornucopia of frugality here.

For even more useful advice, check out Consumer Reports’s comprehensive recession guide: Smart Moves for Tight Times

Lastly, we would advise against just throwing away bones with plenty of meat still on them. Instead, take them home, throw them in a pot, add some broth, a potato—baby, you’ve got a stew going!

Want more consumer news? Visit our parent organization, Consumer Reports, for the latest on scams, recalls, and other consumer issues.