What's the Difference Between Being Frugal and Being Cheap?

I think I've always been drawn to frugal people. I roomed with a med student back in college who lived very frugally because of his looming medical debt. As I've grown and got to know more and more people, I really wrestled with the question...what's the difference between being frugal and being cheap?

I know people who don't give rides to others. I know people who mooch off of other's meals at any chance they can get, without buying anything of their own. Is this cheap? I think so. But then again, frugal people seemingly do cheap things. Is there really a difference between the two terms? Or just some invisible line that we've drawn? A subjective barrier between two virtually identical things?

I looked up on the internet and even wrote a blog post about my own thoughts. While writing, I was able to ask a few other financial bloggers what they thought. It was very cool to hear that everyone (that I asked) had the same idea of what encompasses a frugal person. (edit: link)

Basically, a frugal person is someone who focuses on value, while a cheap person only focuses on cost. Frugal people are categorized by their resourcefulness, not by taking advantage of others. Although the sample size was small, it was refreshing to know that there is an agreement as to what is different between frugal and cheap people. Some may disagree. It's been a hot topic for sure, but I'm interested in what you guys think!

December 05, 2017 at 08:16PM