Here’s a truth most Americans never figure out: The sticker price is almost always optional.
Your salary. Your credit card APR. Your medical bills. Your cable bill. Your insurance premium. The price tag on a new mattress or car or refrigerator. Every one of those numbers is a starting offer — and almost every one of them is negotiable.
But most people never ask. Per Pew Research Center, 60% of U.S. job candidates don’t even try to negotiate their starting salary.
And the same passive instinct shows up everywhere else in our financial lives — we pay full price for almost everything, every time, because we were never taught that we don’t have to.
I’ve been writing about money for over 40 years. I’ll tell you this with absolute certainty: The people who build wealth may not be earning more than you. They’re likely just paying less for the same things.
Here are seven things you can negotiate — most of them in a 10-minute phone call — that can put thousands of dollars back in your pocket every single year.
1. Your starting salary (and your next raise)
This is the single most expensive thing most people fail to negotiate.
Per Pew Research Center, 66% of U.S. job candidates who negotiated their starting salary secured a higher offer. Across multiple 2024-2025 studies, the average increase from negotiating is roughly 18.83% — and some negotiators got 100% bumps.
And yet 55% of candidates never even try.
Run the math. A $5,000 salary bump at age 25, compounded by average 3% annual raises over a 40-year career, is worth roughly $634,000 in lifetime earnings. That’s from one conversation.
If you’re already in the role, ask for the raise. As CNBC reported in its 2025 negotiation guide, companies plan budgets assuming some employees will ask. The ones who do get it. The ones who don’t subsidize the company’s bonus pool.
2. Your credit card APR
This one takes five minutes.
Per the Federal Reserve, the average credit card annual percentage rate for accounts that assessed interest was 21.91% in February 2025 — among the highest levels in decades.
But credit card companies have entire retention departments dedicated to keeping customers. Pick up the phone, call the number on the back of your card, and ask politely: “I’ve been a customer for X years and I have a strong payment history. Is there any way you could lower my APR?”
The majority of cardholders who ask politely get a yes. Rate reductions of several percentage points are common — which on a $5,000 balance can save you hundreds a year in interest.
Five-minute call. Hundreds of dollars. Every year.
3. Your medical bills
Most Americans don’t realize that medical bills aren’t fixed prices — they’re opening offers.
Hospital chargemaster rates are wildly inflated. Insurance pays a fraction of the listed price. And the uninsured (or those paying out of pocket) can almost always get a 20% to 40% discount just by asking for the cash-pay or prompt-pay rate.
Beyond that: Many medical bills contain billing errors, so always request an itemized bill and review the codes. The federal No Surprises Act protects you from many out-of-network charges from in-network facilities. And most hospitals have financial assistance or charity care programs they won’t tell you about unless you ask.
A $5,000 emergency room bill can often become a $3,000 bill — sometimes a $1,500 bill — with a single phone call and the right questions.
Not sure exactly what to say? As with everything within this article this page, just ask AI. It will give you a script in seconds. Or check out our bill-lowering scripts that actually work for the exact words to use.
4. Cable, internet, streaming, and phone bills
These are designed to creep up.
The introductory rate ends. The bill rises every year. By year three, you’re paying $150/month for what used to be $80. And your provider is counting on you not noticing.
A 10-minute annual call to the retention department of each provider — “I’m reviewing my budget and considering switching to a competitor; can you match this rate?” — typically yields $30 to $50 per month in savings per provider.
Multiply that across cable, internet, phone, and a couple of streaming services, and you’re easily clearing $1,000 or more a year.
Quick aside — most internet financial advice comes from people who weren’t alive during the last recession. I’ve been writing about money for more than 40 years. Want rock-solid advice? Sign up for the free Money Talks Newsletter. Takes 10 seconds. No fluff. No spam.
5. Insurance premiums (auto, home, umbrella)
Insurance is one of the most aggressively competitive markets in the country — and one of the easiest places to leave money on the table.
Every year, shop your auto and home policies. Sites like Insurify let you compare real-time quotes side by side and without the spam. It’s fast, secure, and rated 4.7 stars on Trustpilot.
Then call your current insurer with the lowest quote in hand and say: “I’ve been with you for X years. Here’s what a competitor is offering. Can you match or beat it?”
If they say no, you switch. If they say yes, you’ve saved hundreds. Either way, you win. Per Consumer Reports, drivers who switch carriers save a median of $461 a year.
Our list of 5 bills to stop paying full price for walks through the exact playbook for insurance and other recurring expenses.
6. Big-ticket purchases (cars, furniture, appliances, even some retail)
The sticker price on a new car is the highest price the dealer hopes you’ll pay. The manufacturer’s suggested retail price on a mattress is roughly double what they’d accept. Furniture stores routinely mark up 30% to 50%.
The phrase “Is that the best you can do?” — said politely, with a small pause afterward — has saved Americans untold billions of dollars.
For cars, negotiate three separate transactions: the price of the vehicle, your trade-in value, and the financing terms. Dealers love to bundle these to hide a bad deal in one of them.
For furniture and appliances, ask about floor models, scratch-and-dent inventory, and end-of-month sales targets. Late on the last day of a sales month, salespeople will accept less to hit their quota.
For retail (yes, even brand-name stores), price-match policies are widespread but almost never advertised. Bring up a competitor’s lower price and ask if they’ll match it. Most will.
7. Your rent — yes, really
This one surprises people, but landlords negotiate too — especially in soft markets and especially with reliable, on-time tenants.
I’ve been both a landlord and a tenant. As a landlord, I’d happily give discounts for tenants who take care of small problems so I don’t have to. As a tenant, I’ve offered to pay up to a year in advance to get a 10% to 20% discount on the rent.
When your lease comes up for renewal, don’t just sign the new offer. Research what comparable units are renting for in your area. If you find lower prices nearby, mention them politely.
Even small wins matter: $50 a month off your rent for the next year is $600 in savings. $100 a month off is $1,200. The landlord’s alternative is finding a new tenant, repainting, advertising, and risking weeks of vacancy — all of which cost them far more than your discount.
You don’t need to threaten to leave. You just need to ask.
How to negotiate
Negotiation isn’t aggressive or confrontational. It’s just business. Here’s the simple playbook that works for almost any scenario:
- Know your number going in. Before any call, know exactly what outcome you want. “Lower my APR” is too vague. “Lower my APR by at least 5 points” is actionable.
- Be polite but specific. Companies say no to vague asks. They say yes to specific, reasonable ones backed by data.
- Use leverage. Competing offers, long-customer history, perfect payment record, market data — all of it works. Bring evidence.
- Ask for the retention or supervisor department. The first person who answers is rarely empowered to give you the best deal. The retention department exists specifically to keep you. Ask for it.
- Be willing to walk away. The most powerful thing to say in any negotiation is “no thanks.” If you can’t or won’t walk away, your leverage is zero.
- Get it in writing. Verbal promises evaporate. Always get the new terms confirmed in an email or on your account before hanging up.
- Try again in 12 months. Most negotiations need to be run annually. Calendar it.
For more on this approach, our golden rules of negotiating lay out the full system. And our 9 clever ways to slash monthly bills by $500 covers the tactics across nearly every category of recurring expense.
Bottom line
There are two kinds of people in this country.
There are people who pay sticker price. And there are people who ask for a better deal.
The askers — across their salaries, bills, debts, insurance, and major purchases — keep thousands more dollars a year than the non-askers. Compound that over a working life, and it’s a difference measured in hundreds of thousands of dollars.
You don’t have to be aggressive. You don’t have to be a born salesperson. You just have to be the person who picks up the phone and asks the question.
The worst answer you’ll ever get is “no.” That leaves you no worse off than you were before you asked. The best answer puts thousands of dollars back in your pocket.
That’s the game. Start asking. Ask everywhere. Ask for everything. And watch what happens.
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