Feeling the pinch? As buyers realise that prices for everything except houses are going up, it’s time to tighten the purse strings. Even in times of inflation it is possible to find bargains online. The canny surfer can find everything from food and drink to clothes and gadgets at a fraction of their prices on the high street.

FOOD AND DRINK

If you don’t trust the published inflation statistics, which are usually based on wide averages of household products, why not discover your own inflation rate using the calculator at www.statistics.gov.uk/pic? This web-based tool will work out the inflation rate based on your expenditure. Tell it which items you regularly buy and it calculates how inflation affects you, based on price indices from the retail-price index.

Once you’ve scared yourself rigid, it’s time to start saving. The comprehensive moneysavingexpert.com dishes up tasty tips on how to save oodles on your supermarket noodles at tinyurl.com/3daxq5. And when it comes to sniffing out special offers at supermarkets, www.fixtureferrets.co.uk is eagle-eyed and well worth its £5.20 annual fee. You can dig out a good breakdown of the relative costs of most foodstuffs and beverages at www.trollydolly.co.uk, a crude-looking but effective price-comparison website for groceries. However, www.mysupermarket.co.uk is an even more sophisticated web tool. Fill up a trolley with the goods you wish to buy and it will then place your order with whichever of the big supermarkets is the cheapest.

PIG OUT

Why pay full price when you can get the same meal at a swanky restaurant for half the price? For instance, www.london-eating.co.uk has a whole section devoted to this type of deal, and some are outside the M25 – the Mantra Japanese restaurant in St Albans, Hertfordshire, say, has 50% off all sushi, sashimi and maki. Many of the best bargain-hunting websites do tend to be London-centric, though, and www.fluideating.co.uk points out that the International in Covent Garden is offering two courses and a glass of prosecco for £12 if you book online, or that you can scoff all the ribs you can eat for £14 at Chakalaka’s in Putney.

A more nationwide alternative for foodies on a budget is www.sugarvine.com, which says the Wensleydale Heifer in North Yorkshire (AA English seafood pub of the year in 2007) has a two-course lunch for less than £15.

Timing when you eat is wise, and www.toptable.co.uk specifically lists “early doors menus” for pretheatre suppers. These are great value even though they often use less expensive ingredients.

Hankering to try a specific fine eaterie? Even the poshest restaurants do lunchtime deals, so check their website. Gordon Ramsay’s Pétrus, holder of two Michelin stars, sells a three-course set lunch for £35 (see tinyurl.com/5qnjg7) – not bad given that a similar à la carte feast costs £75. For proper dining, the best way to avoid wasting money is to research a destination, and the reputable www.hardens.com covers most of the UK for free, while www.squaremeal.co.uk combines credible reviews with an online booking service.

The informative www.blagadeal.co.uk site tips you the wink that many restaurant chains offer free birthday treats to guests who register online beforehand.

CLOTHESHORSE

Be wary of spam e-mails that promise unfeasible discounts on designer clobber. That said, there are genuine websites that will have you looking a million dollars for a fistful of thrupenny bits. For starters, www.lynku.com constantly monitors all the most desirable clothing sales both online and in the high street. If the mere thought of elbowing through crowds fills you with dread, sniff out bargains at www.lastseason.com. As the name suggests, this site knocks out slightly older stock, but who cares when, as the site points out, quality never dates?

Another boon for fashionista bargain-hunters is Asos (www.asos.com). Originally As Seen on Screen, this web-only store made its name reproducing clothing worn by stars such as George Clooney, but its own line of male threads is smart and fine value. The site also sells a wide variety of well-known brands ranging from Adidas to Billabong at good prices – and it even has a section devoted to golfing apparel.

You can save money on posh undercrackers by delving into the extensive clearance section of www.underu.com. The site is mainly devoted to men’s underwear but it stocks belts and watches too.

Even if you eschew the benefits of moisturiser for your own mush you can earn Brownie points with the one you love by stocking up heavily discounted beauty products at www.southmoltondrugstore.co.uk. The company used to run a shop in South Molton Street, London, where make-up artists would fill their kitbag with posh products (sometimes in end-of-line packaging) at rock-bottom prices. Today it runs as a clearance website.

Itching to find running shoes? www.ransacker.co.uk is a great specialist price-finder that gives 50% of its commission to a charity of your choice.

TECHNOPHILE

One of the best ways to save money while shopping for technology is to tap into price-comparison sites. There are several and each has shortcomings so it pays to try more than one, but www.pricerunner.co.uk presents results clearly and has simple yet effective tools for quickly sorting TVs into, for example, the best value 42in LCD screens supplied with a stand. Froogle, a rival service that has recently been snappily renamed Google Product Search Beta (see tinyurl.com/69bxca) is also reliable and tends to have decent images of the goods too.

Be aware that a few big retailers, such as www.richersounds.co.uk, don’t play ball with some comparison sites, so don’t assume you’re always getting the best deal. Ensure that the accurate delivery fee is included and a UK warranty, as some online stores sell grey imports.

Unsure what to go for? Check InGear’s extensive Test Bench reviews archive at tinyurl.com/5y62s6 or try www.electricpig.tv. This new site features many reputable online gadget reviews and it has a built-in price finder.

Finally, for the most zealous, www.madaboutbargains.co.uk keeps its gimlet eye locked on special offers, both online and off. It notes that Amazon is selling camping equipment at half price. So as well as finding cheap gear, you can save money on hotel bills.

FRUGAL MOTORING

Few sections of society have been as relentlessly squeezed as motorists. The web can help here too – www.petrolprices.com compares fuel prices at forecourts in your area. Enter your postcode and it will find the cheapest fuel prices within a 10-mile radius. You could also halve your weekday fuel costs by sharing the driving with a colleague. Look for people in your area who drive the same route at www.liftshare.org. Londoners can try www.londonliftshare.com.

A similar service, but with parking, is at www.youcanpark.com; or, for airports, try www.airport-parking-shop.co.uk. Hiring a personal parking space is a good alternative to the stiff prices at city centre or railway car parks: www.yourparkingspace.co.uk can both help.

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