Your Guide to Smart Spending – August 4

Electronics are expensive, and buying brand new isn't always the best value – a phone, a laptop, or a kitchen gadget loses a chunk of its value the moment it's opened, even if it's barely been touched. Refurbished and open-box items are a great way to take advantage of that. These are usually returns, display models, or devices with minor cosmetic marks that have been checked over, cleaned up, and graded by condition, and they typically come with a warranty and consumer protection, so you're not taking the same gamble you might with a second-hand Kleinanzeigen listing.

There are a few good places to look. MediaMarkt has a refurbished section*, and dedicated platforms like Back Market and Refurbed specialize in this – you pick your device, choose a condition grade, and pay a fraction of the new price. Amazon Resale section* is worth a look too, since that's where returned and open-box items get sold off cheaper. I personally like second-hand or refurbished for home gadgets, but not for phones or laptops – even though some friends also had success with those.

eBay is also great – that's where I found my Roborock S7 vacuum* (probably my favorite gadget ever) and my KitchenAid food processor*, both practically like new and at half the retail price (links go to Amazon just so you can see the models). Whatever you're after, it's worth checking the refurbished options before paying full price.

If you've been considering taking out dental insurance, GetSafe* is running an offer worth a look: sign up for their dental cover and you get a pair of Apple AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation on top. The promotion ends on August 31.

The AirPods come through a "wheel of fortune" in the GetSafe app rather than landing automatically. Each spin has around a 15% chance of winning, but you can keep spinning, and it only takes a few minutes to land one. Once you've won, you claim the AirPods by taking out the dental insurance through the app, and they ship straight to your door. Since you spin first and only sign up once you've won, there's no losing here.

GetSafe dental insurance is a plan I'd recommend regardless of the promos. It fully covers unlimited professional cleanings (with no yearly limit, which I haven't seen anywhere else), gives you €200 towards teeth whitening every two years, and pays out 75–100% (depending on your plan) on crowns, implants, dentures, fillings and root canals, with no waiting period. Prices start at €24.44/month on the 75% plan. Sign up here*.

Lidl is very underrated for affordable home and kitchen basics, and its current online summer sale of up to 66% off makes it even better value. Most people know Lidl as a supermarket, but its online shop doesn't actually sell groceries – it's home, garden, kitchen and clothing instead. Here are a few sale highlights that I picked for you:

The sale runs online only until August 15, and there's plenty more beyond these picks. Shop the Lidl sale here*.

Santander* is running a summer promotion with a €250 bonus for opening their BestGiro current account until August 31, available to new customers who haven't had a Santander current account in the last 24 months. The account is free with no monthly fee and no minimum income requirement, and comes with a free Visa debit card.

A higher bonus means that the conditions are more involved than other welcome offers: to get the bonus, you need to use Santander's account switching service within three months of opening and move at least four payment partners over – things like direct debits for rent, electricity, mobile or internet, plus an incoming payment such as your salary. In other words, it works best if you're happy to make Santander your main account rather than opening it just to pocket the bonus. The switch service handles the notifications for you, so the actual effort is minimal, and the €250 lands at the end of the month, three months after the switch is done.

At €250, this is one of the highest current-account bonuses I've seen. The switching requirement does make it more of a commitment than some, so if you'd prefer a bonus with easier conditions, you'll find plenty of other options in my guide to the best banks in Germany. But if you're happy to move your everyday banking over, €250 is a strong return. Open your account here*.

Money-back grocery and household product promos are one of the easiest ways to cut everyday costs. A lot of promotions from previous issues are still active – you can find them all here if you'd like to try more. For more free grocery products, Rewe product tests are worth a look as well.

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