Malaysians Share Their Best Under-RM100 Purchases

We buy things to fix a problem. Whether the problem is hunger, or boredom, or lack of focus, or social acceptance, or something else.

Often, the stuff that we buy, the solutions, they work okay (I hope this is the case for you). Sometimes they don’t work as well as claimed.

But once in a blue moon, you get lucky and found a particular product that you absolutely LOVE. It pretty much changed your life, you don’t know how you ever managed without it. You consider yourself a fan and have NO PROBLEM recommending these to others.

Recently, I asked the RoR audience about their best under-RM100 purchases, and guess what, turns out other people love hearing personal recommendations too!

(Well, actually I phrased it as ‘items that made significant improvements to your life’, but close enough.)

The answers were so varied, I can’t help but to compile and share them here (with permission). I divided the answers into two sections: one-off purchases and recurring or subscription (since I never clarify which one in the RoR mini-forum also). Thank you to everyone who commented!

Best under-RM100 purchase: One-off items

Glysentte Mier – I wouldn’t have made it through the week if it’s not for this essential oil. Too many writing work to be done, so little time! I bought it at my local pharmacy for less than RM20.

Melia Leong – (My best under-RM100 purchase is a pair of) Xiaomi wireless earbuds for RM82. I put them on when I clean my floors and during morning runs.

Amielah Kasmani – It has to be the wireless display TV dongle. I’m a teacher and it comes in handy for my lessons, especially when I am projecting slides, videos, audios and documents straight from my phone. In school, classes are already equipped with projectors and TVs so the dongle is basically my little breathing machine for teaching.

It’s great because it works with different kinds of TVs too. I even use it at home for family fun-times, when we play online games on my phone..🤩 Tip: bigger screen, better chance at winning!

Shan Nathan – I would say the RM89.90 Akemi Hydro Gel pillow that my wife bought for me during a sale in Parkson Lifestyle (was the best under-RM100 purchase). I don’t experience any more neck and back pain, the pillow stays cool which gives me better sleep, and the best part is no more “engine” sound at night!
That’s a great difference!!

A good pillow is a good investment, sleep really is a daily treasure. 

Lee Jun – (My best under-RM100 purchase is a pair of) Speedo earplugs for RM 19.00, so that I could concentrate and study in a noisy apartment. Initially I wanted to get a Noise Cancelling Headset but I baulked at the RM2000.00 price tag. Thanks to the earplugs, I was able to pass my professional qualifying exams, which enabled me to get a higher paying job. 

I also used it for travelling, especially when trying to sleep on economy class long haul flights!  It helped me concentrate on my studies. Best part is, I could continue to use it on long haul economy class flights to sleep well.

Nadzri Sazali – I bought an XMA air fryer for RM80 bought during a sale at Giant. Now I can cook! (Suraya’s note: I checked – that price is a deal. Lazada sells it for closer to RM300!)

Muhammad Amar Hasshim – A RM5 eye mask. It’s a really useful item that helps me get my sleep during the day, when I have to work in the night shift.

Syaza Nazura – I’d say extra USB cables for the phone. I have one next to my bed, one next to my study desk, one at work, one in my bag with the power bank, one in the car. Helps to not have to cabut another cable or risk not having one when you need it.

Ayu Fatarina – I bought a George Home 3L Slow Cooker for RM95 at an Xmas sale last year. It helps me to achieve my eatclean and keto goals. You just dump everything in the slow cooker, set the timer to 8 hours and a pot of hot food awaits when you come home! Not just that, it saves money on groceries too. I buy things like chicken feet and cheap meats and these things turn yummy once cooked in the slow cooker.

This item is definitely a gem for me. I don’t add that much seasoning either, just salt and black pepper. The juices from the vegetables and poultry will add to the flavour 😁

Best under-RM100 purchase: Recurring or subscriptions

Joel Ong – Quickbooks! Depending on the plan, the price ranges between RM53 to RM98 per month. I love that it saves me a lot of time as I am quite slow with accounting and stuff. It makes tracking companies and clients a lot easier!

Mohd Haffiszul Mohd Said – I love Brilliant.org monthly subscription. It’s just RM27.50 per month but like university on demand. I just started on Logic.

Jonathan Goh – I save a lot on the cost of entertainment by subscribing to Netflix (at MYR 51 per month, shared between 4 other family members) and Crunchyroll (an anime streaming site; MYR 30 a month). It beats having to go to the cinemas or monthly expensive TV packages!

Farhana Norlisan – For me it’ll have to be all the under-RM100 books and seminar tickets. Every time I get these, my point of view on life changes as I read and met new people. I get to experiment with stuffs and happenings with new knowledge.

Some of my favourite books include Rich Dad, Poor Dad, Colour of Inequality, Reclaim Your Heart, Chicken Soup series, among many others. Most memorable seminar will be The Road to 3 Million. Property investment seminars in particular tend to be cheap and often free too. I went to so many which cost me from around RM10 to the most expensive one RM97. The ROI gain from all of these knowledge has changed my life so much.

Related: 10 Best Books to Learn About Investing, According to Malaysians (With Video Summaries)

My personal best under-RM100 purchase

If recently, then the Momostick I bought. It’s a phone grip. Found it randomly at Popular bookstore and bought it on sale for RM23.30 (RRP: RM29.90).

I’m one of those people who NEEDS a phone grip because my phone (Xiaomi MiA2) is actually a bit too big for my hand. I like this type of phone grip way better than PopSocket-style phone grips and the ring-types.

Although I have to say, this is not my favourite-ever phone grip. My favourite is the one I always buy from Mr DIY for like RM1.30, but they have since stopped stocking this one particular version I like 🙁

What are some of your best under-RM100 purchases?

Like always, share them in the comments section! It’s really fun to hear actual word-of-mouth recommendations for not-particularly-expensive items 🙂

Other shopping-related article: Going Through All My Lazada Purchases, Since 2014