Lifehacker

Our parents are mere mortals, and never is that more apparent than when we look at how they handled money. Most of our parents’ personal finance advice—solicited or, more often, not—reflects wisdom from a different time. After all, certain money habits only made sense when college was cheap and eggs costed a dollar.…Read more...

I’m a fierce advocate for frangipane. The sweet, buttery, cake spread made from almond flour, sugar, butter, and eggs turns everything it touches into a delicacy. Normally this sweet almond cream is seen behind bakery windows nestled into tart shells, or tucked away between swirls of pastry-making for elegant desserts…Read more...

Casual movie watchers might might assume pretty much everything is available on streaming these days; or at the very least, easy to find on DVD or Blu-ray. Sadly, that’s not the case...not even close.

The humble Finder’s search function is pretty simple on the surface, but it has a few advanced features that are more useful than you realize. When you enable these options, you’ll be able to find files with far more precision than usual.

Tackling a DIY project with kids usually goes one of two ways: Either everyone has fun and learns something new, or somebody loses interest halfway through and has to be dragged kicking and screaming through the final stages. The secret to avoiding the latter scenario is to choose the right project to do with your kids…Read more...

Video games can be utterly engrossing experiences—but sometimes you just want to chill out and play something while listening to a podcast or marathoning a TV show in the background. Unfortunately, not every game makes for a good “podcast game.” You don’t want to watching long cutscenes, read tons of text, or pay…Read more...

It might be the best time of your entire life to quit your job. Unemployment is hovering around 3% (as low as it’s been in like 50 years), employers across the county are reporting labor shortages, and they don’t appreciate you at that rotten place anyway. So get out now, while the getting is good! But don’t be dumb…Read more...

Esoteric U.S. laws can be a pain sometimes—what other country makes it a federal crime to write a check for less than $1? But they can also work in our favor, like that $25 check T-Mobile is legally obligated to send me as part of a class-action settlement for carelessly handling my data in violation of the law.

Do you know what your teenager is thinking, feeling, or doing most of the time? Maybe you sense a sullen attitude one day, but you have no idea if it’s a problem at school, a social schism, or just the demeanor of the day. If you feel like your teen is a black box you don’t know how to open, operate, or interact with,…Read more...

Even people who absolutely love their job have to deal with at least occasional work-related stress and anxiety. And while plenty of companies like to talk about prioritizing employees’ mental health and well-being, their actions often say otherwise—including maintaining an environment where the threat of layoffs is…Read more...

While there are advantages to brick-and-mortar retail establishments, it can be hard to resist the convenience of online shopping—especially when it comes to comparing prices.Read more...

With Valentine’s Day coming up in a few days, those who choose to celebrate the holiday may opt to shower their loved one(s) with gifts. And while there are no one-size-fits-all tokens of affection, there are certain presents and activities that are considered traditional—or, depending on your point of view, cliché.Read more...

Unless you go to great lengths to keep your shoes looking pristine at all times, they’re probably going to accumulate some scuff marks from everyday wear and tear. But the good news is that for the most part, those blemishes are only temporary, and tend to be fairly easy to remove. Here are some of the best ways to…Read more...

The Scrub Daddy is a truly viral cleaning tool that people love both online and in real life. The official website bills the scrubber as “America’s favorite sponge” and attributes that to its use of FlexTexture material that is more absorbent in warm water and abrasive in cold. You don’t have to know what FlexTexture…Read more...

There’s never been a worse time to buy a car. According to Consumer Reports, there are more new cars available than there were a year ago, but prices keep rising because production favors higher-cost models. The used car market is equally bleak: Prices declined in December 2022, everyone rushed out to take advantage…Read more...

The typical chocolate covered strawberry is good. Just good. There’s no arguing with how well the flavors of sweet, tangy fruit pair with bitter dark chocolate, but the flaw is in the design. Berries dipped in molten chocolate usually set in the fridge, where the fats and sugars re-solidify and become brittle. Cue…Read more...

In a brain that is constantly wracked with uncertainty and anxiety, there is one belief of which I am utterly certain: I am good at ordering. Put me in charge of menu-related decisions, and you will not be disappointed with the outcome. This is true of food, and it is true of beverages.Read more...

One of the perks of working in an office is access to snacks you did not pay for. When I worked at a large engineering firm, there was always a steady supply of doughnuts, cookies, and candy, and it was always a massive amount of candy. There is something delightful about candy on that scale. A tub of jelly beans, a…Read more...

After years of delays, the next game in Nintendo’s beloved Zelda franchise is finally almost here: the release date for The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom was finally officially confirmed earlier this week, and preorders are now open. The game arrives May 12, but at a cost—it’s the first Switch game with a…Read more...

Nobody likes a stomach bug. There’s the nausea, vomiting, diarrhea—and if you’re lucky, you get all of the above. And if this particular stomach bug happens to be norovirus, you have the extra treat of knowing it’s super transmissible.

I like to say that I don’t have any “favorites.” I don’t have a favorite color, nor a favorite band, nor a favorite television show, nor even a favorite meal (though I do have a favorite number—5). It’s all nonsense, however, because I actually have a lot of favorites, and they’re all food and beverage products. These…Read more...

There’s something undeniably romantic about making pasta for someone you love. Maybe it’s because I’m always trying to feel like I’m eating dinner at a cute, candlelit Italian restaurant; maybe I just really like carbs. It’s hard to say for sure. But I know one thing for certain: The single most romantic pasta dish on…Read more...

Increasingly permissive laws for cannabis consumption may have found you partaking much more frequently—even daily—but there are pitfalls to habitual use. One of the least serious but most annoying for you (and your wallet) is the fact that the more you use weed (whether you’re smoking it, vaping it, or eating it),…Read more...

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Exercise can be an effective way of dealing with mental health issues. Either alongside or (for mild cases) in place of therapy and medication, going for a run or hitting the gym can help us to manage our moods and give us a healthy outlet for stress. But where is the line between healthy coping strategy and…Read more...

Starting today until an undisclosed time on Sunday (probably midnight ET), Wendy’s is giving their Junior Bacon Cheeseburger for free when you make any purchase via their app. The Jr. Bacon Cheeseburger usually goes for $2.99 (varies by location) and comes with Wendy’s signature square patty and applewood smoked…Read more...

Reminders is a humble little iPhone app. You can use it to note things you want to accomplish today or in the coming weeks. You can use Siri to add tasks, and you can create lists of your important to-dos. At its most basic, Reminders serves as a useful app to help you get things done. But why stop there? Reminders is…Read more...

Whether it’s gross old men preying on younger women, binge drinking in college, or wearing stupid boots, there is nothing new under the sun. Even kids acting like they invented shit that’s been around for thousands of years isn’t new. You did it too. So enjoy this selection of new-old news, gramps.

Face ID is great for locking and unlocking your iPhone, but it’s even better for authenticating apps that contain sensitive data. While many apps now support Face ID log in, there are still plenty that don’t—but there’s a hack that can lock any app behind Face ID, thanks to an interesting quirk of iOS.

How do you promote yourself on social media without sounding insufferable, arrogant, or needy? The question was posed to me recently, and I didn’t immediately have an answer. Candidly, I’ve often wondered this myself: What’s the best way to promote my work?Read more...

You’re probably familiar with the annoying ring of unmelted wax that sometimes develops on larger candles. It’s called “tunneling,” and it’s not just ugly—it decreases a candle’s lifespan and makes it harder to actually use.

February is prime time for SAD, and pretty much universally recognized as the bleakest month of the year. So what better time to binge watch a bunch of the most depressing films ever made?

Brining is an excellent way to season poultry. It imparts flavor and can safeguard against moisture loss in a protein that’s often at-risk for dryness. Instead of relying solely on good ol’ salt (which doesn’t provide much flavor besides, well, saltiness), or a bevy of ingredients that you need to chop and massage,…Read more...

Listen to this clip of blues legend Taj Mahal playing a concert in Germany in the 1990s. The crowd is clapping along happily to “Blues with Feeling,” but Taj stops the performance mid-song.

Whether you get your tidying inspo from CleanTok influencers, Pinterest, or the stuff your aunt shares on Facebook, a lot of home advice these days is viral. Sometimes, the viral content is about methodology, but other times, it centers on specific products and tools. Here are some of the most viral cleaning tools, as…Read more...

We’re so used to seeing finished products, it’s hard to imagine that they were once anything else. But nails, staples, springs, and chains all started life as spools of wire, and a bunch of other household objects and foods have even more surprising origins. Here’s a tour—starting with some bad news about silk. I’m so…Read more...

Any iPhone can take a great picture. If you want to zoom in, though, you need to go Pro. Since the iPhone 7 Plus, Apple has reserved the telephoto zoom lens for its more expensive devices. Its “standard” iPhones must use a digital zoom to move in closer to a subject, which results in a reduced quality image. At least,…Read more...

The name all-purpose cleaner is enticing, especially if you’re in a rush or don’t have a lot to spend on cleaning products (and aren’t in the mood to DIY some). Unfortunately, it’s also misleading: Not everything can be cleaned with all-purpose cleaner, so you have to be careful not to put it on surfaces that won’t…Read more...

In the age of viral and often antagonistic TikTok recipes, it’s nice to see something vintage get attention. Take this “secret banana” french toast—The Reddit-famous recipe is quite simple: Puree half a banana with an egg and a little cinnamon, dip some whole grain bread in the batter, and fry in butter. It’s sort of…Read more...

Bed Bath & Beyond has been struggling to recover from its downturn during the pandemic—and now, the situation is so dire that they’re selling $1 billion in stocks to pay their debts, according to the New York Post. Bed Bath & Beyond has been slowly but surely putting out statements and updating their list of stores…Read more...

Buying cheap video games is a much better value proposition than it used to be. Shopping around for cheap games back in the day usually meant you’d be getting what you paid for (anyone else remember browsing the under $5 older/used section of EB Games?).

I grew up in a densely-populated city in the Northeast, about as far from rural life as you can get. Running around as a kid, I remember seeing some older homes having these weird little posts out in front on the sidewalk, usually with a tiny horse head on top. For a long time I was mystified, until someone finally…Read more...

I’ve been craving a plate of Thai banana roti, and yet my body, mind, and spirit do not want to mix or stretch any roti. Instead, I’ve made Thai banana faux-ti using phyllo dough, and it was a resounding success. If you like bananas even a little bit, you’re going to love this quick four-ingredient dish.

Tabs are not meant to be read. Tabs are meant to be opened, and left opened, while you spend your valuable time opening more tabs. At any given moment, you may have dozens of tabs running idle in the background, waiting for your return. But when disaster strikes, and you accidentally quit your browser—or it quits…Read more...

Across all forms of entertainment media, we are living in the age of the binge, and podcasts are no different. Certainly it’s frustrating to be swept away by a captivating podcast episode only to find out you have to wait a week or more to continue the story.

It isn’t difficult to find an app designed for journaling. In fact, it’s more challenging to choose one from the sea of options out there. Worse yet, most lock their features behind a subscription service, and store your notes themselves, making it hard to switch apps in the future. But you actually can journal for…Read more...

Like any reasonable person, I love garlic bread, but it is not the only allium-based bread you can make and enjoy. Much like their cloved cousin, onions can be transformed into a sweet and savory, irresistible bread topping. All you need is butter, onions, heat, and time.Read more...

We’ve given you tips for extremely specific emergencies, but what you may not realize is that emergency situations can be waiting right around the corner—or in your own house. Here are some tips to help you avoid the under-appreciated but ever-present dangers of everyday life.

Heading out to a dazzling restaurant for a lovely meal is certainly one option for a memorable Valentine’s Day. Contrarily, it’s often disappointing. Stress can stem from reserving a table weeks in advance, only to find that the atmosphere is too busy, then get rushed out because they’re turning over tables on a tight…Read more...

Cling wrap is a kitchen MVP, always there when you need to wrap up leftovers or keep ingredients fresher for longer in the fridge. It can help you prevent spills, keep surfaces clean, and generally save you some extra work.