Bread is among the most wasted foods in any household, and almost all of it is thrown away in a state that several classic dishes specifically require. Stale is not spoiled — it is dry, and dry bread does things fresh bread cannot.
The five
Breadcrumbs, made by blitzing or grating it, which keep for months in the freezer. Croutons, torn and roasted with oil and salt. A bread salad, where dry bread soaks up tomato juice and oil instead of collapsing. A savoury bread pudding or strata with eggs, milk and whatever cheese and vegetables are around. And the sweet version, which is the same thing with sugar and cinnamon.
Dry, not mouldy
Hard, dry and pale is fine and is what you want. Any spot of mould means the loaf goes, all of it — the visible spot is not the whole of it in soft foods like bread. If it smells musty rather than of bread, that is the same answer.
Bring a loaf most of the way back
Run the crust briefly under the tap, then put it in a hot oven for ten minutes. The moisture turns to steam inside and the crust crisps. It is convincingly fresh for about an hour, which is long enough for dinner. This works once. After that it is croutons.
Freeze it on the day you buy it
Bread stales fastest in the fridge and slowest in the freezer. Slice the loaf and freeze it the day it arrives, and take out what you need — slices toast straight from frozen. A frozen loaf is the single largest saving available in most kitchens, because bread is bought often and finished rarely.
Slice and freeze on day one, revive once, and turn the rest into crumbs, croutons or pudding. Very little bread genuinely needs to be thrown away.