Money-Saving Challenges exist because saving doesn't come off so easy for everyone.
It's hard to save money when you're living paycheck to paycheck, threading through waters, and racking a massive pile of debt.
A survey from Bankrate.com reveals that 21% of working Americans aren't saving money at all. Among the most prominent reasons are due to expenses, debt, or a job that isn't good enough. Significantly, younger generations are finding it difficult to save more money.
Day-to-day costs continue to soar; however, there are surefire ways for you to save more money without committing to drastic changes in your lifestyle or feeling entirely cash-strapped at all.
Do you find it hard to save even a bit of cash? Do you have overspending money issues? Or, are you looking for some creative ways to save more money this year? This 2021, level up your savings goals!
In this post, we will tackle why you should try out money-saving challenges, share with your some fun and easy money-challenges you can try, and give tips on how to stick with them. In the end, saving money will come automatically to you.
Further Reading:
- How to save $1,000 fast
- The 30-Day Savings Rule- Easy Step by Step Guide to Save More Money
- 23 Best Money Saving Apps that will Fast Track Your Savings
What is a Money-Saving Challenge?
Do you love challenges? Well, why not try a money-saving challenge today? For instance, you set an amount you want to save for a given time. You can do it daily, weekly, or monthly, such as the $5 bill savings challenge or the 52-week saving challenge.
It doesn't matter how small or large an amount you want to get started with, as long as you're saving everything you can.
Money-saving challenges are popularized by financial-savvy bloggers and experts alike to help people who are struggling to set aside even a few dollar bills or coins.
Thanks to them and the internet, now, you can start yours today effortlessly.
Why Should You Try a Money-Saving Challenge?
The point is you make saving money easy and enjoyable. It works like a snowball. You start little by little, and eventually, your money will add up.
A money-saving challenge is also an excellent way for you to build up your savings goals slowly. It's a fun and creative way to help people save money easily.
You can incorporate these atomic habits into your life and share them with your partner, friends, or officemates. If you're a household, you can make it your family bonding thing with your kids too!
17 Money Saving Challenges to Try Today
There are many money-saving challenges out there, some of which you might probably know about. But, there are also some you may not have heard of. Well, read on, and let's get started!
Creative Money-Saving Challenges You Can Actually Stick To
- 52-Week Savings Challenge
- No-Spend Challenge
- Payday Savings Challenge
- 26-week Savings challenge
- 365 Day Money Challenge
- Spare change Challenge
- $5 bill savings challenge
- $1 bill savings challenge
- Weather Savings Challenge
- Habit savings challenge
- Lifestyle Savings challenge
- 100 envelope challenge
- 31-Day Improve Your Financial Life Challenge
- No Eating Out Challenge
- 90-day $1000 Emergency Fund Challenge
- $20 Weekly Money-Saving Challenge
- 7-Day Money Challenge
52-Week Savings Challenge
It is one of the most popular money-saving challenges out there. It's super easy to do! To get started, you save a dollar each week and watch it grow. For week 1, set aside $1; for week 2, save $2, and so on. On week 52, save $52, and by the end of the year, you'll save $1,378.
Looks unchallenging? Try to double it up each week. You can do $2 for the first week, $4 on the next, and $6 on the third week, and so forth. Another way is to do it in reverse order. Although you'll start with $52 on the first week, you'll get ease by saving a little then at the end of the year.
No-Spend Challenge
From the word itself, the no-spend challenge is literally a no-spend challenge! It's not that you'll never spend at all, of course, you have to pay for your needs. But, actual and real necessities only like rent, gas, and food.
You'll not dip into your wants or those expenses that will not affect your daily life. For example, books, entertainment, going out, etc. You can do a no-spend month, no-spend week, or no-spend weekend.
What I'm personally into is the no-spend month on books! Yes, I am incorporating a book buying ban for myself in a month, and it's a lifesaver! I hope I can make it!
Payday Savings Challenge
I love this one! Actually, I started this challenge when I got my first job! It's easy; you set a percentage amount of your payday check and put it in a savings account. Much better if it's a high-yield savings account. Or, if you want to put it in your retirement account, you may do so.
It's better if you contribute this early if your employer doesn't have one. Every paycheck, try to contribute 1% towards your retirement goals at least. You'll see these small increments grow, and when you're ready to harvest, you'll taste the sweet fruit.
For the payday savings challenge, the percentage amount depends on how much you want to save. Usually, in my case, I follow the 50-30-20 rule, so every payday, I treat my savings as an expense and set aside immediately 20% of my total income towards my savings.
26-week Savings challenge
The idea of this challenge is to save an amount every two weeks and up the amount. For example, you can start with $3 on the first week, then $5, then $7 on the third week, and so on. This is useful if you are paid bi-weekly. Moreover, you can also increase the amount say, by $4 ($4, $8, $12 $16,) or by $5 ($5 $10, $15). You can also use this to save $1000 at any starting point within 26 weeks.
365 Day Money Challenge
Well, this one is a simple and easy challenge. You'll pick a starting amount to save and double it daily for 365 days or 1 year. This is an excellent money-saving challenge since it will help you build momentum when starting small and roll it over as it becomes larger.
This money challenge describes pinching every penny that you will get. You can start up with as little as one cents and double it every day. By the end of the year, you'll save over $600, Yey!
Of course, you can modify this amount to whatever your liking. The goal is to get into the habit of savings with ease and less stress.
Spare change Challenge
If you're always using cash, saving money will be more comfortable. The main rule in this challenge is to keep every loose change or the excess amount you get from every cash transaction you made. I do this thing too! You can put those spare coins in a savings jar, and you may not notice it for a while, but that loose change adds up! Recently, I used mine when I get short in my fare budget.
See, having extra money at times needed is a real lifehack.
On the other hand, if you're more of an online junkie, a micro-investing app called Acorns allows you to invest your spare change by rounding it up to the nearest dollars. Now that's an intelligent way to manage spare change.
$5 bill savings challenge
Now this one is a no brainer. Essentially, you'll save every $5 bill you get. To make it more exciting, cover your savings jar or piggy bank so that you'll have the element of surprise as to how much you can accumulate by year-end. Remember, every $5 bill should be on the savings jar or box. No need to establish a timeline; save every $5 bill whenever you hold one.
$1 bill savings challenge
If a $5 bill is too much for you, you can start with a $1 bill instead. No time pressure and all that stuff, make sure to keep every $1 tab safe. The key here is to learn how to save consistently. You'll be surprised by how much a $1 bill can go.
Besides, you need not worry too much about a certain amount and timeline; not too much cognitive thinking out there, my friend. Learn to make it as if an automatic response from you.
Weather Savings Challenge
Want to upgrade your money challenge? Well, try out the weather savings challenge. What you'll do is pick a random day of the week and save the amount of the temperature (in Fahrenheit) So, expect during the summer season, you've got to keep a higher amount too! Isn't it fun?
You can also pick one day off the week, and depending on the weather on that day, say Wednesday, save the amount of the temperature! It is enjoying this way since you don't know how the weather will go on that particular day.
Habit savings challenge
This one is my favorite. To do this challenge, you pick a habit you’re trying to get rid of and save a fixed amount anytime to do it. For instance, if you want to cut off swearing, build a swear jar (I did this once), and every time you catch yourself swearing, put a dollar amount into it.
It is more exciting when you do it with a friend or anyone you know. Not only do you develop self-awareness and getting rid of a bad habit, but you also fattened your wallet with every dollar you save from going sideways or against your “bad habit.”
Before it was just a fun game between my friends and me, it became one of my learning foundations about savings over time.
Another habit you can incorporate savings into is when you buy coffee outside or eat lunch out. Well, it's not totally a lousy habit perse, but more like, whenever you feel struggling to tucked away even a bit of cash, you doing those things will help you save money instead. And of course, if you are committed to setting good habits, including saving money, mixing them will set you off to a good start.
Lifestyle Savings challenge
Almost similar to the habit savings challenge, in the lifestyle savings challenge, it's not entirely you want to change or remove your habit or lifestyle. It's more like using the chance to save more money from an activity you often do and set a saving rule towards it.
So what you do here is that you pick an activity and save a certain amount anytime you do it. For example, when you buy a coffee, like a Facebook post, or indulge in a guilty pleasure. With this in mind, it will help you remember to stow away cash anytime possible.
If you want to know more about the lifestyle savings challenge, Qapital app can help.
Further reading: Qapital Review: How this Money App Helped Me Save $7000+ in 7 Months
100 envelope challenge
Do you want to learn the secret to save $5000 or more within a year? Well, the 100 envelope challenge can help! To do this, you have to do the following:
- Get 100 envelopes, big or small, colored or plain; it doesn't matter.
- Label them from 1 to 100.
- Randomly pick two envelopes every week and save the amount equal to the number on the envelope.
It's easy and so much fun! If you get the number 62, then save $62 that day. Then if you get $12, go ahead and add it to your total savings. It'll be satisfying seeing your savings go higher and higher each week through this challenge. This challenge will save $5050 in one year.
Again, it's all up to you to make this challenge more in tune with your goals. Instead of randomly picking envelopes, you can also choose which number to save on that day and shade it in your tracker.
31-Day Improve Your Financial Life Challenge
Another new and promising challenge to level up your finances is the 31-days improves your financial life challenge. 2021 is a year full of hope, and it's not too late to thrive and recover from the setbacks experienced last year.
The 31 days improve your financial life challenge also a guide or a set of actionable tasks that will help your financial life get better.
For example, on Day 1, you can start saving $1,000. Or, on Day 7, take time to know your assets and net worth. Then on Day 23, improve your credit score. Make sure to do something every day that will improve your financial life by taking these baby steps all the way.
Essentially, all these challenges are geared towards fixing or significantly improving your financial situation. It's more than just saving and budgeting because it also includes meandering tasks, sometimes we took for granted and forgetting all about.
To learn more about this challenge, check out this fantastic post by Philip Taylor in his blog, 31 Days to Improve Your Financial Life (Take the Challenge!)
No Eating Out Challenge
You may not notice it, but eating out can eat up your money if not prompted early. Yes, food is a basic necessity, but you can also save money by cooking your meals at home or using coupons at the grocery store.
If you found yourself draining money on eating more and more outside, either alone or with a company, enroll yourself in a no eating out ban. Establish a time frame for this challenge, say 14 days, 30 days, or 45 days. Make sure that you will say NO to anyone who asks you to eat out within that period. Resist the temptation and urge to dip into your savings! It's not healthy!
This challenge will work best if you have an accountability partner who will remind you to be committed to your self-imposed challenge. Then, maybe you and your pal can get along well!
90-day $1000 Emergency Fund Challenge
Most advice you'll get from financial experts in getting started in your financial journey is to build an emergency fund first, an emergency fund that will work as a buffer with at least three to six months amount equivalent to your expenses. That way, you'll be able to have money when life throws lemonade at you.
But how much and how long exactly will you able to work on your emergency fund? If you search over the internet on a couple of blogs, they recommend a $1,000 ideal amount; that is enough to cover you for three to six months. However, how long are you going to make it up?
What if you can start your $1000 emergency fund in 90 days or less? Do the 90-day $1000 Emergency Fund Challenge now!
In this challenge, to help you not get too overwhelmed, you will start low and slowly. For the first week, save $100 first. Well, the first step might be the hardest, but it's totally worth it. Then on the second week, save another $100.
For the third week, reduce the amount to $50. This is to give yourself a break and slowly transition to your money-saving mindset. (Yeah, we know it's hard) Then on the 4th week, go back to the $100 bill. On the 5th week, reduce it again by $50. Finally, for weeks 6 through 13, you must save $75 each week. Think you can make it? Of course, you can!
$20 Weekly Money-Saving Challenge
Another money-saving challenge that will let you save $1000 or more is the $20 weekly challenge. All you have to do is save $20 every week to get $1040 at the end of the year. Cool!
For this challenge, you won't feel too burdened since it's easy to save twenty bucks, right?
7-Day Money Challenge
In this challenge, it resembles the 31-day improve your financial life challenge mentioned earlier. But this time, it'll be all around the span of seven days or one week. You will essentially go about simple money tasks each day for a week to strengthen your financial well-being.
Tasks include:
- Day 1: Optimize your thinking
- Day 2: Trim your budget
- Day 3: Plan for retirement
- Day 4: Build your emergency fund
- Day 5: Find your best credit card
- Day 6: Understand your credit score
- Day 7: Get insurance assurance
How to Stick to Your Money-Saving Challenge to the End
A challenge is a challenge. There may be times when you will fall apart and lose the willpower to stick to it till the end, but know that it will be all worth it after all.
First of all, you need to have a strong driving factor in why you want to participate in this challenge. It's more than just saving more money or creating a new habit; it's all about learning to discipline yourself and stay consistent throughout. You do not only improve your financial life, but you also improve the overall quality of your life.
On the other hand, if there are days when you're not feeling it, don't force yourself. You want to avoid the burnout feeling. Like a muscle, if you overstrain it, you might only suffer in the end. Try to commit to it and not view it as a meandering task or just any other to-do-list you're excited to cross out.
You have to put in the work, and the power is in the doing.
Moreover, you have to remember that it's okay if you pass once or twice, but never let yourself fall more than to that. Pick yourself back up and go back to basics!
Use sticky notes to give yourself a virtual cue that you should be saving x amount for this week, etc. You can put in the reminder to your mobile phones too.
In addition to that, you can team up with your friends or coworkers to be your accountability partner and join you towards your money-saving challenge.
Lastly, treat yourself when you completed your challenge. Reward yourself because it may take you many sacrificial outlets to do this challenge, or you may struggle in the very beginning but look where you are at now! A simple date with yourself, self-care day, or anything you will enjoy, do it for yourself because you overcome this challenge!
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Final thoughts
To sum it up, money-saving challenges will not guarantee you to be debt-free in a couple of weeks or so, nor will it make you rich quick. Instead, it will help you jumpstart your saving goals and enhance the quality of your financial life.
If you're living paycheck to paycheck, money-saving challenges can be an excellent way to let you tuck away even small cash as it'll come in handy.
Have a compelling reason to buy into this challenge and try to be consistent all throughout. Encourage your partner or anyone who might help you, and together, aim for success! Boost your finance and win more in life!
So, are you ready now to take on the challenge? If you know more money-saving challenges you have tried or are interested in, share them with us below. We love to hear from you!
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