If you’re looking to save some extra cash this month or over the next few months, consider undertaking a money saving challenge.
There are all sorts of creative savings challenges that you can take on, from the $1-bill and the trim 1% of your salary challenge to the popular no-swear challenge. We’ve compiled some of the best ones out there for you to try out this year.
If you wish to gamify your money saving efforts, keep on scrolling!
$1-Bill Save Challenge
The $1-bill challenge is the easiest money saving challenge to do in 2022. All you have to do is stash away all the one-dollar bills that come your way.
You can decide to save for a week, month, or even a year. While it may not seem like much, if you save just one dollar a day, by the end of the year, you’ll have saved yourself $365. And believe us, you can buy some pretty cool tech for $300!
365-Day Nickel Challenge
This one is another popular all-year money saving challenge, and the concept is pretty straightforward. On day one, you put $0.05 nickels into your savings account. Then, on day two, you add $0.05 to your deposit, resulting in a total savings of $0.15.
You increase the previous day’s deposit by a nickel on each subsequent day. I.e., your deposit will be $5.00 on day 100, while it will be $18.40 on the last day.
If you follow this plan by the book, you’ll be able to save $3,339.75 at the end of the year.
The ‘Trim 1% of Your Salary’ Challenge
This realistic money saving challenge is perfect for those who want to save money without making major lifestyle changes. The premise is simple: you save 1% of your annual salary each month and don’t touch the money until the end of the year.
So if you make $50,000 a year, you would save $500 each month. By the end of the year, you would have saved $6,000.
3-Month Money Saving Challenge
If you’re not into a weekly savings challenge and wish to save a more considerable sum quickly, this challenge is ideal for you. As its name suggests, it lasts for only three months, and the goal is to save $1,000. To do this, you will need to set aside $333 per month for three months.
52-Week Money Challenge
The 52-week saving money challenge is one of the most popular money challenges out there. How does it work? You start by saving $1 in week one, $2 in week two, and so on until you deposit $52 in week 52. If you stick through this challenge, you’ll have $1,378 right on time for the holidays!
No-Eating Out Challenge
Eating out is one of the largest unnecessary money wasters. American households spend about $3,500 per year on eating out.
On that note, if you want to save about $300 per month, you should try the no-eating out challenge. Start by cooking all your meals at home for a month. You can do this money savings challenge alone or with friends and family.
If you’re doing it with others, you can make it a competition to see who can save the most money.
The Pantry Challenge
Closely linked to the previous challenge but taken up a notch, the pantry savings challenge is a great way to save money and eat healthy at the same time.
The idea is to use up all the food in your pantry, freezer, and fridge before buying more. This challenge will help you waste less food and save money on your grocery bill.
How much can you save? Anywhere between $50 and $400 per month.
The No-Swear Money Challenge
If you’re a fan of funny money saving ideas, this one’s for you. For the no-swear challenge to work, you must put a certain amount of money in a jar every time you swear.
It can be anything from $0.50 to $5.00. At the end of the month, you can use that money to treat yourself or save it. This challenge is fun and even better if you involve the whole family!
No-Spend Challenge
There are many ways to save money, but the best one is probably not to spend money at all. Here’s where the no-spend challenge steps in.
The goal of the no-spend challenge is to, you guessed it, not spend any money for a set period. This can be anything from 24 hours to 30 days or even longer.
Before you start this saving challenge, make sure to establish some rules. I.e., make a list of what you’ll avoid buying (clothes, cosmetics, video games, and furnishings). It’s important to concentrate on products that you overspend on, or the challenge won’t have any effect on your purchasing habits.
For example, if you’re like most Americans, you probably spend approximately $1,604 per year on clothing. So if you stop buying new clothing for a year, you’ll save about $133 per month.
Conclusion
Remember, the more effort you put in, the more money you can save. And if you find some of these challenges too tough or they don’t work for you, no problem. Just find something that does and stick with it.
Saving money doesn’t have to be hard — it can be kind of fun when you get creative and make it into a game. Are you up for the challenge?
FAQs
What is the $20 savings challenge?
The $20 challenge is a weekly money challenge where you save $20 each week for a year. At the end of the year, you will have saved $1,040.
How can I save $5000 in 3 months?
One way to do this is to set a goal and create a plan to reach that goal. For example, you can start saving $500 per week or $2,000 per month.
Then, you can work on finding ways to reach those goals. For example, you could try to save on your everyday expenses, such as cutting back on eating out or shopping less.
Alternatively, you could try to earn more money by picking up extra hours at work or starting a side hustle.
What is the 100 envelope challenge?
This is a fun challenge where you save money by putting it into 100 envelopes.
To do this money saving envelope challenge, start by finding 100 envelopes. Once you have your envelopes, label them with the numbers one through one hundred. Pick a random envelope every day and put the corresponding cash value inside.
With this challenge, you’ll save $5,050 in just 14 weeks.
What is the best money saving challenge?
The answer to this question is not as straightforward as you may think. There are many challenges, and which is best for you depends on your circumstances.
For example, if you’re trying to save money for a specific goal, such as buying a new TV, you may want to try the 52-week money challenge. On the other hand, the no eating out challenge might better fit you if you’re searching for ways to cut down your monthly expenses.
In the end, it’s up to you to decide which money saving challenge works best for you.