Every year I tell myself I will be more frugal with my money. Whether I am saving for the holidays or for a vacation the challenge is always to try and save more money. This money saving challenge to save $500 in 30 days can be started at any time preferably in the beginning of a month. You can combine the challenge with a no spend challenge and potentially save more money.
I created this money saving challenge because saving is hard and sometimes things sneak up on us. There are various things that we can do to help save money and I have highlighted them below. If you are just starting out on saving intentionally I encourage you to use this challenge and follow it through. It is always rewarding when you start a challenge and complete it.
Make sure you check out my 21-DAY HABIT TRACKER FOR THE NEW YEAR that provides even more challenges to try out in the new year.
Money Saving Challenge Guideline
For this savings challenge I encourage you to start a separate savings account. Most banks do not charge you to start a savings account if you are already a member. Name this account something like, “Emergency Fund Account”, “2020 Saving Challenge Account” or anything that will clearly call it out. If you cannot do this then actively take money and put it in an envelope and track how much you set aside daily.
Save a screenshot of the challenge or print it out. I recommend printing it out as you can mark it up as much as you want. Cross off each day and count the money if you are using the envelope method. If you are using the banking method as you transfer money to this account, you can easily see the balance increasing. It is important to keep this account separate.
Please note that if you are able, you can increase the amount of the challenge. What this means is if you want to save $1,000 just double the daily amount. If you’d like to save $1,500 triple the daily amount and so forth. Similarly, if you have a smaller goal then half the amount each day and keep going. When you have a little extra throw it into the envelope or bank.
How to save money for the challenge
Stop buying things that you don’t need this month.
I wrote a post on things I stopped buying that ultimately saved me thousands of dollars. I never realized how much money we spend on things we don’t need until I intentionally stopped buying them. That cup of coffee at Starbucks daily easily run me up to $25 every week. Buying lunch cost me about $50 every week. That’s $75 per week. By not buying breakfast or lunch for a month I saved $300 per month.
Have I warmed you up yet? It is possible to save $500 a month by giving up a few things. Use this free printable to start.
See Things I Stopped Buying to Save Money.
Make extra money this month
I recently started doing surveys in my spare time. Some have a good payout and some not so much. If you do a simple google search you will find surveys that you can take to earn enough to cover some of the days in the challenge.
You could start delivering food this month and make a little extra for the challenge. Maybe even sell a few things that you don’t use anymore online or host a yard sale. There are so many opportunities to make a little extra money.
These are 7 ways that you can make $100 that I personally use and that have worked for me.
Create a budget and stick to it
This seems like such an obvious thing to do but budgets are hard to stick to especially around the holidays. There seems to be a sale just about everywhere you look. However, if you look at your spending habits you may find opportunities to save more especially for the challenge. Creating a budget takes a couple of steps that you can easily follow here.
Get the Budget Template
Sign up for Cashback
Most credit cards usually have deals with grocery stores, gas stations and retails stores where you can earn cash back. This is money that you were going to spend anyway and here you have an opportunity to earn back on your spending. Look at the offers that are available and sign up for them. It costs nothing and the rewards are real. I just made $1.96 the other day for grocery shopping. This may not seem like a big amount but it could easily be $20 over a month.
I truly hope that you join me in this challenge and that we are all successful. Please leave me a comment if you decide to join this challenge and let me know the outcome. Let’s save $500 in 30 days!
Saving money is empowering and if you know someone who would like to join please ask them to join as well. Let’s have fun with this! Good luck!
