Are you looking for ways to boost your savings but stressed about money? Imagine saving $5,000 or more in just 100 days. It sounds unreal, but it’s possible with the right money-saving challenges. Instead of depending on one saving method, use many. This way, you’ll learn to save in different ways and be more likely to save more money. Additionally, you’ll figure out which methods work best for you.
Here, we list money-saving challenges aimed at helping you save money and build better spending habits. Some of the methods we list here will only help you save a few hundred, but because they’re easy to do, they will help you reach $5,000 or more. Let’s dive into the money-saving challenges and start saving.
1. The $5 Bill Challenge
The goal of the $5 bill challenge is to save every $5 bill you receive when given change for cash purchases. You likely won’t notice the impact of a single $5 bill, but as they accumulate, you can save a good amount of money. If you collect $5 daily, you will save $450 in 90 days.
2. The No-Spend Challenge
The secret to building wealth isn’t always high income. You can earn $250,000 annually and still be broke if you live in an expensive house and have high expenses. With the no-spend challenge, commit to only purchasing essential items.
Be sure to consider why you’re saving money in the first place. Will the money give you extra security? Will you be able to go on a trip? Whatever the reason, if it’s meaningful, you’ll be more likely to commit to the challenge.
3. The Pantry Challenge
It’s a common issue to not use all the groceries we purchase. The goal of the pantry challenge is to use everything in your pantry—aside from preserved goods that you can save for emergencies—before purchasing groceries. By committing to this challenge, you’ll be less wasteful and save extra money on groceries.
4. The Round-up Savings Challenge
You may need a calculator for the round-up savings challenge, but it’s worth it. Round all your purchases up to the nearest dollar and save the difference. If something costs $1.50, round up to $2.00 and save $0.50. You’ll save money daily and be forced to spend less because you’re rounding up.
5. The Modified 52-Week Money Challenge
The modified 52-week money challenge will start with you saving $20 in the first week and increasing it by $5 over the next ten weeks. You can combine this challenge with the $5 challenge for extra savings.
6. The Daily Dollar Challenge
This challenge will start slow but pick up quickly. To start the daily dollar challenge, save $1 on day one, $2 on day 2, and so on. You’d continue saving an extra $1 daily for 100 days. Believe it or not, this challenge alone will help you save $5,050 after 100 days.
7. The Declutter for Dollars Challenge
The Declutter for Dollars challenge is straightforward: it involves selling items you no longer use. The amount you earn weekly will vary depending on your approach. You can list items on places like eBay or Facebook marketplace.
There’s no guarantee all your items will sell, and the average sale time will vary. To increase your odds, budget $25 to $50 weekly and search for more items at local garage sales. It’s common to find items for $5 or $10 that you can flip for five times the cost.
8. The Change Jar Challenge
If you frequently pay cash for most of your purchases, you’ll benefit from the change jar challenge. This challenge involves depositing any loose change into a jar. The moment you start this challenge, you’ll be more alert in spotting loose change. Every 30 days, take this loose change to a bank or a coin machine to convert your coins into cash.
9. The Water Bottle Savings Challenge
The water bottle savings challenge involves filling 2-liter bottles with dimes. Every time you find a dime, pop it in the bottle. It might take a while to fill it up, but it’ll be worth it. Just one 2-liter bottle can hold roughly $500.
10. The Coupon Clipping Challenge
The goal of this challenge is to use coupons whenever possible. Get familiar with grocery flyers and coupon books from your favorite brands. This might seem like a no-brainer, but you may not always think of using coupons during your purchases. How much money you’ll save here will vary, but it’s a good habit to get into.
11. The $20 Weekly Boost Challenge
The $20 weekly boost challenge is simple and straightforward, making it easy to start with. The goal here is to save $20 weekly for 12 weeks. At the end of the period, you’ll save at least $200.
12. A Cash-Only Diet
The problem with budgeting nowadays is that it’s easy to go over budget without noticing, especially if you have recurring payments or frequently make small purchases. To help you avoid overspending, try the cash-only diet.
Review your monthly expenses and withdraw enough cash to cover them. If you pay for most things digitally, use your debit card only. This way, you won’t accrue debt and avoid going over budget.
13. The 100 Envelope Challenge
If you’re a visual person, the envelope challenge may work better than the daily dollar challenge. The envelope challenge also involves saving money daily, but instead of saving incrementally, you’ll save a different amount daily.
Purchase 100 envelopes from the dollar store and label them $1 to $100. Set the envelopes aside somewhere and shuffle them if you want to have more fun. Choose an envelope every day and save the amount labeled.
14. Freelance Work
Freelancing has the potential to change your financial future forever. Take on freelance work based on your skills—writing, web design, and much more. Whatever money you earn from freelancing, save it for the next 90 days.
The best part of this challenge is that your freelance income can increase over time. If it can replace your current income, you may even decide to do it full-time.
15. Fitness Challenges for Funds
Similar to marathons, which are done for a special cause, you can do something similar to save money. For each mile you walk or bike, pledge to save a dollar. Not only will you save money, but you may also be motivated to get more active to save more.