I’ve collected some of my favourite savings challenges that could help you get started with saving.

Whether you want to save for a wedding, a holiday, a new pair of shoes, or set money aside for a rainy day – you can enjoy these fun ways to save!

The Cancellation Challenge

The first challenge is to take a look at your bank statements and credit card statements too. You can choose to look at them online, or, if you’re like me, you may prefer printing them out! The choice is yours!

Sit down with your spouse and go through the statements. Highlight any subscriptions or memberships that you don’t need or something that you had completely forgotten about. Make a list.

Use this Membership and Subscription Tracker to help you. When you have completed this task, have a think and a chat with your spouse about what you can live without, even if it’s just for a few months. Cancel those subscriptions and memberships!

Now, be warned, some companies make cancelling their subscriptions REALLY tricky. Read the instructions carefully and keep clicking until it clearly says, ‘Your subscription has been cancelled’. And don’t agree to stay signed up when they offer you another FREE pair of socks, bottle of wine, or whatever they are selling!

When Wayne (my husband) and I did this a few months ago, we saved £75 a month! Let me explain! As you may know, it took us years to get on the same financial page. When we did, I needed to show grace and love in a non-judgemental environment. I needed to show Wayne that I wasn’t going to ‘fly off the handle’ when he showed me something I wouldn’t like!

So, it was a few months before he would share his credit card statements with me. When he did, it only took me a few seconds to realise that something was wrong. Now, for those of you who don’t know, Wayne was totally overwhelmed when it came to dealing with money. He wouldn’t look at his bank statements because in his eyes, they were all telling him one thing: he was bad with money.

His credit card statement was no different. But when I took a peek, I knew, very quickly, that someone else was using his credit card. Small, subtle payments were showing on the statements. He had two monthly subscriptions for Amazon Prime and other small Amazon purchases too. Then, one showing £75. On further investigation, we discovered that his card had been used by fraudsters for over TWO YEARS.

Thankfully, both the credit card company and Amazon were very helpful and in a short amount of time, he received a full refund. Was it a hassle for him to call the credit card company? Yes, of course! Was it a hassle for him to contact Amazon? Yes, of course! Was it worth it? Heck yes! Does he check his credit card and bank statements religiously every month? Oh yeah!

So that’s one of the reasons that I am passionate that you check bank statements and credit card statements every month… not only to make you aware of what’s going out but also to help you ensure that no one else is using your cards either!

The No Spend Challenge

The No Spend challenge is simple. You give yourself a set amount of time without buying non-essential items (like takeaways) and you only pay for necessities like food and bills. You can do this for as long as you want to – a weekend, a week, even a month! This can be a useful challenge if you need to build up short-term savings quickly.

If you’d like, you can jump over to Facebook and join my No Spend Challenge 2024. We are a community of supportive and encouraging people who hold each other accountable! All are welcome!

The £1 Savings Challenge

I have created some saving challenges where you can save either coins or notes and save between £50 / $50 to £1000 / $1000.

Every time you pop a coin or note in the jar, you colour a circle in and watch the amount increase! We’ve found this to be a fun way to save as a family and we always have a plan on how we’re going to spend the money.

Check out my downloadable Savings Challenges in my Etsy store and get started today!

Sell Pre-Loved Items

I love this one – mainly because it has two aims. The first aim is to declutter and get rid of anything that we are no longer using or no longer need (for me, that’s a win in itself!).

The second aim is to make some money! We set ourselves a family challenge – who can make £50 / £100 first!

Admittedly, it’s always my husband who wins because he always has some gadgets or tech to sell! However, at the end of the day we’re all winners because we’ve all had a bit of a declutter AND we’ve made a bit of extra cash.

To get started, look around your home for items that you no longer use or need. This could be anything from clothes, shoes, books, electronics, to furniture. Once you’ve gathered your items, decide on the best platform to sell them. Websites like eBay, Facebook Marketplace, or even local car boot sales can be great places to start. Take clear, high-quality photos of your items and write honest, detailed descriptions. Be patient and persistent; sometimes it takes a while for items to sell, but the effort can pay off in the end.

The Eat At Home Challenge

How much can you save by not buying any takeaways or dining in restaurants at all? If you tend to order in or go out a lot, probably quite a bit. That’s why this money challenge has very few rules—though, if you’re heavily reliant on ordering in, it can be challenging.

Consider starting your challenge small with a weekend or week. During that time, don’t eat out at all. Try pairing this challenge with a pantry challenge, in which you challenge yourself to eat through everything in your pantry.

To maximise your odds of success, you’ll need to be organised from the start: Have some quick, easy recipes and fill up your fridge and larder with the ingredients that you’ll need.

Cooking meals in advance and freezing them is a great life hack for those days when you are home late – you just need to remember to get the meal out of the freezer before you go to work!

Take cash when you go food shopping!

I have to admit that we’ve had to increase the food budget over the last year. Not because we’re buying anything more, but because of the increase in food prices. To avoid spending any more than I need to, I take cash.

All those lovely, yummy, unnecessary items are placed at the end of the conveyor belt and I tell the cashier how much money I have. In all the years I’ve been doing this, all the cashiers have been lovely.

They look at me as my spending limit gets closer and they understand my sorrow as I have to return all the chocolate bars and yummy treats!

It has certainly helped both my budget and my waistline! 🙂

The 52-Week Challenge

Another fun and effective saving challenge is the 52-week challenge. The idea is simple: you save an increasing amount of money each week for a year. In the first week, you save £1. In the second week, you save £2, and so on until the final week of the year, where you save £52. By the end of the 52 weeks, you will have saved £1,378. This challenge is great for gradually building your savings without feeling overwhelmed.

The Round-Up Challenge

The round-up challenge involves rounding up your purchases to the nearest pound and saving the difference. For instance, if you buy a coffee for £2.60, you round up to £3 and save the 40p. This can be done manually or through banking apps that offer automatic round-up features. Over time, these small amounts add up without you even noticing, making it an effortless way to save.

The Digital Envelope System

For those who prefer digital tools, the envelope system can be adapted to a digital format. Create separate savings accounts or use a budgeting app that allows you to allocate money into different virtual envelopes for various expenses. This system helps you control your spending by ensuring you only use the money allocated in each envelope for its intended purpose. For example, you can have envelopes for groceries, entertainment, and emergencies.

The Spare Change Challenge

The spare change challenge is similar to the round-up challenge but focuses on saving physical coins. At the end of each day, empty your pockets or wallet of any spare change and put it into a jar or piggy bank. This simple habit can result in a surprising amount of savings over time. Plus, it’s a great way to involve children in saving by encouraging them to contribute their own spare change.

The Budget Review Challenge

Lastly, take time each month to review your budget and look for areas where you can cut back or optimise your spending. This might involve finding cheaper alternatives for recurring expenses, such as switching utility providers or renegotiating contracts. Regularly reviewing your budget helps you stay on top of your finances and ensures that your spending aligns with your savings goals.

Read more: How to create a budget in 6 easy steps

By incorporating these savings challenges into your routine, you can make saving money a fun and rewarding experience. Whether you’re looking to save a little or a lot, these challenges provide a variety of strategies to suit your lifestyle and financial goals.

Which challenge will you try first?

Let me know in the comments below and be sure to let me know how much money you save too!