10 Money Saving Challenge Ideas To Try In 2022 (2024)

If saving money or paying off debt is one of your goals this year, then you may want to try a money saving challenge! Even if you haven’t set up a savings plan in place, this is a good time to start. When it comes to creating financial goals for yourself, it’s important to make sure they are S.M.A.R.T.

  • Specificmeans that you have clearly defined what your goal is, why you’re doing it, and how you’re going to accomplish it.
  • Measureablemeans that you should have tangible evidence that you’ve completed your goal, such as tracking your expenses or savings.
  • Achievablemeans that your goal should be realistic and you have to believe that you can achieve it.
  • Results-orientedmeans that you should not only focus on the activities necessary to achieve your goal, but to place importance on measurable outcomes. (In other words, you can’t just rely on good intentions to complete your goal).
  • Time boundmeans that you should set a time frame to achieve your goal as this creates a sense of urgency, otherwise your goal is less likely to produce the outcome you wish.

If you’re like me though, you might need a money saving challenge to help you get motivated to develop better money habits. Here are 10 ideas to inspire you to get started on your road to financial success this year!

Related Posts:

  • Money saving challenge – How to save $500 in 31 days
  • 10 fun hobbies that make money
  • 34 legitimate ways to make extra money
10 Money Saving Challenge Ideas To Try In 2022 (1)

Table of Contents

1. No Spend Weekend Challenge

Get into the habit of making one weekend each month a “no spend weekend”. This means that you don’t spend money on – you guessed it – anything! We try to do this money saving challenge every month.

Instead of eating out, cook a delicious meal at home using ingredients you already have in your fridge or pantry. If you’re looking for some recipe inspiration, these are my go-to cookbooks:

  • Oh She Glows – I’ve been making recipes from this cookbook on a weekly basis for the past year. I absolutely love her Chickpea Salad Sandwiches and Sweet Potato Enchiladas.
  • Chloe’s Kitchen – Chloe’s Chipotle Salad is my absolute favorite!
  • Hot for Food comfort classics – I can’t get enough of the Spicy Peanut Noodles!

Instead of paying money to go to the movie theater, watch a movie at home. Make a bowl a fresh popcorn and enjoy one of your favorite movies or TV shows from the comfort of your own home. I love watching movies and TV shows on Amazon Prime. They have a great selection and it’s much cheaper than paying for cable.

Instead of shopping at the mall, take inventory of the items in your closet and declutter. You’ll be surprised how many nice outfits you already have at home.

If you choose to drive somewhere, make sure that you have enough gas in your tank so you don’t have to fill up that weekend.

2. Increase Your Income Challenge

At the end of the day, there are only so many ways you can slice and dice your monthly budget without wanting to pull your hair out.

Instead, challenge yourself to increase your income. Here on Mint Notion, I love sharing ways to increase your earning power so you can get on track to reaching your financial goals. With inflation rising faster than wages, there has never been a better time to find creative ways to make more money!

For those currently in debt, determine how much extra money is needed each month in order to pay down debt faster. Ideally, you’ll want to set a realistic income goal for yourself and find a way to make extra money. Whether it’s an extra $100 or an extra $1,000 each month, there are lots of different ways to increase your income.

Here are a few ideas to get you thinking:

  • Start a blog
    Blogging is my favorite side hustle because the start-up costs are low and it can be a great way to make extra money in your spare time. Blogging even has the potential to turn into a full-time job (like it did for me). You can use my free step-by-step guide here to create your blog.
  • Freelance writing
    This is a popular way to make money online and it’s great if you enjoy writing. To learn more about earning an income from freelance writing, I recommend checking out this in-depth post: How to become a freelance writer
  • Earn Cashback
    I like shopping on Rakuten so I can earn cashback on all my purchases. It’s free to join and you’ll get a $25 bonus for new members.
  • Online surveys
    There are many online survey websites that will pay you to complete surveys, play games, do online searches and more. They are free to sign up for and free to use. Survey websites I recommend include Swagbucks, Survey Junkie,Branded Surveys.
  • Become an Airbnb host
    If you have a cabin, cottage or extra room in your home, consider becoming an Airbnb host to make extra money. Don’t have any extra space? You can choose to become a host for your neighborhood or make money by hosting a unique experience (hiking, cooking classes, and more). You can learn more about Airbnb here.

Need some more ideas? Check out these helpful posts:

  • 10 real ways to earn money from home
  • 12 ways to make an extra $500 this month
  • 10 fun hobbies that make money

3. No New Clothing Challenge

Can you go a whole month without buying any new clothing? How about an entire year without spending money on clothing?

Clothing can take a huge dent out of our monthly budget. Also, many of us buy new clothes for the sake of buying something new. Whether you’ve gotten tired of items you already own or you want to have the latest new fashion trend, there are a number of reasons why we buy new clothing – even if we don’t really need to.

I used to be guilty of this too before I did the “no new clothing challenge”. You can read my experience doing the challenge here.

Challenge yourself to go one month (or longer) without buying any new clothes. Start by devoting at least one day taking inventory of your entire wardrobe. When items are out of sight, they’re out of mind and you’ll be surprised at what you already own.

Then proceed to declutter your wardrobe. Keep items that you love and bring you joy. Sell or donate items that you no longer need. (This is another great way to make extra money).

Stay motivated and give yourself a pat on the back after successfully completing the challenge. You saved a lot money, cleaned up your wardrobe, and helped the environment too!

4. Debt Free Challenge

According to a recent NerdWallet report, American families have an average of $16,000 in credit card debt. While lifestyle creep can play a factor, one of the main reasons why debt has increased so much is because the rise in the cost of living has outpaced income growth in the past 13 years.

Despite household income growing by 28 percent since 2003, it lags the cost of living, which has increased 30 percent during this period. Many Americans are relying on credit cards, which is one of the most expensive ways to borrowwhen their income simply doesn’t cut it.

So what’s the solution?

Increase your income and cut expenses.Challenge yourself to reduce or eliminate your debt this year. Focus on finding ways to increase your household income and cut unnecessary spending.

The gap between income and expense growth is real. Don’t beat yourself up if you’re finding it hard to stay afloat. Instead get creative, focus on increasing your income, and make temporary cuts to your monthly expenses.

Not sure how to increase your income? Check out these helpful posts:

  • 70+ ways to make extra money
  • 15 side hustles to make extra money in your spare time
  • How to start a blog and make money

5. 30-Day Money Challenge

This is one of my favorite money challenges to do when you want to build your savings account.

The 30-Day Money Challenge will allow you to save nearly $500 in just one month. It works like this: each day you will save a specified amount of money and each day this amount of money will increase.

For example, on Day 1, you will save $1; Day 2, you will save $2, Day 3, you will save $3, and so on.

For more tips to help you successfully complete the challenge, check out this post: Money Challenge: How to Save $500 in 30 Days

6. Reduce Your Monthly Expenses Challenge

Here on Mint Notion, I love sharing simple ways to reduce one’s monthly bills and expenses. While it can take a little more effort to find ways to reduce your fixed expenses, there is usually some wiggle room in your budget to lower these costs. This is a smart money saving challenge.

I recommend spending an afternoon taking a good look at your current monthly bills and expenses. This includes your monthly fixed costs (rent, utility bills, car payments) and variable costs (groceries, clothing, entertainment). Determine which expenses you can afford to reduce (or eliminate) in order to help you reach your financial goals.

Understanding where your money is going is the first step to understanding how you can adjust your expenses. It may not seem like much now, but every little bit counts.

For example, instead of paying for a monthly gym membership, I started buying workout DVDs instead. Now I’m a big fan of exercising to workout videos. It’s like being in a fitness class and having your own personal trainer at the same time. Here are a few inexpensive workout DVDs I recommend buying:

Also, there are SO many great options today to replace cable TV. I highly recommend signing up for Amazon Prime. With Amazon Prime, you get instant access to watch thousands of movies and TV shows. You can also borrow Kindle books, get unlimited FREE two-day shipping, and get special savings exclusively for Prime members. Click here to try Amazon Prime 30-Day Free Trial.10 Money Saving Challenge Ideas To Try In 2022 (2)

7. Track Your Expenses for the Next Month Challenge

One of the keys to living debt-free and building wealth is to know exactly where your money is being spent, saved, and invested. Whether you’re running a business or your own household, knowing where your money is going is an essential ingredient for success.

When you begin to track each and every single expense, you’ll become more mindful of your spending. You’ll start to think twice before buying that new dress or going out for lunch every day. This is a great money saving challenge.

You can grab your own copy of my 2020 Budget Binder Printables package here to help you track your spending. These printables will help you organize your finances so you can reach your goals.

8. Save Your Money and Invest It Challenge

Saving money is important, but the whole idea of cutting back is to save money for something better. This is the delay of gratification.

As Grant Cardone says, “Save to invest”, don’t save to save”.

It can be a little daunting to invest your money if you’re not sure where to start, which is why I suggest reading a book (or two) about investing for beginners or talking to a financial planner about your long-term goals.

One of my favorite finance books, The Only Investment Guide You’ll Ever Need by Andrew Tobias, recommends this advice for investing:

“If you save at least 10% of each paycheck and earn a 7% annual return, it will take just over 30 years to grow your nest egg to equal 10 years of income.”

Saving 10% of each paycheck might be easy for some people, but earning a 7% annual return is not so cut and dry. This can be done in a number of ways such as investing in mutual funds, index funds or the stock market.

9. No Eating Out Challenge

Reducing your fixed expenses, such as rent and transportation costs can be tough. If you’re looking for more wiggle room in your budget, an easy place to start is at home in the kitchen. People who cook at home are more likely to make healthier food choices and eat less calories. Your waistline and wallet will thank you.

Take a look at your budget last month and determine how much you spent on eating out. Now challenge yourself to save that money this month by cooking dinner at home. Put that money you would have spent into your savings account or towards debt repayment.

There is no need to stress yourself out by trying to make everything from scratch. That’s a surefire way to go back to eating out every night. Make it simple and make enough food so you can bring leftovers to work the next day.

If you wantto start making more homemade meals, but don’t like the idea of meal planning, I recommend using the $5 Meal Plan. This is a weekly meal plan service that can make your meal planning super simple.

For just $5 per month, you will receive a deliciousmeal plan, where every meal will cost about $2 per person (or less). It’s a great way to save time and money, plus they offer specialty plans, including gluten-free and vegetarian meals.Click here to try it free for 14 days.

10. 52-Week Challenge

This is one of the most well-known money saving challenge because it’s so simple and easy to do!

Save $1 in week one, $2 in week two, $3 in week three, and so on. By continuing this idea for 52 weeks, you will have accumulated a total of $1,378! Not bad for putting aside money each week, right?

You can even mix it up by following this challenge in reverse: save $52 in week one, $51 in week two, $50 in week three, and so on. This allows you to put the biggest amount of money away first so saving becomes easier and easier each week.

Whatever way you decide to approach this challenge, make sure that you’re consistent and stick to it each week. You also don’t want to touch any of the money that you’ve set aside until the challenge is completed.

Bonus Challenge: $5 Dollar Challenge

This is the easiest money saving challenge on this list! Every time you come into possession with a $5 bill, such as the change from a purchase, save it and put it into a jar.

It sounds almost childish to put money in a jar, but it works. To make it more fun, write your goal on the jar, such as “Vacation Fund” or “Rainy Day Fund”. Write down any financial goal you wish, it’s really up to you!

Seeing money grow in the jar is a good motivator to stick to your financial goal. By creating a personal heuristic, it makes it easy to save every $5 bill without really trying. If you spend a $5 bill, you’ll feel like you betrayed your own set of internal rules.

Saving a $5 bill every day makes me $1,825 richer each year!

10 Money Saving Challenge Ideas To Try In 2022 (2024)

FAQs

10 Money Saving Challenge Ideas To Try In 2022? ›

100 Envelope Challenge

The 100 Envelope Saving Challenge provides a structured system to save over $5,000 in 100 days. To begin, gather 100 envelopes and sequentially number them $1 through $100. On day one, you'll place $1 in envelope one. On day two, you'll add $2 to envelope two, and so on.

What is the best money saving challenge? ›

100 Envelope Challenge

The 100 Envelope Saving Challenge provides a structured system to save over $5,000 in 100 days. To begin, gather 100 envelopes and sequentially number them $1 through $100. On day one, you'll place $1 in envelope one. On day two, you'll add $2 to envelope two, and so on.

What is the $10 challenge? ›

As a team exercise, you are given $10 and told to turn that into as much money as you can in a month.

How to Save $10 000 in a year challenge? ›

The easiest way to do this is by setting monthly savings goals. To save $10,000 in a year, you'll need to save about $833 each month, or around $192 per week. You can look through your budget for ways to reallocate more of your money toward savings.

What is the 52 envelope challenge? ›

There are no complicated rules to remember. Week 1, you save $1.00. Week 2 you save $2.00, and it continues through the year, adding one more dollar to each week's savings goal. By Week 52, you'll set aside $52.00, which will bring the year's total savings to $1,378!

How to save $1,000 ASAP? ›

Financial expert Dave Ramsey has a lot of ideas on the subject, and here are some of the most practical ways to save your first $1,000 quickly.
  1. Cancel Subscriptions. ...
  2. Bring Your Own Lunch. ...
  3. Avoid Coffee Out. ...
  4. Re-Sell Old Items. ...
  5. Shop at Cheaper Grocery Stores With Rewards Programs. ...
  6. Buy Generic. ...
  7. Join a Carpool.
Dec 28, 2023

What is the $100 envelope challenge? ›

The 100-envelope challenge is pretty straightforward: You take 100 envelopes, number each of them and then save the corresponding dollar amount in each envelope. For instance, you put $1 in “Envelope 1,” $2 in “Envelope 2,” and so on. By the end of 100 days, you'll have saved $5,050.

What is the 99 dollar trick? ›

99, rather than rounding up to the nearest dollar. This technique is based on the idea that consumers are more likely to perceive a price of $4.99 as being significantly less than $5.00, even though the actual difference is only one cent.

What is the $5 challenge? ›

The five dollar challenge is an easy way to save money without cutting back on spending. All it requires is that you save every $5 bill you get as change.

What is the $20 challenge? ›

The $20 Savings Challenge is a great way to easily save $1,040 this year without noticing! All you have to do is save $20 each week for a year, and then you'll easily have $1,040.

What is the 25 cent challenge? ›

Kids start small and gradually deposit a little more into a kids savings account every week for 52 weeks — a full year. For example, during week one your child puts 25 cents into savings. On the second week, 50 cents is added. On the third week 75 cents gets deposited. By year's end, your child will have saved $344.50.

How to save $5000 in 3 months? ›

If you are looking to save $5,000 in just 3 months, here are some tips to help you achieve your goal.
  1. Track Your Expenses. The first step to saving money is understanding where your money is going. ...
  2. Create a Budget. ...
  3. Reduce Unnecessary Spending. ...
  4. Increase Your Income. ...
  5. Automate Your Savings. ...
  6. Save on Utilities and Subscriptions.
Jan 22, 2024

What is the $1 challenge? ›

Match each week's savings amount with the number of the week in your challenge. In other words, you'll save $1 the first week, $2 the second week, $3 the third week, and so on until you put away $52 in week 52.

How much is $1 dollar a day for a year? ›

If you saved $1 a day for a year, do you know how much money you'd have? Roughly $30,000. This is totally 100% true.

What is the $5 10 15 dollar challenge? ›

Each time you save shade each circle of any 5, 10, 15 dollar, to save the full 1070 in your own time. Saving can be hard but with this you can make it a fun challenge. Safe enough a week to add to the savings pot. Get healthier with your finances and savings.

How to Save $5000 in 3 months challenge? ›

You can save over $5,000 in just over three months with the 100 envelope challenge. It works like this: Gather 100 envelopes and number them from 1 to 100. Each day, fill up one envelope with the amount of cash corresponding to the number on the envelope. You can fill up the envelopes in order or pick them at random.

How to save $1000 in 26 weeks? ›

The plan is refreshingly easy, even for the math-challenged: set aside $3 in the first week and put it into a savings account. Then add another $3 each week after, so $6 is saved in week two, $9 in week three, and so on. By week 26, when the final deposit of $78 is made, the savings will total $1,053.

What is the 52 week rule? ›

Start with the base amount you want to save each week, then the rule adds $1 every week for a year. For example, if you start with $5 on week one, you'll save $6 on week two, $7 on week three, and so on for 52 weeks. In a year's time, you would save a total of $1,568.00.

How can I save $100 K fast? ›

7 tips for getting your first $100,000
  1. Figure out how much money you can safely save each month. ...
  2. Automate your savings. ...
  3. Maximize your employer-sponsored savings and investment accounts. ...
  4. Save your tax refunds and work bonuses. ...
  5. Pay off existing debt. ...
  6. Seek a raise or some other way to increase your income.

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