Start today off right with a 52 Week Savings Challenge!
Today is the perfect time to jump on board and give a 52-Week Money Savings Challenge a try.
Money challenges are a great way to train yourself for financial success. Limiting your spending, creating a budget, or saving more money than the previous year is a step in the right direction.
If you’re sick and tired of your current money situation or just ready to flip a new leaf, a 52 Week Money money-saving challenge to save money is a great place to start.
What Is A 52 Week Money Challenge?
In short, a 52-week money challenge is a year-long savings challenge.
Week by week, you will put away a certain amount of money into a savings account of your choice (we will talk more about that below).
At the end of these 52 weeks, you will have roughly $1400 saved to do what you want.
What I like most about a year savings challenge is the slow flow of things. I mean that you aren’t trying to save a large amount of money in a short period of time. It’s spread out and easier to tackle.
However, if you are looking to save a large amount of money quickly, make sure to check out How to save $1000 in three months.
Also, make sure to grab our FREE 52-week money savings challenge worksheets below.
Is This 52 Week Money Challenge Right For You?
A year savings challenge is for any and everyone! It doesn’t matter if you are new to saving money or if you’ve dominated other money challenges in the past.
If you think a year is a long time to save, try starting smaller with one of these 11 money-saving challenges. If you are looking to save more than $1400 in a year, try a 52-week money challenge of $5000.
Whatever your goal is, all that matters is you start!
More money-saving resources:
- Free Budget Binder Printables: Make Saving Money Easy
- 7 Of The Best Cash Envelope Wallets For Budgeting Your Money
- 12 Best Budget Apps For Couples (Never Fight About Money Again)
- 4 Budgeting Methods You Must Try (When You Don’t Know Where To Start)
When Is The Right Time To Start A Yearly Money Challenge
When you hear the term yearly money challenge, most people think they need to wait until the New Year to start this type of challenge.
According to research, as many as 50 percent of adults in the United States make New Year’s resolutions.
We’ve all heard the saying, “New year, new you.”
Well, this simply isn’t the case with a money challenge. The best thing you can do for yourself is to get started right now.
Yes, today.
With less than 10% of people actually sticking with your New Year’s resolution, you don’t want to be a part of that crowd anyway.
Choose to change your financial future today; don’t wait for the new year!
When You Should Tackle A 52 Week Save Money Challenge?
Now that you know a 52-week money-saving plan is right for you. Why do people decide to tackle a year-long money challenge?
The obvious answer is to save money, but for what?
Here are a few reasons why you might do a 52 week plan:
- You are taking a vacation- Are you in the process of planning a vacation? If so, this would be the perfect excuse to start a 52 week save money challenge. Vacations are expensive, and being able to have it paid off before you go is a must.
- Saving for something special- Now, this could be anything from being mortgage-free to opening an emergency fund, a wedding, saving for Christmas, or even a new puppy. By starting a 52-day savings plan, you’ll be prepared for any special engagement that comes your way.
- Looking to build your money habits- Maybe you don’t have a vacation coming up or any planning for any major purchase. If you are looking to develop good money habits, a 52 week savings challenge is a great place to start.
- Pay off debt- Do you have a lot of debt with no end in sight? Go grab our awesome free debt tracker and get started with this 52-week plan today.
These are just a few examples of why you might try this fabulous 52 week money saving challenge. I personally always like to tackle a money challenge when I have a vacation on the horizon. This allows me to pay for my vacations with cash which is always something I strive to achieve.
Track Your Progress With This 52 Week Money Challenge Printable
Using a 52-week challenge printable is one of the easiest ways to tackle a money challenge.
We offer a handful of free printables on your blog, but this, by far, is my favorite money challenge printable.
Grab your 52 week money challenge printable below!
As you noticed above, this weekly money challenge printable has everything you need to plan and execute a successful year-long money challenge. So print it off, and let’s walk through how to have a successful 52 week plan to save money.
How To Use Our 52-Week Money Saving Challenge Printable
The money challenge printable includes everything you need to get started. Start on Week 1, which says to deposit $1 into your savings account. Once you do that, write the date in the date column.
I also like to highlight the week when I’m finished. Then move on the next week. The money chart tells you exactly how much you should be saving each month and how much you should have in your account each week.
If you miss a week, it happens. Just jump back on the bandwagon when you can and start back where you left off.
Where To Put Your Money At While Saving?
I always recommend saving money in a separate savings account that you won’t touch. If you were saving for a vacation, building an emergency fund, or trying to pay off debt but were spending the money as you saved it. What would be the point of the money challenge?
Putting your money in an online savings account with a high-interest rate is a great idea. This makes savings easy if you aren’t saving cash.
Every week, you can transfer your money from your bank account into your online savings. We also advise against getting debit cards for your savings accounts, as this takes away the temptation of spending your money.
We are a huge fan of CIT bank online savings accounts, and use them ourselves. Make sure to check them out and read our personal review over here.
Related blog post: The Best Bank To Save Money: Is CIT Bank Really #1
6 Ways To Save During A Yearly Money Challenge
Are you ready to try a 52 week challenge, but you don’t have extra money to save? We have plenty of resources throughout our blog that will help you save a little more money each month to allow you to take part in a money challenge.
However, I wanted to share some quick tips on how you can save extra money each month.
1. Live On less
I know this seems obvious, but have you ever tried living on less than you make?
Chances are, you can get by with less than you spend right now. Jump online and look at your bank statement. See if you could have gotten by without that extra shopping trip to Target.
According to Intuit’s survey, 65% of Americans don’t even know how much they spent last month.
Take the time to look hard at how much you spend, and find things to cut out. When you regularly look at your bank statement, you will find things you weren’t even aware you were spending money on. This should be one habit you should get used to doing.
Related blog post: Living Cheap: How To Live Cheap And Still Thrive
Grab Your FREE Budget Binder Today!
Start saving more money and pay off your debt with this FREE Budget Binder
2. Budget Your Money
We rave about budgeting on this blog because it works, and I think everyone should try it at least once.
Budgeting frees up money you didn’t know you had in the first place. Yes, you’ll actually have more money when you budget.
What I love about budgeting is that it’s so versatile. You can budget using paper, cash envelopes, planners, or apps on your phone. Heck, you can even budget if you like using credit cards.
I used to be a HUGE fan of using cash envelopes, but things are really changing for me since the pandemic. I now just enjoy using my debit card and writing down every transaction.
You need to find a method that works for you and go with it. If you are looking to get started with budgeting, make sure to grab our free budget binder printables below.
3. Save Your Money Automatically
There are plenty of ways to save money, but one of the easiest ways is to do so automatically so you won’t have to think about it. Every paycheck, take the chunk of change that you will need for your money challenge and throw it in your “special savings account.”
This is an easy way to meet your savings goal, which doesn’t allow you to spend it.
Saving your money automatically doesn’t only pertain to money challenges. We use this method of saving each and every month. Each month, on the 1st and 15th, I’ll have the money go off to our vacation fund, college fund for the kids, investments, and more.
This way I won’t have the opportunity to spend it.
4. Say Goodbye To Cable
If you still have cable, I’m looking at you!! There are so many different ways for you to watch TV. Paying for cable shouldn’t be an option if you’re struggling with money.
Suppose you are rolling in the dough. Then, all the power to you. However, if you can’t make ends meet, it’s probably time to let it go.
There are plenty of alternatives to cable that are much more affordable if you need to get your TV. Fix such as Netflix, Hulu, Disney+, and Prime t.v. on Amazon.
If you are a big sports fan and that is stopping you from canceling your cable bill, there are alternatives for you, too. A lot of games you can find online streaming for free or for just a few bucks. Or head over to your friends, family, or neighbors to catch a game.
5. Cut Your Bills In Half
Okay, so it might be hard to cut each bill in half, but there are ways to trim each of your bills. Start by sitting down and writing out all of your bills.
This might be a tedious task, but well worth it. Then, devise a plan on how you can cut down on each bill.
Check with your phone company. Maybe they have a cheaper plan that would totally work for you. Or maybe your phone bill would decrease by $30 if you switch providers.
Call your electric company for tips on how to lower your bill each month. Be intentional with shutting off your lights during the day, hang clothes to dry, and switch out light bulbs to LED. Small changes can make a big difference.
If you don’t want to do the work yourself, give Trim a try. Trim is a business that calls utility company’s for you and negotiates your bills, saving you big bucks.
They also find unused subscriptions you might have, deal with medical bills negotiation on your behalf, as well as find you cheaper car insurance. You name it; they probably do it. Give Trim a try now and take advantage of their free 14-day trial.
6. Make More Money
If you have tried all of the above options and nothing is working. You may need to try making more money to save more money. This may sound easier said than done, but there really are quite a few ways that you can make instant money.
Here are a a few of my favorite ways to earn extra money from home:
- Babysit
- Online Tutor
- Pet Sit
- Virtual Assistant
- Freelance Writer
- Score cash for your clothes
- Flip stuff for a profit
- Swagbucks
- Ibotta
Those are just a few side hustles I’ve tried in the past.
Are There Other Variations Of The 52-Week Challenge?
There are other variations of a 52-week challenge. You do not have to follow along with the printable that I provided in the image above. In fact, I’ve decided to give you a free blank 52-week money challenge printable as well, so you can try one of these other challenges as well.
1. 52 Week Penny Saving Challenge
If a dollar challenge is just not doable right now, give a 52-week penny-saving challenge a try. You can find pennies everywhere. Under your couch cushions, in your washer, or lying on the street.
If a penny-saving challenge isn’t your thing, try quarters.
2. 52 Week Money Challenge $3000
Suppose you have a big goal of saving 3000 dollars this year. This is a great plan for you. Fill out the free money-saving challenge I provided with an end goal of saving $3000. Then fill in the printable as you go.
3. 52 Week Money Challenge $5000
This savings challenge is advanced. Maybe you have already tried a money challenge before, or you make a lot of money. If so, this is a money challenge for you.
4. 52 Week Money Challenge $10000
This money challenge is one of the most advanced money challenges. This would be a great challenge to keep you on track to meet a big goal, such as saving for a down payment on a house, etc.
Summary- 52 Week Money Savings Challenge
If you are looking to tackle a 52-week money challenge, you now have all of the tools to do so. Make sure to grab our free 52-week money challenge printables. If you aren’t ready to try a year-long money challenge, you can check out a handful of other awesome money challenges here!
Have you tried a 52-week money saving challenge? If so, make sure to let us know how it went in the comments below.
If you enjoyed this post make sure to save it for later, and follow us on Pinterest for more money-saving tips and tricks.
Related money-saving articles:
- 9 Of The Best Budget Planners You’ll Obsess Over
- 71 Budget Categories You Might Be Forgetting From Your Budget
- Dave Ramsey’s 7 Baby Steps: What Are They And Will They Work For You
