The 52-week savings plan
If you’re new to the 52-week money challenge, the first month or so you might wonder if it will take 52 years to see progress because you start so small. But know that this savings plan is effective, and it can help you sock away more than a thousand dollars in a year — $1,378 to be exact. You could build up even more if you put the funds in a high-yield savings account. Doing the challenge takes commitment, but it’s easy to start.
How the 52-week money challenge works
Getting started is simple:
During your first week, you save $1.
The next week, stash away $2.
Increase the amount saved by $1 each week for 52 weeks — a full year.
And the money adds up. You can save well over $1,000 before the end of the year. But even more important, you may find that this is a good way to develop consistent savings habits.
Why it works
Putting away a few dollars per week at the beginning of the challenge is likely less painful than figuring out how to save a whole $500 for emergencies all at once. (Learn why having a savings emergency fund is important.)
The smaller weekly level-ups are manageable, and they encourage you to find ways to slowly cut back on spending or boost income. They also give you time to plan several months ahead, when the goals will be to save $30, $40 and eventually $52 in one week.
With this plan, you’ll save that $500 for emergencies, plus more, but on an easier timeline.
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Where to put your cash
Here’s a pro tip: Maximize every penny by depositing your funds in a high-yield savings account. In an account that earns interest, you’ll accumulate money on top of your savings.
The average savings account earns only 0.46% APY. But high-yield accounts, typically available from online banks, earn several times that.
Head over to NerdWallet’s savings calculator to determine how much interest you’d earn on your savings at different rates. You can even see how much you’d save if you reversed the savings challenge, putting aside $52 in the first week, and then decreasing your weekly deposits by a dollar until the challenge ends. You would have put away the same amount of money after a year, but your money might have earned a bit more interest because the larger deposits would have more time to grow.
Just choose an account without monthly maintenance fees, which can erode your savings. (See NerdWallet’s list of best savings accounts to find institutions with fee-free options.)
Stay motivated
The 52-week challenge can be tricky as time goes on because you’ll need to save larger amounts of money. But the beauty is that after a few months, you’ll be able to look back with satisfaction at the decent chunk of cash you’ve already put away.
Even if you don’t meet the challenge 100%, try to add whatever amount you can each week. The bottom line is not to give up.
For more motivation, you can tell others about your savings goals. For example, if you’re saving for a new living room furniture set, let your family members know that you plan to pay for it with this savings. (Let’s assume you already have an emergency fund, which is a higher priority.) Your friends and family could offer encouragement along the way.
Once the 52-week time period is over, celebrate! But keep saving. Let it be a springboard for reaching other money goals, such as a college fund and retirement. You will have built a healthy cash reserve and proven to yourself that you can meet a challenge.
FAQs
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 to start the 52-week money 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 do you do the 1 to 52 week savings challenge? ›
With this challenge, you save weekly rather than daily. And this amount goes up incrementally. Essentially, you save £1 for each week you are on in the year. So week one = £1 and week 52 = £52.
How much money will I save if I do the 52 week 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 do the $5,000 dollar 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 $5000 in 3 months? ›
Monthly savings: Saving $5,000 in three months equals a monthly savings of approximately $1,667. Weekly savings: Dividing $1,667 by 13 weeks gives a weekly savings goal of around $128. Daily savings: To reach this goal, you would need to save an average of $18 per day for the next three months.
How much is $1 dollar a day for a year? ›
With no interest involved, putting one dollar a day into a bank account (or a jar at home) will see you end up with $365 in a year. Multiply that amount by 30 years and you'll end up with $10,950. Now let's factor in an interest rate of just 1%.
Is 52-week money challenge worth it? ›
The 52-week savings plan
If you're new to the 52-week money challenge, the first month or so you might wonder if it will take 52 years to see progress because you start so small. But know that this savings plan is effective, and it can help you sock away more than a thousand dollars in a year — $1,378 to be exact.
How much money will you get if you save 100 dollars a week for a year? ›
The first thing we need to know is how much $100 per week works out to on an annualized basis. There are 52 weeks in a year. That means that, after a full year of saving, $100 per week adds up to $5,200.
How to do the money saving challenge? ›
In the 26-week biweekly money-saving challenge, you can save $1,404 in a year by depositing an increasing amount every other week. Start with $4 on the first week and $8 on the second. Add an extra $4 every two weeks until you deposit $106 on week 26.
If you prefer to save the same amount each week, save $97 per week for 52 weeks. Note: $5K works as an emergency fund for some people, covering their mortgage, car payment and basic utilities for 3 months. Others may need to increase the amount each week or extend the challenge to achieve a full 3-6 months of savings.
How to save $10,000 in 3 months challenge? ›
- If you follow the guidelines above to save $10,000 in three months, it will also easily apply to helping you save $5,000 in three months:
- – Set a goal.
- – Pay down your debt.
- – Evaluate and limit your spending.
- – Increase your income streams.
- – Find the right savings account.
- – Set a budget.
- – Make some lifestyle edits.
If you invest $50 per week, that's the equivalent of $200 per month, or approximately $2,400 per year. Over a 30-year period, that would result in more than $72,000 in savings. It's a good chunk of savings, but it isn't a life-changing amount. This is where the power of compounding comes into play.
What is the 5 dollar trick? ›
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.
How can I save $5000 in 6 months with 100 envelopes? ›
It's a simple, low-tech way to gamify your savings. You label 100 envelopes 1 to 100, and over 100 days (or more), whatever number is on the envelope you select, you stash that amount of cash in there. The math works out to $5,050 when you're done! (1 + 2 + 3 + 4 . . . you can double-check us if you want.
How does the 52 week envelope challenge work? ›
The most common way to complete the challenge is to start by saving just $1 in week one and increasing what you save by $1 each week, saving $2 in week two and $3 in week three, all the way up to $52 in week 52.
What is the $100 in 30 days challenge? ›
The goal of the Challenge is simple: save $100 in a 30-day time period through a series of gradually increasing deposits. November has 30 days so every day is a savings day. As shown in the picture below, daily savings deposits start at $1 a day for five days followed by $2, $3, and $4 each for five days.
How to start saving at 52? ›
How to save for retirement when you're in your 50s
- Set realistic goals.
- Tackle debt.
- Take advantage of catch-up contributions.
- Create a health savings account.
- Make the most of Social Security.
- Generate income beyond investing.
- Don't abandon stocks in your portfolio.
