You’ve probably heard of the 1p challenge but have you tried it? I gave it a go this year and was chuffed to have completed it.
Christmas can be an expensive time with the price of presents and food increasing each year so I tried to save a chunk of money using this simple method.
Not only was the satisfaction of completing one of my goals a great feeling, but having more than £600 saved made it that bit sweeter.
I like a bit of healthy competition and since most of my New Years’ resolutions fail at the first hurdle, I was happy to have stuck with this money-saving challenge all year.
How to save money
What is the 1p challenge?
So, what is the 1p challenge? The challenge involves saving one penny more than you did the previous day. I saved mine using a new savings pot on my online Chase bank account.
On January 1, I put 1p into a savings account that’s separate from my other money and then on January 2, I saved 2p – making the pot rise to 3p in total.
At the end of March, there was £40.95 saved in my pot and by the end of August I had saved £296.46 so it really started to ramp up. By the end of October, there was £463.60 sitting there.
When you keep doing this, the amount of money you save each day snowballs and leaves you with an impressive £667.95 saved in the year.
If, like me, you find a few months of putting money into a challenge saving pot daily a bit tedious, you can put your money in on the first day of every month (or on a day in each month that suits you, such as payday).
The Money Saving Expert website has broken down how much you will save each month so you know how much to put in your bank account or jar. This only works if you’re able to put a bigger chunk of money into your pot at one time.
The items you should collect to make the most money
Adding the money in a big chunk means you could finish the challenge on December 1 and have just under £700 to spend on gifts for loved ones and all the Christmas treats.
Since I collected the money in an online bank account, I gained interest on the contents of the savings pot, which across the year amounted to an extra £4.66.
Obviously, this could be more in an account that has a higher interest rate, and it’s not something you’d benefit from if there is no interest or you decide to save cash in a jar.
Get 1p challenge money automatically added to your savings
Some banks, including Monzo and Plum, will automatically move your 1p challenge money across into your savings pot daily.
Customers can pause or stop this movement of cash at any time and access their saved money when needed.
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Is the 1p challenge worth doing?
I think the 1p challenge is worth it simply because by the end of the year, you will have saved a nice chunk of money that can be spent on anything you like.
It’s versatile because you could just do it for six months or before a big trip to help save some extra cash or even to help out with higher energy bills in winter.
I found keeping it separate from any other savings helped me stay motivated, especially as the amount saved increases in no time.
I’d really recommend this to anyone who wants to save a bit of cash.
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