The $20 Savings Challenge

Recently, I created a fun printable for all of you called the $20 Savings Challenge so that everyone can learn how to save money. 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…

Michelle Schroeder-Gardner

Written By:

Michelle Schroeder-Gardner

Last Updated: January 23, 2024

Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links, meaning if you decide to make a purchase via my links, I may earn a commission at no additional cost to you. See my disclosure for more info.

The $20 Savings Challenge is a great way to easily save $1,040 this year without noticing!

Recently, I created a fun printable for all of you called the $20 Savings Challenge so that everyone can learn how to save money.

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. If you start this now and do it just until the holidays, you will have a nice chunk of change as well!

And, it’ll make saving money just a little more enjoyable.

Yes, saving money can be fun!

So many people get tired of paying off debt and saving money, because it can feel so monotonous or they just lack the motivation.

Related:

Challenging yourself, such as by starting the $20 Saving Challenge, to save more money is great, because it can help keep your financial goal on your mind and keep you motivated.

Please download my free worksheet, the $20 Savings Challenge by filling out the form below. With this fun challenge, you can easily save $1,040 this year without noticing!

If you are new to my blog, I am all about finding ways to make and save more money. Here are some of my favorite sites and products that may help you out:

  • Start a blog. Blogging is how I make a living and just a few years ago I never thought it would be possible. I have earned over $5,000,000 online through my blog and you can read more about this in my monthly online income reports. You can create your own blog here with my easy-to-use tutorial. You can start your blog for as low as $2.75 per month plus you get a free domain if you sign-up through my tutorial.
  • Sign up for a website like Rakuten where you can earn CASH BACK for just spending like how you normally would online. The service is free too!
  • Answer surveys. Survey companies I recommend include Swagbucks, Survey Junkie, Pinecone Research, and Harris Poll Online. They’re free to join and free to use! You get paid to answer surveys and to test products. It’s best to sign up for as many as you can as that way you can receive the most surveys and make the most money.
  • Save money on food. I recently joined $5 Meal Plan in order to help me eat at home more and cut my food spending. It’s only $5 a month (the first two weeks are free too) and you get meal plans sent straight to you along with the exact shopping list you need in order to create the meals. Each meal costs around $2 per person or less. This allows you to save time because you won’t have to meal plan anymore, and it will save you money as well!
  • Cut your TV bill. Cut your cable, satellite, etc. Even go as far to go without Netflix or Hulu as well. Buy a digital antenna (this is the one we have) and enjoy free TV for life.
  • Try InboxDollars. InboxDollars is an online rewards website I recommend. You can earn cash by taking surveys, playing games, shopping online, searching the web, redeeming grocery coupons, and more. Also, by signing up through my link, you will receive $5.00 for free just for signing up!

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Michelle Schroeder-Gardner

Author: Michelle Schroeder-Gardner

Hey! I’m Michelle Schroeder-Gardner and I am the founder of Making Sense of Cents. I’m passionate about all things personal finance, side hustles, making extra money, and online businesses. I have been featured in major publications such as Forbes, CNBC, Time, and Business Insider. Learn more here.

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  1. giulia

    Absolutely true small changes big results:D

    Reply
    1. Michelle Schroeder-Gardner

      Right? 🙂

      Reply
  2. Kalie @ Pretend to Be Poor

    Very fun and I think this is doable for most people. Probably easier than you might think!

    Reply
    1. Michelle Schroeder-Gardner

      Definitely!

      Reply
  3. Holly@ClubThrifty

    Good idea! =)

    Reply
    1. Michelle Schroeder-Gardner

      Thanks!

      Reply
  4. Money Beagle

    $20 doesn’t seem like a lot and many would say it’s not worth it to make changes in your lifestyle for a measly $20, but when you take a step back and look at the bigger picture and that it can result in over $1,000 in your pocket in just a years time, it changes the perspective dramatically!

    Reply
    1. Michelle Schroeder-Gardner

      Right? I love it!

      Reply
  5. Natalie @ Financegirl

    LOVE this challenge! It’s going to help so many people. I know my readers find it so hard to save and this is a fresh reminder how easy it can be.

    Reply
    1. Michelle Schroeder-Gardner

      Thanks!

      Reply
  6. The Green Swan

    So easy and a good way for people to save when they don’t normally. A lot of companies have systems for employees to stash away $20 or however much each paycheck. Another great way for people to not even know they had the money and they can save it!

    Reply
    1. Michelle Schroeder-Gardner

      Thanks!

      Reply
  7. Tiffany

    Such a great idea. Most people can come up with an extra $20.

    Reply
  8. Tiffany

    *Sorry, didn’t put in the full website.

    Such a great idea. Most people can come up with an extra $20.

    Reply
  9. Crystal

    So, I decided to take a big plunge today. I was thinking about this $20 challenge and also thought about the fact that we had not paid any extra towards the principal of our current home’s mortgage…and that has been bugging me. Like a lot. So…I just called our mortgage company and raised our monthly payment from $990 to $1250…a full $260 extra per month…$3000+ per year. We’re 3.75 years into a 30 years mortgage at 4% interest, and this should shave 8 years off of it and save us $40,000 in interest. That means we should be paying off our current home at age 50-51 instead of 58-59. Now…let’s see how much we feel the $260 per month hit. That’s about 4-5% of our monthly budget, so I’m betting it stings a little.

    Reply
    1. Michelle Schroeder-Gardner

      Sounds like a good decision to me! You can do it!

      Reply
  10. DC @ Young Adult Money

    I really like this Michelle. It’s a simple, easy, way to save $1k this year. Set up automatic transactions from your checking to savings and you are good to go!

    Reply
  11. Amanda-LivingFullyandFree

    I love money challenges! BTW I am no longer receiving email notifications when you publish a post, but I did get your Bluehost campaigns. Do you know what happened?

    Reply
    1. Michelle Schroeder-Gardner

      Hey Amanda!

      Hmm I’m not sure. They’re all sent from the same email address, so if you are receiving some then you should be receiving others. You may want to add “michelle@makingsenseofcents.com” to your safe sender list.

      Reply
  12. Finance Solver

    Ah $1040.. It may not sound like a lot but over the years it is a lot. $20 a week isn’t a lot of money so it’s certainly doable, thanks for putting the spreadsheet together Michelle!

    Reply
  13. Valerie

    a challenge I can live with!

    Reply
  14. Jeff Proctor

    So simple yet so effective. Thanks Michelle!

    Reply
  15. David @ Thinking Thrifty

    All those little bits soon add up. If you start small it feel much less daunting too!

    Reply
  16. Dannielle

    I prefer this challenge to some of the others floating around. This one is realistic and it has the ability to become a habit. If you put aside $20 before you spend any money, you will surely meet the end of target. The hard part is to save the money and not touch it!

    Reply
  17. Lisa Hebert

    I love this challeng. It is such an easy way to build an emergency fund or create your own Christmas Club account so you won’t break your budget when the holidays roll around. And once you get used to not having that $20 each week you may get encouraged to up your game to $30 or $40 a week. Small changes can really add up.

    Reply
  18. Julia

    This is such a great idea! Small amounts regularly seem like nothing at the time (they don’t really affect your bank balance in a big way) but can add up to $$$. My in-laws do something similar with $5 each time they go to the ATM, and they have saved for two Europe trips that way!

    Reply
  19. Lee

    I have to admit I always start this challenge at bad times when my finances are not in a good spot. I love this idea though. Once I am making more I am going to do it. And thanks for adding the spreadsheet it is very helpful.

    Reply
  20. Alex Vibin

    Hy Michelle
    Your blog post is amazing. It seems like a little amount every week. But after 5-10 years you will have a huge amount. And If we invest this in stocks, bonds, etc. By compound effect, It will be a huge amount than we think. Thanks for this blog post.

    Reply