20 Ways to Save $20 This Week

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Take the $20 Savings a Week Challenge

I love to find ways to save money where I don’t feel deprived or when I can maintain a decent lifestyle. So I thought it would be fun to make this as a challenge. The challenge is to save $20 a week and by the end of the year, you should have over $1,000. Below are 20 Ways to save $20 this week and every week until the end of the year.

I have created a printable to help with the challenge. Let’s use the printable and the 20 ways to save $20 this week below and be $1,000 richer by the end of the year. You’ve got this! Put the money that you save in a jar, or in a savings account and watch the money grow.

1. Make a plan. In order to commit to these 20 ways to save $20 this week, you have to decide that you are going to do it. If you think “I will try” or you think to yourself, “That would be nice”, you aren’t going to get it done. Decide that you are going to do it. Make a commitment.

2. Take a portion out of your paycheck and save it. Most of us have an automatic deposit from our paychecks. You can call your bank or in most cases, set up an auto pay online to have a portion of your check automatically deposited in a savings account.

3. Is there a monthly subscription that you can cut back on? Here is one of the 20 ways to save $20 this week by just getting rid a any monthly subscriptions that you don’t use. Do you have a magazine subscription that you can drop? Do you subscribe to Hulu or other television subscriptions that you get get rid of. Take that savings and put it in a jar or a savings account.

4. Avoid your spending traps. Costco is a spending trap for me. It is so easy to go in with the intention of buying just a few things and come out spending over $200. Avoid going to stores that you know you will be spending more than you plan on. Or simply make a list and stick to it.

5. Replace a costly habit. Do you go to the local convenience store every morning to buy a donut and coffee, or a soda? You may be only spending a few dollars a day, but that few dollars adds up to hundreds a month. Make your own coffee. Drink a glass of water instead of that soda.

6. Don’t buy clothes this week. One of the easiest of the 20 ways to save $20 this week is to not buy any clothing. I would even suggest not to buy any new clothing for several months. There are creative ways to mix and match the clothing that we already have to make a fresh new look.

7. Don’t pay someone to clean your house, shovel your driveway, or mow your lawn. At least for this year, do your own yard work, and cleaning. you will save a lot more than $20 a week doing it yourself.

8. Save on meals. Only eat breakfast at home (avoid the donut at the convenience store) and then take your lunch to work. You could save hundreds of dollars a month using this habit. Find creative ways to use leftovers from dinner or take your dinner from the night before as your lunch.

Related Reading: 6 Ways to Save Money on Food at Work

9. Change your insurance plan. You probably see the advertisements about saving money on car insurance. Look at your home, auto and health insurance and see if there is a less expensive solution. Are you spending a ton of money on your monthly health insurance premiums and not using your insurance? A lower insurance premium with a higher detectable may be your answer.

10. Spend less on celebrations. Does your child want a big birthday party? save money by making the cake yourself, having pizza to eat and having simple decorations. You will be surprised what you can find at the dollar store to save on celebrations. Pot lucks are another way to save money on big celebrations.

11. Have you considered an accorn account? An Accorn account rounds up your loose change from all of your purchases and deposited it into your savings or invests it. So if you spend $50.24 on groceries? This app will send .76 to your rainy-day or investment fund.

12. Carpool. Save money on gas by sharing the rides to your kids games and events. Try carpooling to work or other activities.

13. Do your own nails, manicures and pedicures. Everyone loves to feel pampered, but you can save so much money by doing the pampering yourself. Take the money you would have used to buy the service and put it in a jar or a savings account.

14. Become more energy efficient. Turn off the lights, unplug unused small appliances and lamps. You may not see the money you are saving but you will notice that your electric bill is less each month. Take that savings and put it into a savings account or jar.

15. Invite friends over instead of going out. Game nights with friends are just as fun or even more fun than going to dinner and a movie. Share a pizza and have some laughs for a fraction of the cost.

16. Check out books from the library instead of buy them. This was a big one for me. I loved buying books. I didn’t always read them however and so I needed to make a change. I started to check them out from the library instead and have saved hundreds of dollars a year.

17. Grow your own vegetables. I had to include this as part of the 20 ways to save $20 this week, because it is truly the best way to save money on food. Our family has a garden and I never have to buy zucchini, squash, potatoes, onions, or carrots at the grocery store. I store them all from my garden.

18. Shop generic. Look at labels on your favorite brands and you will most likely find a generic brand with the same ingredients. Many generic brands are manufactured in the save facilities as the high end brands, and the only difference is the packaging and label.

19. Stop Collecting and Start Selling. Buying something just because it is on sale may be a great idea if you are looking for that particular item, but if it is an item you don’t need, then pass it by. If you buy things you don’t need, then you have to find a place to keep them. That is an entirely different dilemma. Avoid buying things you don’t need just because they are on sale isn’t saving you money. Sell things you not longer need on Ebay, Amazon, at a consignment store, or have a yard sale.

20. Buy Used. I was in a thrift store the other day and I found a ton of super cute baby clothes that still had the tags on them. Why spend a ton of money on items that your baby will only wear a few times when you can buy them cheaper. I have found wooden hangers, picture frames, and many other household items that are in perfect condition.

Now you have a list of 20 ways to save $20 this week and every week for the entire year. It should be easy to save enough to have over $1,000 by the end of the year. Planning and thoughtful spending is the best ingredients to a better and well designed life.