If higher expenses put a burden on your budget last year, you're not alone. When money is tight, finding funds to save for the future can feel out of reach. But building up your savings is a key part of improving your financial life long term. Without a cushion of savings to rely on, it can be difficult to feel financially stable.
Whatever the new year holds, building up your savings can help you weather potential hard times and enjoy the good. One way to get started toward your financial goal is by challenging yourself and gamifying your savings. Here are 10 savings challenges to try in 2025.
1. 52-Week Saving Challenge
The 52-week money challenge works like this: Start by depositing $1 in week one, $2 in week two, $3 in week three and so on. Keep the funds you save in an account where it'll earn interest, such as in a high-yield savings account.
By week 52, you'll have amassed a full $1,378 in savings. That could be a great start to an emergency fund, or a way to cover next year's holiday shopping or a splurge without going into debt.
Reverse 52-Week Saving Challenge
Here's a fun twist. If you're starting your money savings challenge in the new year, you may be sitting on some gifted funds from the holidays that you want to funnel into savings. Try a reverse 52-week money challenge.
The reverse challenge works much the same way, except you start by saving $52 in week one, $51 in week two, and decrease by one dollar per week. You'll have the same amount saved by the end of the challenge.
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2. 26-Week Saving Challenge
This is an alteration of the above 52-week challenge that may work better for you if you get paid every other week.
You'll start by saving $3 in week one, and then increasing the dollar amount you save by $3 each week. You'll save $6 in week two, $9 in week three, then $12, $15 and so on. By week 26, you'll have added $1,053 to your savings.
The most you'll ever deposit in a week will be $75, and you're only making a deposit on each payday. That can make this challenge more attainable.
3. The No-Spend Saving Challenge
The no-spend saving challenge is highly customizable, but here's the gist of it. You'll turn saving into a game by setting tight restrictions on all the spending you do, limiting yourself to only basic necessities: housing, bills and groceries. You'll cook at home, find free things to do and challenge yourself to see just how frugal you're capable of being. Then, pocket the money you save and direct it toward building long-term financial stability.
It's understandably very difficult to completely cut your discretionary spending, which includes things like meals out, shopping and entertainment. To avoid burning out, consider starting small with a no-spend weekend. If you feel motivated, you could push yourself for a week. The grittiest of no-spend savers can try for a marathon no-spend month.
Learn more >> Steps to Create Financial Stability
4. Round-Up Saving Challenge
For this challenge, implement a round-up rule. Anytime you make a purchase, round up to the nearest dollar and pocket the change. For instance, if you spend $28.57 at the store, the difference is 43 cents.
Keep a tally of your change throughout the day or week and then transfer that money over to savings, if you're using cards for payment. If you're paying in cash, stash the change away in a change jar.
5. Dollar Saving Challenge
It may not seem like $1 a day is a lot, but it gets you to $365 by the end of the year—a respectable sum that you could funnel into your emergency fund, use for holiday shopping or direct toward another long-term goal, such as saving for a down payment on a house.
To do the dollar saving challenge, set up an automatic transfer for $7 per week into your savings account. Consider completing this challenge in tandem with another challenge to bolster your successes.
6. Monthly Subscription Saving Challenge
With so many of the services we consume using a subscription-based model, it's likely that you have quite a few recurring monthly charges that you're paying without even thinking about it. Streaming services, news platforms, subscription boxes, food delivery service memberships—all these small charges add up.
To do the monthly subscription challenge, go through your bank or credit card statements and highlight all your recurring subscriptions. From there, aim to cancel as many as you can. Focus on the discretionary services you can live without. You probably can't cancel your internet service, for example. But if you have multiple streaming services, at least a couple can likely go without having much impact on your life.
From there, tally up your monthly savings. Set up a transfer into your savings account for the amount you would've spent on recurring costs each month.
Learn more >> How to Manage All Your Monthly Subscriptions
7. Financial Minimalist Challenge
Have you considered that implementing minimalist practices could benefit your finances, but aren't sure if you can fully hack the minimalist lifestyle? Then try going minimalist for a week—or even a month—with a money minimalism challenge.
The key to the challenge is living simply, reducing your spending down to only buy what you need or truly love. Try to approach it from the angle of not what you can afford, but rather how little you can buy without diminishing your quality of life. That may mean cooking more at home or going to a free concert rather than paying for entertainment. It could also mean finding things you do need, such as clothing or bakeware, second hand or through a Buy Nothing group.
Learn more >> How Minimalism Can Save You Money
8. Money Mistake Jar Challenge
Money mistakes happen. But what if every time you made an impulse purchase, went off budget or otherwise made a money move you swore you wouldn't, you put a dollar in the money mistake jar?
The challenge is simple. If you promised yourself you wouldn't eat out for lunch this week, and you do, throw a dollar (or whatever amount works for you) in the jar. If, in a moment of impulse, you did some online shopping that wasn't budgeted for, throw a dollar in the jar.
A dollar here and there won't offset the damage that routinely going off budget can do to your bank account, but it could help you reinforce good money habits and save a bit in the process.
Learn more >> Bad Money Habits and How to Break Them
9. No Dining Out Challenge
If you tend to eat out often, cutting back could help you save quite a bit. This money challenge has you slash your dining out budget completely and then put the money you would've spent into savings.
Consider starting your challenge small with a weekend or week. During that time, commit to not eating out at all. Try these tips to set yourself up for success:
- Pair this challenge with a pantry challenge, in which you challenge yourself to eat through everything in your pantry.
- Search for easy weeknight recipes online.
- Stock up your fridge with the supplies you need.
- Consider prepping your meals in advance and reheating to resist the temptation to order in.
Last, transfer whatever money you typically spend on dining in a week into a savings account. Not sure how much you typically spend dining out each week? Take this opportunity to review your spending and tally up how much goes toward eating out.
10. Coffee Swap Challenge
Perhaps you're not ready to go cold turkey on eating out entirely—or, perhaps you already mostly cook at home. In that case, try zeroing in on another common habit: grabbing a morning cup of coffee at a cafe.
It's a small habit, but it can add up. The average cup of coffee may cost just over $3, and a latte may average around $5.50. If you grab a beverage out five days a week, that adds up to about $783 per year for a cup of coffee or $1,435 per year if a latte is your drink of choice.
But how much will you truly save by making your own coffee at home? A pound of ground coffee costs around $6.65 on average, according to the most recent data from the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. With a pound of ground beans, you can brew about 25 cups of coffee. That comes out to about 27 cents a cup. Compared to grabbing your morning coffee on the go, that's a pretty good deal.
Of course, if you can afford it and truly enjoy coffee out, there's nothing wrong with indulging now and then. But if you're looking for a straightforward way to funnel more money into savings in 2025, the coffee swap challenge may be worth a try.
Make 2025 Your Best Financial Year Yet
Whichever challenge you try—or if you choose to combine challenges to up your savings even more—know where to stash your funds. A high-yield savings account will help you earn interest on your savings.
Spending less than you earn and saving the difference is key to boosting your financial health. Beyond completing a challenge, consider other financial moves you could make to build your savings up this year. If you haven't already, learn about how to start investing toward retirement and consider meeting with a financial planner for more personalized saving advice.