- Oojal Dhanjal
- December 22, 2023
If you want to start saving but your budget is tight, the 1p challenge could be for you. Here’s how it works.
With the energy price cap rising in January, and doing an energy comparison to switch no longer offering decent savings, many people are feeling the pinch and finding ways to slash costs.
A money-saving hack that starts with putting just 1p aside can help you save over £650 in 2024.
The 1p challenge is a 365-day (or 366 this leap year) money-saving trick. If you’re successful, you can save £671.61 by the end of 2024.We explain how the 1p challenge works.
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The 1p saving challenge was originally created by money blogger Skint Dad several years ago.Simply put, it’s where you start by saving 1p on the first day and then save an extra penny each day after that.
You begin by setting aside 1p on 1 January, 2p on 2 January and continuing in this manner. Essentially, each day you save the amount you saved the previous day, along with an additional penny.
This goesup to £3.66 on 31 December 2024 to account for the extra day we have in February as its a leap year. So your savings at the end of the year would be £671.61 – it’s normally £667.95 with a 365-day year.
How do I save for the 1p challenge?
You might think saving a little every day could be tricky to remember or keep track of. But there are ways to get around this.
- Put a reminder on your phone: This will help you remember to put away money every day, even after a long day at work.
- Set up a standing order: You can move the cash into a savings account or set up daily instalments. Bear in mind that this could get tedious as you’d have to log into your bank account daily.
- Go traditional: A more traditional way would be to use a piggybank or a jar. However, because of how much cash and coin use has reduced, this could be a bit challenging.
How much would I save per month?
So as an alternative, you could save the monthly sums instead. We’ve done the maths for you, so all you need to do is get saving. Remember, your annual target would be £671.61.
| Month | How much you would save |
|---|---|
| January | £4.96 |
| February | £12.74 |
| March | £23.25 |
| April | £31.65 |
| May | £42.16 |
| June | £49.95 |
| July | £61.07 |
| August | £70.68 |
| September | £77.55 |
| October | £89.59 |
| November | £95.85 |
| December | £112.16 |
When setting up a standing order, it might be easier to take the total savings you make in the year and divide it by 12. This way, you can pay the same amount every month.
Rounding the end saving goal to £672 would mean you need to save £56 per month. Plus, you would actually save 39p more.
If you’re with a bank that has a good app, it’s worth using them to make the savings journey simpler. For example, Starling Bank lets you set saving goals.
The Monzo app also works really well with this challenge. It allows you to transfer increasing amounts automatically into a ‘virtual pot’ every day using its free ‘If This Then That’ web service.
Other ways to save money
The 1p saving challenge might not be for everyone- you might have a goal to save more money or you don’t want the pressure of putting a set amount away every day or month.
Here are some alternative options to save money in the new year.
- Do an energy comparison to find the best electricity and gas deals for your household. Or, check out our top energy-saving tips to save on your power-hungry appliances.
- Switch your broadband to save ££s on your internet bill.
- Swap for a cheap SIM only deal and pay as little as £0.99 per month.
- Discover how to find the cheapest TV streaming deals – be it Netflix, Disney Plus, Apple TV Plus or Prime Video.
- Get yourself a supermarket loyalty card – most of them are free and will help you save on grocery shopping.
- Do you qualify for a £160 water bill reduction? Or see if you can get some water-saving freebies from your supplier.
- You could save up to £180 on music subscriptions by picking a sharing plan – and more on our all-about-music guide.
Oojal joined Look After My Bills as an Editorial Executive for Future Academy after a Master's degree in International Journalism from Cardiff University. She has written for several Newsquest dailies, Voice Wales, DIVA Magazine and Sony Music. Her work has revolved around covering critical social issues, such as the cost of living crisis, student poverty, industrial action, LGBTQIA+ issues and mental health. When she's not immersed in all things editorial, you can either find her walking around the streets of Cardiff, at Cineworld watching the latest film, or scrolling through cat reels wondering when she might bring one home.
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