No-Spend Challenges- Are They Right For You?

Everywhere I look on social media people are attempting no-spend challenges. For some, it may be a no-spend week to keep the pennies in check. Others it might be a no-spend month after a, particularly heavy spending month. Or others a no-spend year to save up for a big goal like buying a house.

I’ve dabbled into no spending challenges in the past, without much success though (more on that later!) I’m all for setting financial goals, but it got me thinking are these challenges worth the hassle? Or are they right for you and your financial goals and habits?

What are no-spend challenges?

It may seem kind of obvious from the title but no spend challenges differ slightly from person to person based on what they consider ‘essential’. A no-spend challenge puts a restriction on you buying anything that isn’t deemed essential. Generally, this would be mortgage/ rent, bills, and fixed payments, fuel, and food. Although with food takeaways, meals out, and convenience food wouldn’t count.

No spend challenges are designed to give you a financial detox to reset your spending habits. For some people, it might just mean you can save more money for a goal you’re working towards. For others, it might be to reassess and reset your spending habits if you’re a big impulse spender.

There’s no set way to do a no-spend challenge, it might be no spending for six days a week. It might be no spending for a week, month, six months, or a year. That really depends on why you’re doing it.

Emilie has set herself rules for no spend year saying “I’m doing a ‘no spend year’ so that I can fast track saving for my first home – my key to success has been budgeting for allowances like days out / a social budget like going to the pub (when they open) and having a ‘buy nothing new unless replacing something’ rule being the main restriction. Many people try to be too restrictive with it in my opinion. I use it as a guide and to challenge my spending mindset and focus on my financial goals.”

Why no spend challenges don’t work for me

Just like going too extreme with a diet cutting something out of your life can end up leading to the opposite result. If you restrict yourself too much it’s unlikely to stick long term. So much like if you cut out all the nice food in life you may end up binge eating the whole Domino’s menu. If you stop allowing yourself to spend on anything that makes you happy you’re likely to fall off and end up spending more on a shopping binge.

Dan from The Financial Wilderness agrees with me, saying “my concern is that it’s not a long term sustainable pattern and is more likely to result in feast or famine type binges rather than thinking about what are sustainable changes to your budget which you can implement long term and build repeatable financial habits instead.”

Being careful with money is part of my mindset

Over the years I’ve gotten much better with impulse spending and I have a set budget for spending each week. This is money I know I can afford to spend and is within my own means. I’ve learned to consider purchases and sit on them as much as I can. And I’ve learned how to search for deals and discounts. So I don’t feel that I need to reassess my spending habits as they’re in a good spot.

Saving is factored into my budgets from the off

Yes, I’d always love to save more. But saving for holidays, our wedding, home renovations, Christmas, and our emergency fund is all factored into our budgets. So for us, saving comes first. This means I can spend my own disposable money and not feel guilty as I’m ticking all the saving goals I want to.

I don’t deal well with depriving myself

This may also be why I don’t do well on diets, and when I do it’s a very slow steady weight loss and nothing drastic. I hate thinking that things are forbidden or that I can’t do something. Especially if it’s something that makes me happy and brings me joy. If nothing else this past year has taught me about the little things that bring me joy. A new book to read, or a beautiful smelling candle. And if I can buy these things within my own means and feel happy about it I’m going to do it.

I hate failing at things

I’ve tried no spend challenges in the past, and I’ve failed at them. Yes, I could’ve tried harder, but it just wasn’t in me to do. And I hate setting myself up to fail. If I needed to tighten my belt I’d rather reduce my spending disposable money to set aside more savings and still have something I could spend if I wanted to rather. As opposed to telling myself a blanket I couldn’t spend. This just isn’t achievable for me.

But no spend challenges do work for some

Everyone’s circumstances and mindsets are different, and for some no spend challenges have worked so well in the past.

Emma from Tuppennys Fireplace talks about how she uses it to reconnect. “I use no spend days and weeks for a short-term challenge to help me reconnect with my money. With plastic being the main way we buy things, we can get disconnected from how much we are spending in total. The beauty of no-spend challenges is that you make your own rules.”

Claire from Money Saving Central does it on a yearly basis “I do a no-spend challenge every January for the entire month, it’s the perfect way to recover from my December/Christmas overspending. The whole family gets on board which makes it easier.”

Emma from Bee Money Savvy explains how it can help create new financial habits. “I’ve used no spend months to cut out spending on junk food & takeaways and it’s worked a treat! I think no spend challenges are a great way to kickstart a new habit. They say that on average it takes 66 days to form a new habit. Therefore, if you can challenge yourself to 2 months of quitting bad spending habits then it’s more likely that you’ll stick to it in the long term.”

Have you done a no-spend challenge before?

Pin It