Love it or hate it, money is a necessity, and knowing how to save is a huge asset. Whether you’re saving for a big trip, or for more coffee equipment at home (maybe from the Tools for Home Baristas article?) saving may not sound so fun, may not be so easy for you, and may seem like it takes forever until you get to reap the rewards.
But what if I told ya, there are two easy tips that can help you save money fast? No hooks, or dumb rules like “stop buying lattes” … because you know I would never tell you that! 😉
As a quick preview: Tip #1 helped me START saving money (and seeing that it is possible and easier than I thought). Tip #2 Changed my life and helped me save exponentially.
So, here they are:
1. Cash Cash Cash
I had to trick my mind because if I saw it in my bank account, it meant it was there to be spent (yikes). But if it wasn’t in my bank account, it was like it didn’t exist, right?
So what do you do?
- Get an envelope and assign it as your savings.
- Whenever you go to the store to get groceries, ask for cashback. Do whatever you feel comfortable with $5, $10, $20, etc.
- As soon as you get home, put the cash in your envelope.
- Don’t touch the money or even count it for a few months.
- Set a reminder on your calendar for three months away
- Open that envelope when the three months are up and count the money in it. I guarantee you, you’ll be surprised how much you saved up in a matter of a few months.
My first time doing this, my goal was to save $1000 for an emergency fund. I quickly discovered this was a simple way to save. Not to mention, super rewarding because of how fast I accomplished it.
Bonus: If you work in an industry where you receive tips, save all of them. I started doing this when I began working at KS back in May 2019. I have a separate envelope for my cash tips. In 9 months, I saved $600. Mind you, we are a cashless bar – meaning we only take card. So while we have a tip jar, 90% of our tips are credit card tips. Most days I walk away with less than $5 in cash tips. But, a little cash 4 days a week, for 9 months, adds up fast.
2. Tech is your friend: meet Qapital app.
This my secret weapon: an app that you connect to your bank account, assign rules to so that they automatically take that money out to save for you and set it aside for you in your Qapital account – essentially, so you can set it and forget it.
They have various “rules” you can assign, but my favorites are:
- Round up every time I swipe my card
- Save 10% every time I get a deposit over $300
- 52 week rule: Save $1 on week 1, $2 on week 2, and so on until you get to week 52.
- Transfer $x every week
If you’re wondering how legit this is, let me tell you, you are not alone – we all want to make sure our money is safe, so I did my research before signing up and here’s what I found out:
- It uses the same kind of insurance as bank accounts to protect your money (FDIC insurance, which means that your balance is protected for $250,000)
- You’re in complete control: If you know you have a big purchase coming up, or you’re on a tighter budget this month, you can pause all transfers, and restart them whenever you want.
- If you’re low on funds in your bank account, the app will pause those transfers automatically until you have a higher balance so you don’t get over-drafted.
- If something comes up and you need to access your saved money, you can transfer it back to your main bank account: you have two options for this: Instant transfer for a small percentage fee, or transfers in 2 business days for free – which I like because it protects me from spontaneously spending my saved money for anything other than my goal.
In addition, you can set different goals and see your savings increase every week towards those specific goals. For example, I have these current goals, all with their own rules:
- Debt Free Life: I save in $1000 increments and once I hit that, I transfer back to my checking account to pay off debt.
- Traveling Goal: I always set a goal of $1000 to cover airline tickets and accommodations, once I have this, we’ll book tickets and start a new goal for vacation spending money. The goal will be active until the day we leave for vacation.
- Gifts: I save $15 per week to have a little cushion for buying gifts for birthdays and other special occasions.
psst… want to get in on our once-a-month secret posts? Sign up below, and then continue reading!
Now, for some questions you may be asking yourself (and that I asked myself too):
Does it work?
I started using the app at the end of January 2019. I tested it for 77 days (an arbitrary number, this just happened to be when I looked at my savings) with just the rule to round up to $2 every time I swiped my card, and I saved $399.
In one year and one month, I saved a total of $10,450!!!
*mic drop*
Does it cost money?
Yep, three whole dollars a month. $3. Less than your latte. Three dollahs!
And it’s sooo worth it. They have other options that cost more, like one where you can also invest. But I’ve only ever used the basic one that helps me save. In 13 months I’ve paid $39 total to help me save $10k, so that in my book is a win and a worthwhile investment.
Do you have a referral code?
Yep. If you want to test it out, use my link and enter code d55pj332, once you download the app. You’ll get $20 in your savings Qapital account after your first deposit.
- How it works: You have to use my link, create a goal. After you have made a deposit to that goal you’ll get $20 added to your Qapital account. And, you’ll also be contributing to one of my goals: Qapital will give me $20 for the referral.
Got any questions about it? Email me or DM me! I love talking about finances. Figuring out smart ways to get out and stay out of debt is so freeing!
I hope these tips help you save money, get financial freedom, and let you do the things you love without going into debt. If you have other cool saving tips, share them in the comments. And if you use the tips I gave you, let me know!! I love chatting about this stuff.
Happy saving!
-Pao
ps. have you ever wondered what your coffee personality is? Take our quiz here!
pps. Let’s connect on Insta (where I spend most of my time online)! Let me know in a DM if you have any other saving tips!
