Want to save £10,000 (or $10k) in a year and need tips for how to achieve your goal?
Setting out on a savings goal like this might feel like a daunting prospect but this article is going to break down what you need to do to hit your target.
I’ve also got some useful tips for cutting back on certain areas of your spending so you can make room in your budget for hitting your £10,000 savings goal in one year.
I myself have been able to save £10,000 in the last 12 months, so can report that it definitely works! And honestly when you see that balance in your savings account it is worth all of the hard work!
I have a free savings tracker for you to download and print to help you keep track of your progress. It’s near the end of the article.
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How to save £10,000 in a year
In order to save £10,000 in 12 months you need to be saving around £834 per month or roughly £27.80 per day. If you’re in the US, then it’s $27.80 per day that you need to find for one year.
While that might seem like a daunting amount, you may find it less so once you itemise your monthly spending and identify places to make savings.
Begin by writing down all of your income and then all of your outgoings.
You need to be really specific and include absolutely everything. Remember outgoings such as:
- Your daily coffee or smoothie
- Lunch or snacks your purchase during the day
- Weekly grocery spending
- Bills such as gas, electricity, water and council tax
- Your mortgage or rent
- Car expenses – include petrol, car tax, MOT and servicing expenses
- Clothing expenses – such as new schools shoes and uniform for your kids
- Entertainment expenses – including day trips out, takeaways and nights out
- Other expenses – such as beauty treatments
Once you have this written down and itemised then you can see if you realistically have a spare £834 to set aside each month.
If you don’t then start to identify some areas you could cut back on spending. You’ll be surprised how budgeting on your grocery bill can add up over the course of a year. There are tons of tips for how you can make crucial savings in your budget so you can hit your goal in this article!
Reasons to save £10,000 in one year
There are many reasons why you may want to save £10,000 in a year. It really helps to have a goal in mind when you set out on a big savings mission like this one.
Your goal can be absolutely anything, even just that you want a safety net to catch you in case your work situation changes.
The reasons for saving £10,000 might be:
- To put towards a house deposit
- To pay for a wedding
- You’re expecting a new baby
- To go on a dream holiday
- To renovate your home
Identify your motivation for saving £10k and make sure you are reminded of it often! This helps to keep you going in the months when saving might feel like a slog.
Is it realistic to save £10,000 in a year
I remember a friend telling me many years ago how she had saved £30,000 in one year. I was so impressed, and happy for her of course.
Then I started to feel a bit rubbish (that comparison syndrome kicks in pretty quickly). I had barely managed to scrape together £1,000 in savings. But I was 22 and earning about £19,000 a year at the time. For me to compare my savings potential to hers was just totally unrealistic!
So in order to make this goal achievable it has to actually fit into your budget somehow.
If £10,000 is not realistic given your annual earnings then you either need to adjust your savings goal or find a way to boost your income.
There are lots of ideas for how to earn £1,000 a month extra over on this article!
Related post: Frugal living tips
Tips for saving £10k in a year
Cut back on takeaways
Takeaways are amazing but they are expensive!
Cut out your weekly takeaway and you could save as much as £60 a month! If you have takeaways even more frequently then your potential saving could be even more.
Instead of takeaways try out fakeaway recipes you can cook yourself at home. It’s fun to experiment with cooking new things and you’ll be surprised how delicious they can be!
Potential saving: £60 a month
Swap supermarkets
The cost of shopping at the cheapest supermarkets or budget stores compared to the most expensive can be as much as £20.
Making the switch may involve ditching some of your favourite branded products for Aldi or Lidl own brand products. You may find you don’t notice the difference, but if you really do then why not shop for fresh and canned goods at the budget supermarkets and pick up your branded products at Tesco. This might be a good compromise!
Wherever you shop for food, always be looking for the best prices. The cost of items can really vary by brand, range and weight.
Potential saving: £130 a month
Shop for discounted food
The big supermarkets will start to discount food at various times of day, however you’re most likely to bag a bargain at some point after 6pm.
This is when the food that’s going to expire tomorrow starts to be discounted.
So look for the yellow stickers on food that you need. Or if you do see a bargain adapt your meal plan to accommodate it (just so you’re not buying extra that you don’t realistically need, as that’s just wasting rather than saving money).
Remember to freeze the food you can on the day of purchase so that you don’t waste it.
Potential saving: £30 a month
Ditch unwanted subscriptions
Write down all of your subscriptions including magazines, gym membership and TV and music services.
Now think whether you need all of these. Can you ditch one for something cheaper? Do you need Amazon Prime and Netflix? Do you really need Sky TV or can you be just as happy with the Freeview channels?
We ditched our Sky TV subscription a few years ago and honestly have not looked back! We don’t miss it and Netflix costs us just £6.99 a month which is a bargain by comparison and we watch it every single day.
You could also try to negotiate with service providers such as Sky to reduce your bills. By saying you want to cancel you often find providers will offer a discount. Find out how to haggle with Sky to reduce your bill here.
Potential saving: £50 a month
Cut back on beauty treatments
Do you need to get your hair or nails done quite so frequently or could you cut back and do it yourself at home?
If you have your hair coloured then a trip to the hairdressers can be particularly expensive. Plus you need to visit more frequently to get the roots touched up.
Save on this by trying out colouring your hair at home with boxed hair dye from the supermarket. They tend to cost around £5.80 to £6 a box, whereas a hairdresser may charge you £50 plus each time you get your hair coloured (and that doesn’t include the actual haircut).
Try to go longer between hair cuts as well to make an extra saving. Invest in a pair of hairdressing scissors so that you can trim your kids’ hair as well – there are plenty of videos on YouTube to give you tips for how to keep it even.
Potential saving: £50 a month
Use cash back sites
If you are not using cash back sites then you are missing a trick!
Register with a site such as Top Cashback and then make purchases at your favourite online shops, such as Domino’s Pizza, Charlotte Tilbury, eBay and Currys, then you can a percentage of your purchase back! It’s that simple.
You could also try apps like Jam Doughnut and Airtime Rewards.
Potential saving: £10+ a month
Make your own lunch and coffee
That daily coffee is only a couple of quid but it soon adds up if you have one five days a week.
Same with lunches. So bring your own lunch and coffee to the office each day instead of buying them from a cafe or canteen.
Do the same for every member of your family and you will save even more cash over the course of a month!
Potential saving: £140 a month
Ditch luxury branded goods
Do you splurge on top brands for your make-up, beauty products and clothes?
Consider trying some budget brands to see if the differences are really noticeable.
With clothes try to avoid fast fashion and instead pick clothes that you will wear next season as well.
There can be a temptation with cheaper clothing brands such as Primark to buy something new every month, because it’s not expensive as an individual purchase. But that really adds up if you are doing it regularly. Ask yourself do you actually need new clothes or have you already got plenty of choice in your wardrobe?
If you’re bored of your wardrobe then consider a clothes swap with a friend who is the same size as you. Or you can sell your old clothes for cash to help you buy new ones.
Potential savings £50 a month
Look for free fun
Taking a family of four anywhere can add up. Once you factor in admissions costs, snacks and lunch you might be looking at £100 for just one day out.
Seek out free fun instead. Drive down to the beach for the day with a picnic or head to a local park to play football together.
Your local library will also have regular events for kids that are often free or cost just a tiny entry fee that is far cheaper than a trip to a big amusement park.
Another cheap activity is to visit your local pick your own. You get fruit and vegetables to use in your meal plan that week plus it’s gets you outside for an afternoon! There’s a list of strawberry picking locations here.
Potential saving: £100 a month
Cut back on nights out
If you want to catch up with your friends then have them over to your house for drinks instead.
Everyone could bring something – starter, main, dessert and drinks – to spread the cost out for the get together.
Potential saving: £100 a month
Have a budget holiday
You don’t have to sacrifice your annual holiday in order to hit your savings goal!
Get creative with where you go so that you get a fun trip at the best possible price. Instead of a hotel or house rental consider looking for a camping site that offers you a chance to get away at a far more affordable cost.
If you can travel outside of the school holidays, as prices go sky high when the schools are out.
Don’t forget to check if your holiday can be booked via a cash back site, which can make you an additional saving! For example you get 7% back from Top Cashback when booking your trip through booking.com.
Potential saving: £500 a year
Find creative ways to boost your income
If you earn £25,000 a year then hitting £10,000 in savings is going to be tricky.
There are some cool, flexible ways you can bring in a few extra pounds a month in your own time.
These side hustles can fit around your existing job or around your kids.
My favourite ways to earn a bit of extra cash are:
- Survey sites. These won’t make you rich but you can make a decent amount each month that will help you along your way to £10,000. I really enjoy the YouGov surveys!
- Sell your stuff.
- Rent your parking space.
- Start an Etsy business.
- Buy and sell on Amazon.
Potential earnings: £250+
Try a no spend month
A no spend month challenge is where you cut back on all non-essential spending.
It can be a great way to stop impulse spending for a short burst of time, and it can also reset your money mindset and make you realise you can live with a lot less!
Check out my no spend month challenge rules and tips.
If you’re getting started in January this is a great month for a no spend challenge! Check out my tips for how to have a successful no spend January.
Potential saving: £500+
Tips for hitting your £10,000 savings goal
Keep track of your progress
Give yourself a pat on the back every month by recording how much you have saved.
Using a visual chart can really help with this. For example try having a grid that you colour in a square of every time you save another £100.
Other people use pictures, for example this cool mason jar colour-in savings tracker.
Alternatively just write down what you manage to save – whether that’s daily, weekly or monthly – so that you keep on top of how you’re doing.
If you want your own spending tracker I have a free one here for your to download, print and use to keep an eye on your progress!
It’s a grid of 100 squares. Simply divide the amount you want to save by 100 and that will tell you what each square represents. So when your target is £10,000 each square represents £100. Colour in using different colours to make it look pretty! Download your copy here:
Have a clear goal
Know what you are saving for and why!
Visualise what your £10k is going to pay for by getting a picture and putting it on the fridge. It could be a picture of a place you want to travel to or your dream kitchen.
Save as soon as you’re paid
Set aside your monthly amount to be saved right away when your salary hits your bank account.
This will help you to stay focused on keeping the spending over the course of the rest of the month within your budget.
Anything that’s left after your essential bills and savings is money you can spend on stuff like takeaways, new clothes and dinners out.
Tell your friends and family
It can really help to have some moral support on your side!
By telling your friends and family they can not only motivate you when you’re struggling, but also they will be more understanding when you suggest a night in rather than an expensive night out.
Keep monitoring your budget
Keep track of your monthly budget so that you can identify areas in your budget where you’re overspending or find new ways to save.
By doing this you may also be able to save a little extra some months, which could fast track you to your savings goal!
Know your spending weaknesses
Do you find it hard to resist when your favourite clothing company emails you with their latest offers and new range?
I know that I struggle not to add new clothes to my basket when my favourite companies email me!
So reduce the risk of giving into temptation by unsubscribing from their mailing lists and unfollowing their social media accounts.
It can also help to delete your saved bank card details from your phone as this can make it too easy to make a quick purchase on the spur of the moment.
Instead adopt a 7-day rule where you consider a purchase before going ahead. Nine times out of 10 you will remind yourself you do not need to buy it!
Whatever your weakness is when it comes to spending and impulse purchases, identify it and find ways to cope with avoiding it so that you can stick to your goal!
Try a cash envelope system
Many people who are trying to stick to a tight budget find the cash envelope system extremely useful.
You withdraw money every month and divide it between envelopes labelled with all of the categories you need to spend on that month. Then you do not spend a penny more on those categories than what is in the envelope.
So if you have allocated £50 to going out, you stick £50 cash in the envelope and that’s that. You cannot use your bank card to spend on going out.
Have envelopes for all your monthly spends such as groceries, fuel for your car and snacks. This is a good way to prevent yourself from going over budget and keeping track of whether you are at risk of overspending.
Final thoughts on saving £10k
By now you should have a plan for how you’re going to save £10,000 in a year.
I would like to just add that if you have one bad month, don’t scrap your plan altogether.
We’re only human, and we all have moments of weakness. So do your best to get back on track, keep an eye on your spending and seek out new ways to save extra cash each month.
Best of luck with your savings journey!
