3 Ways to Make Saving More Fun

2023 is all about growth -- personal and financial.

On its face, saving money can be like pulling teeth. Owie. It hurts. Maybe that's why Gen Z and millennials are checking out how to gamify finances in 2023, according to this year's Pinterest Predicts. Financial challenges seem to be all the rage going into the new year.

Perfect timing. Saving accounts could use some growth. Due to factors like consumer inflation and dwindling stimulus stashes, the average American has less savings this year. Which means less money to pay off debt -- top of mind among folks making financial New Year's resolutions.

Looking for ideas? There are plenty of popular challenges to choose from. Here are three ways to make saving more fun.

Challenges

Participate in year-long challenges to make everyday savings fun and manageable. The point of challenges is to simplify money management and make saving fun.

1. 1,000 savings

Start small. The 1,000 savings challenge encourages you to save $1,000 over one year. The point is to build steady savings habits. After one year, you can double your goal or take on a more formidable challenge. You can put that $1,000 toward an emergency fund.

2. Envelope

Get physical. The envelope challenge starts with raiding your mom's crafts drawer and pulling out a stack of envelopes. Label each envelope as a spending category (i.e., rent, groceries, dining out). At the beginning of each month, stuff each envelope with cash.

Then comes the fun part: spend! But be careful. When the money runs out, that's it. You're not allowed to spend more money on that category this month. This challenge helps you visualize where your money is going.

An alternative to the envelope challenge is budgeting apps. Like envelopes, they help you track where your money flows. You can typically create spending categories, too.

3. Bi-weekly

Stick to simple. The bi-weekly challenge is straightforward. Every two weeks, contribute to your savings account until you reach your financial goal.

To find out how much you need to save, divide your goal by the number of weeks in a given year (52), then halve that.

For example, if you want to save $1,000 in a year, you would need to save $19.23 every two weeks. By the end of the year, you will have saved $1,000.

Contributing twice a week keeps you engaged and makes saving feel more manageable.

Make it satisfying

The best games do more than entertain -- they satisfy. James Clear, author of bestseller Atomic Habits, believes good habits should be satisfying. That way, you are tempted to repeat them. The trick is to immediately reward yourself for sticking with your goals.

For example: If you are trying to cut down on dining out, reward yourself for eating in. Say you decide to stay home. Put the money you would have spent on restaurant food toward your savings account. Boom. Instant gratification.

My kryptonite is ordering food delivery. This year, I've committed to cutting down on delivery costs. To make the habit stick, I send $20 to my stock brokerage account each time I successfully resist ordering delivery. It's not perfect, but it has helped me reduce spending.

Choose a high-yield savings account

Make the most of your savings by putting that cash somewhere safe and profitable. The best saving accounts offer industry-leading returns on banked funds. Saving money doesn't have to be painful -- take on a challenge, and prepare for personal and financial growth in 2023.