Want to Save Money? Try The ‘100 Envelope Challenge’

It’s called the “100 Envelope Challenge” on TikTok, and it promises to put more than $5,000 in your pocket in just 100 days.

Influencers on TikTok are promoting a somewhat old-fashioned way to save cash!

@diamond_salazar Opening and counting all the money I have saved since Feb to July is going to be so much fun! #100envelopes #100envelopechallenge #savingmoney #fypシ ♬ Fancy Like - Walker Hayes

The challenge is geared toward young investors facing higher rent and grocery bills, student loan debt, and a general feeling of never being able to make the money last the month.

HERE'S HOW THIS WORKS!

It works like this: Label 100 envelopes from one to 100. On day one, put $1 in envelope 1. On day 2, put $2 in envelope 2. Continue this way until day 100, when your final savings deposit of $100 will bring you to a total of $5,050.

Could this work? Sure, if you have access to extra cash.  Some people, a lot of people don’t even make $5000 in 100 days…GenZers and Millennials are more likely to be worried about covering basic expenses, let alone stashing some away. In that last week of the challenge you would have to come up with $500.

The more sustainable plan is to save $5,000 over a year, consistently, and put those funds in an investment account or bank or credit union. Saving $13 a day equals $5,000 in a year, not including the interest.

FUN FACT:

If you save $5,000 a year starting at age 25 and, at average market rates, that grows to more than $1.1 million by age 65.

A more boring, and sustainable challenge is to put up to $10 a day away and stay there. Slowly edge up to $15 a day and think about where to park it. You want to periodically add to that savings. $15 turns into $5,000, and $5,000 into a million.