Do No Spend Days Really Work?
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No spend days can be really helpful when trying to get your finances on track and many people find them a great way to help be conscientious of their spending. But do they really work in the long term? In this post, I take a look at the pros and cons of no spend days and whether or not they could be a game-changer for your finances.
When it comes to finances, everyone is different, and what works for you might not work for someone else. However, the only way you’ll really know this is if you try different ideas around money and see how you get on.
Do No Spend Days Really Work?
There are some things I think everyone should have to start with – such as an emergency fund and having some no spend days could be a great way to help you on the way to boosting your savings.
On the other hand, some people find no spend days too restrictive and once they spend once, they end up splurging all the money they’ve saved.
What Are The Rules For No Spend Days?
For your no spend days, you can make the rules. However, don’t make it too easy or it’s unlikely you’ll save any money. Here are a few rules people like to use when trying a no spend week or a no spend month.
Things not to spend money on:
- No spending on non-essential food such as takeaways, fancy coffees, and lunch out.
- No spending on clothes or shoes.
- No spending on activities such as trips to the cinema.
- No spending on Uber or taxis.
- No spending on make-up, hair or nails.
Things you can spend money on:
- Groceries
- Fuel
- Usual bills such as a mortgage, water rates, TV and Broadband bills.
- Booked activities such as children’s after-school club or swimming lessons.
- Emergency spending such as a boiler repair.
How To Get Started With No Spend Days
1. Have a clear goal
Having a clear goal end goal for your no spend week or month should help you focus and be more determined to say no when you need to. This could be anything from paying off debt to saving up towards a large purchase such as a car.
2. Get your family on board
Before starting a no-spend challenge, you’ll need to get your family on board with what you’re doing. Discuss it with them, explain the reasoning behind it and show them the benefits you’ll all be able to reap at the end.
3. Set a time limit
No spend challenges can be tough, so set yourself a clear end date such as a week or a month. You can always do another one in the future or make them a regular thing if it’s something you find works for you.
4. Take a look at your schedule
If this is your first-ever no-spend challenge then doing it on a week when you have a lot of other things going on might be the best idea.
5. Track your progress
You’ll want to track your no-spend days so you can see how well you’ve done at the end of your set period.
What Are The Pros of No Spend Days?
Here are some of the pros of No Spend Days
- No spend days can help you see where you spend money without realising, such as takeaway coffees, top-up shops and clothes.
- Some people find having a challenge really motivates them to do better and spend less.
- They can help you find cheaper or no spend alternatives which become part of your routine saving you even more in the long run.
- Could help boost your savings, emergency fund or pay off debt.
- Helps to confront emotional spending and find habits in your behaviour that you may want to address.
- Pushes you to be more organised as often unnecessary spending can come from forgetting to buy things, not meal planning for a busy day etc.
- Can be a great way to reset after a holiday or period where you feel your spending has been out of control.
What Are The Cons of No Spend Days?
While no spend days can be great, there are some downsides too.
- Feeling of failure if you don’t manage more than one or two days in a row.
- Not being able to buy things that will save money in the long run. For me, this would be things like yellow sticker food or second-hand clothes for my daughter.
- Sticking to no spend days long term can be really draining, even if it’s for a good cause like paying off debt or saving up for a house deposit.
- Having to say no to being spontaneous can be hard, especially after a year of not seeing people.
- Doesn’t work if you don’t have a good plan for your money overall.
- Emergency purchases can derail you. You end up feeling guilty about spending even though it’s a necessary spend.
- Some people find they end up ‘binge spending’ on days they have a small unintended spend, as they feel they’ve already failed.
What To Try Instead of No Spend Days
One of the first things to do when you’re trying to get on top of your finances is sit down and really look at all of your incomings and outgoings.
Budgeting Better
I spoke to Francesca from The Money Fox about budgeting and this was her advice.
‘Before you get started on your no-spend day, it really helps to have a look at your budget. Budgeting will help you work out which areas you need to put your money in, and you can track your expenses each day.
When you are tracking your expenses, you can evaluate your spending and see if you are overspending or perhaps having a particular trigger to spend when you don’t want to. Budgeting can get a bad rep but it’s just a spending plan for the money that you earn.
If you want to include no spend days you can do this, but try to be really aware of any problems you face and any emotions you feel. This will also help you budget better.
Restriction isn’t the goal, but figuring out the best way to use your money, even if that includes allocating some money for random splurges!’
You can buy Francesca’s Budget Planner here.
Side-Hustle Cash Instead
Sometimes you might not want to cut back any more that’s okay.
It’s fine to spend money on things that make you happy. One way to find a balance between spending and saving is to use side hustles to earn extra money to fund some of the things you want to do.
For example, if you want to buy an expensive item of clothing, you could hustle the extra money instead of saving it.
You could try selling old clothes, matched betting or even dog walking.
Vinted is great for making cash and selling your old stuff. See two of my Vinted Guides below.
How To Sell Homeware On Vinted
Worried about Tax? Take a look at this post: Side Hustles and Tax
Do No Spend Days Work? Conclusion
I know that for me, no spend days don’t work.
As I’m careful with money overall and know what I can and can’t spend I don’t find they help me spend any less money than I would have anyway.
However, if you want to keep your spending in check and reassess where your money is going then they can be a great tool for monitoring spending habits.
