Best ways to save money as a teenager: As a teenager, whether you are receiving your first paycheck or your 10th, the only thing you can think about is spending every last penny on some new clothes or your unnecessary habits. But have you ever wondered how much money you would actually have after a few years of even saving 20% of your paycheck every month?
While treating your self every now and then can be fun, spending too much money without setting anything aside isn’t the best idea in the world. You may think you are saving money by putting half of your money away at the start of the month, only to realise that by the end of it, you have burned through it all when you needed “a little bit more this month”, only to be left with nothing…
Before you start saving, you want to pay any existing debts off. By this I mean if you owe any of your friends or family any money, pay them off before you start saving. But why? When you work as a teenager, most of the time you aren’t going to be getting paid that much each month. Paying someone back and also putting money away each month only to be left with a small amount to spend on things to do with either your friends or family isn’t going to be fun.
If you don’t think you can afford to actually save any money each month as you have things to pay for, then you probably have some bad habits. For example, I know loads of people that are spending around £60 a month on a phone that they really don’t need. Or a lot of teenagers smoke, and we all know how much smoking costs these days. You’re looking at spending almost £10 a pack. And the average smoker goes through a few of those packs a week.
But the worst habit I see a lot of teenagers do is spending their money on lunch. People spend nearly £3-£6 a day just on food. Even £3 a day works out at £60 a month. Just waking up that little bit earlier and preparing yourself some food is going to save you so much money and is probably going to be a lot healthier than buying fast food every day.
When it actually comes down to saving money, the best way to save money as a teenager is to save a percentage of your paycheck each month as soon as you get it. Now this means when you receive your money in your bank account, instantly put a percentage of that into a savings account. When I was 16 I started with just 20% each month. Slowly I grew this where I am now at the point where I save almost 30-35% of my money each month.
This may seem hard at first, but over time you will slowly see that money grow and grow over time and it will motivate you to keep saving. Let’s say you earn £800 a month. 20% of £800 is £160. So if we do £160 x 12, that gives us £1920. So over one year of just saving 20% of £800, you’re left with nearly £2000. That also leaves you with £600 each month which is a very good amount for the average teenager.
If you get into the habit of saving 20% every time you receive money in your account, it is really going to help in the long run. Just think that if you start saving when you’re 16, you could be looking at enough money in your account to put a deposit down on a house by the age of 21.
If you’re looking for the best ways to save money as a teenager and you haven’t already got a bank account setup, then Money Saving Expert has got you covered: https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/savings/best-regular-savings-accounts/
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