5 easy & realistic ways to save money in your Twenties

When it comes to saving money, there is no better moment to start saving than…right now.

Going through my twenties, and facing the inevitable teaching path of trial and error, I have now learnt a few tips to help me become a little more ‘financially smart’. It is true, financial stability doesn’t come overnight, and you definitely have to work for it. However the sooner you start, the better.

You don’t have to have a C-level job to start saving and thinking about your future. Just save what you can, now. Even 10 euros a week add up to the stack in the long run.

Here are 5 easy, and realistic ways, for you to start saving money from today.

1. Schedule an Automatic Monthly Transfer to your Savings Account

This is probably the most fruitful advice you will find on the list. Go to your bank, and ask to set an automatic monthly transfer from your checking account to your savings account. Save as much as you can afford. If that’s only €50 a month, that’s ok! It will still save you €600 by the end of the year. My advice is to save 20% of your net income each month, and to ‘forget’ you have that money, unless there’s an emergency.

2. Adopt the 50/30/20 Budgeting Rule of thumb

The 50/30/20 rule of thumb was coined by Elizabeth Warren and her daughter Amelia Warren Tyagi. They first presented it to the world in their 2005 co-authored book ‘All your worth: the ultimate lifetime money plan’. Although the plan is quite intricate, its basic outline consists of 4 easy steps:

• Calculate your Net After-Tax income
• Limit your Needs to 50% of it (rent, bills, insurance, groceries, utilities, etc.)
• Limit your Wants to 30% of it (shopping, travels, coffee-to-go, etc.)
• Save 20% of it.

3. Cook your own Meals & Brew your own Coffee

We all know oh too well the practicality of take-aways, and the warming comfort of sipping a hot coffee-to-go on your way back home. However, the harsh reality here is, you have to start cooking for yourself if you want to save those few extra bucks. You’ll be surprised at how much money you can save by eating in and cutting on those coffees to go. Trust me. If you stop spending even just those 2-5 daily euros on coffee, you’ll save more than €50 each month.

4. Negotiate or Find better Contracts on recurring bills

Take some time and go over your recurring monthly bills such as Internet, cell phone, and electricity. If you have any of them expiring soon, contact the provider, and try to see if they have a better contract to offer you on renewal. Otherwise look around to find a better deal. Some cell phone companies, constantly have new great offers on their data packages, but of course they won’t go out of their way to tell existing customers that they could actually be paying less.

5. Put away €5 – €30 a Week

Reasonably consider how much money you can afford to put away each week, and save. A little ‘sacrifice’ can go a long way when saving money, and I promise it will add up quicker than you think. Invest in a little piggy bank, so you are not tempted to dip in, and save, save, save! By the end of the year you’ll be proud of yourself, and surprised at how much money you’ve managed to save with such minimal effort.

Do you have other tips & bits of advice on how to save money? Please do share in the comments below.

I look forwards to hear from you.

Happy saving!

Elly XO