The 100 Envelope Challenge!

If you’ve always wanted more in your savings account, the 100 Envelope Challenge is a simple, easy-going way to put away $5,050 over the course of one year. By completing two savings goals a week, you’ll end the year with more money and less stress. Complete the 100 Envelope Challenge with paper envelopes, or with You Need a Budget—an easy, on-the-go app to organize your money and save big.

Timestamps:
0:00 Intro
0:26 What Is the 100 Envelope Challenge?
0:56 The Supplies You’ll Need
1:02 Prep Step #1: Label Envelopes
1:58 Prep Step #2: Make a Checklist
2:47 Prep Step #3: Shuffle and Store Envelopes
3:16 Step #1: Pick Two Envelopes a Week
3:39 Step #2: Fill Both Envelopes Within the Week
4:05 Step #3: Check Off Stuffed Envelopes
4:31 Step #4: Continue Weekly to Save $5k+
4:55 Tips for Success
5:38 Alternate Method: Skip the Paper, Use YNAB!

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[dwagner]

Or skip the step to make 100 categories, create a $5050 Savings Goal for 52 weeks out and only use the slips of paper in the basket to determine what needs to be assigned this week.
Nice idea, endlessly customizable for smaller or larger goals or time frames.

[EricaLucasLoves]

You could talk about worms and I would watch. You are so funny.

[MichaelHorst]

I literally started this exact process in late January using YNAB, and it absolutely works. I was actually considering making my own video explaining how to do it, but YNAB beat me to the punch.

One improvement: I would recommend hiding the individual "envelopes" categories as you fill them, so you can't see how much you have saved. That makes the "unstuffing" at the end of the year more fun...and also removes temptation to pull that money and spend it elsewhere.

[JulianneSchisler]

I get paid on commission and have been saving for kitchen appliances. I knew I wanted to focus on this, but money wasn't finding its way to the appliances category each month. Decided to put the 1-100 boxes in YNAb, collapse the group and pick a number or two each time I get paid, depending on the size of my check. That way, no pressure, no failure. When I enter the amount as funded, I change the number to the date I paid it ($2 - 7/24/23) so I can see how long it will take. If I can figure out how to budget it, I'll pick a biggie. If not, a smaller one. This eliminates the stress of needing the money and quitting. I have a choice each time. But turns out knowing what I'm saving for is helping me feel good about shaving the money off of other categories and focus my attention. Also, doing it along with paydays is helping me schedule when to do it and look forward to it, like a reward on payday. Until this video I never figured out how to do this in Ynab and was super reluctant to have cash in envelopes around the house. This is working great for me! Also - LOVE your videos!

[lizp.]

I'm doing a 52 week challenge with my bank. They pull $1 the first week, then $2 the next week and so on. I show it in my YNAB app and it goes to my Emergency Fund. It's only around $1400 per year but still is an easy way to save some extra. I'm living off half of my income right now so I can pay off my house...282 sleeps and counting 😂🥰

[RandomFandomDragon]

Think I'm going to start small to get into the habit. Starting in August there will be 22 weeks left in the year, so that will be 44 envelopes resulting in $990. That'll be a good amount to add to the emergency fund. Then January - the BIG challenge! I will use YNAB, b/c at least keeping the money in the bank earns a tiny bit of interest.

This is fun, ty for sharing! 💜😎

[BudgetingGranny]

Another option is to try to save $101 a week. Essentially choose an envelope from the beginning and one from the end. 100/1, 99/2, 98/3... this way you won’t get stuck with 99 and 98 and throw in the towel. Have a $5050 main category with a target as well as a $101 category. At the end of the week, move what you collected to the $5050 category and start saving for the next week. If you only save $90, then maybe you can find $11 to make it up in a future week. Seems more attainable to me.

[sonic]

Not sure if I can do the 100 envelope challenge but I'm going to do a 50 one on Ynab, this is going to be fun!

[arambladen]

I only have one category named "the 100 envelope challenge" and I put a savings balance target of the total amount with no due date so I don't get bothered by the yellow/orange warning! 🤣

[CitizenPlane]

I gamify my savings a bit differently. I have a category for absolutely everything I want, even pie-in-the-sky fantasies. I put a little bit every month into these categories. Some of these categories will take so long to finance that I will not be able to achieve these goals in my lifetime. For example, I am 628 years away from being able to buy a new house with cash. But these categories work as a backup savings plan, and if my fortunes ever change, I might be able to actually reach these goals.

[conureron]

This should be fun! Gonna be tough, I think. Thanks for showing the “In the YNAB” version. I’m going to try it in YNAB.

[darkANDsqually]

We started this but I didn't have a firm plan for the money. It was fun to try and stuff as many virtual envelopes/categories as fast as our budget allowed. As it turned out, our income changed for the worse and having the extra money saved helped us stay ahead. I still want to restart the challenge but I think we'll have to go slower this time. Essentially this challenge turned into a bigger emergency fund which is great because just saving for an emergency fund was boring and this challenge made it fun 😂

[sarahjmcb]

I love this! So excited to start the challenge and save $5, 000 :D

[stacyharris]

I got 8 people saving on challenges at my work 5 of us are doing. The 100 envelope challenge which are doing in 3 different ways lol I have drawn 100 envelopes numbered them and then we color them in when the coin gets flipped on them every Tuesday payday for three of them. My friend Raul does 101 he doesn’t like the chanciness of it. And I did 150 for my initial and then 100 every payday so we’re having lots of fun and being amazed at how we can save

[OneDeadBird]

I'm defs gonna give this a go, but so I don't freak myself out i'm doing it as a 50 envelope challenge

[abrieladams]

Welcome back! Oh how I’ve missed you Hannah!

[judriki]

I created the 100 Envelope Challenge Category in YNAB and 100 sub categories for each amount between 1$ and 100$ (with their own specific target). I used a Random App to identify the amount I'm putting in the challenge every pay or when I decide.

However, at one point the challenge started to bug me as I didn't know what job to give those dollars. Great to see the amount growing, but for what? I didn't feel attached to it as it didn't have a job (YNAB: what have you done to me? LOL). And, while I was driving thinking about it, I had an idea: I will give a job for the first thousand dollar accumulated! So, once I hit THAT target, I put 1000$ on my mortgage! The second thousand will be on the next car. For the third, I'll decide about it when I'm there. Oh! And I delete the subcategories once I moved the 1000$ to its new job. :-)

I felt this challenge became more interesting once I tweeked it that way!

[judithc]

Great idea! I am going to do a variation of this to pay off my car. I am numbering 100 pieces of paper right now and paying the amount on the paper to my car payment each week. It will not take a year, then I can pick a different project. This will be fun! 🚗

[SoliRhymesWithJulie]

yep doing this and found colorful envelopes on the Company Store(tm) site I will get for it.

[cchaney]

I haven't tried this but I feel like it would be way easier in YNAB since already using it =) Fun thing to try!