What's your saving style?

There are lots of ways to save. And finding a method that works for you means you’re more likely to save successfully.

So we’ve got some solid tips to help you put money away – whether you want to save faster, smarter or more reliably.

Turbo-save

Want to save a large amount quickly? Get motivated and consider making some big changes.

Set yourself a goal while you’re still fired up. And find a way to track it too. Why not try setting a savings goal for a Pot – you’ll get a kick out of watching the progress bar go up.

Consider cutting out your biggest costs. For example, you might want to think about giving up your car or moving into a cheaper place.

Create fun challenges. Making a game out of saving could help you stay on track for longer. Try competing with yourself or a friend. You can also get creative and find new ways to save, such as hosting a no-spend event like a clothes swap or home-cinema night.

Tie saving into other goals. This can help keep you interested, while killing two birds with one stone. For example, if your new goals are health-related you could quit smoking or start cycling to work.

Automate your saving. If you’re bound to get bored and forget about your saving goals, consider setting up an automatic payment into your savings account. This should help you keep saving even after your motivation has gone.

Get a good savings account. For example, the right account could boost your house deposit or help you make the most of compound interest.

Forge good habits

Want to save over the long haul? Live within your means and make it part of your routine to put money away.

Explore budgeting apps. Do colour-coding and pie charts make you happy? Then you’ll love apps like Money Dashboard. You can hook it up to all your bank accounts, file your expenses into neat categories, and review your spending habits via graphs.

Use a progress bar. You can enjoy watching your savings go up little by little when you set savings goals for your Pots.

Use a modern-day piggy bank. Collecting spare change can be a handy habit – but in today’s cashless world, piggy banks don’t get filled like they used too. Luckily, you can use Monzo in much the same way. Whenever you buy something over £1, we’ll round it up to the nearest pound and add the extra to your Pot.

Save automatically. Set up a direct debit into your savings account or schedule payments into your Pot to avoid spending money you should be saving.

Review your savings account regularly. You provider may change things like the interest rate and charges, so keep an eye out for better deals. For example, a fixed rate bond may give you a higher interest rate, while an ISA can protect you from getting taxed on interest.

Review your savings routine regularly. Take a fresh look at your budget every six months or at times of change. You may find you need to re-prioritise your spending – or that you can start putting away more.

Save smarter, not harder

Don’t want to set a super strict budget? Find clever opportunities to save or make more money instead.

Consider using a cashback card or apps like TopCashback and Quidco. By getting money back on your purchases, you may have more to put away. Just remember, cashback cards are normally most rewarding when you pay your balance off every month.

Improve your credit score. A higher credit score can help you access better credit deals, such as the cashback cards and 0% interest rate periods. Remember, spending less on interest may give you more money to save.

Try a loyalty card app. Always misplacing your loyalty cards? Stocard can make it easier to claim points. It’s like a digital wallet for your loyalty cards – you simply bring up the relevant barcode and ask the cashier to scan it. Plus, it’s free.

Set up automatic payments. Take the hassle out of separating your savings – schedule an automatic payment into your savings account or Pot.

Lock down your spending

Money going out faster than it’s coming in? Get on top of your spending habits with rules and reminders.

Don’t ignore your spending. Look into getting email or mobile updates about your spending habits and bank balance. If you have a Monzo account, you’ll get a notification whenever you make a transaction.

Leave your cards at home. If you have trouble sticking to a budget when you’re out and about, consider taking just cash with you so you can’t go over your allowance. (Just make sure you have a safe way to get home.)

Consider locking your savings. Worried you’ll dip into your savings in a moment of weakness? Think about getting an account that limits your access for a set period, such as a fixed rate ISA. As a bonus, these tend to have higher interest rates.

Use apps to limit your spending. You might want to look into using Squirrel – an app that drip-feeds your salary in weekly instalments and holds back money for savings. If that sounds a bit extreme, consider scheduling payments into your savings account or Pot instead.

What’s your saving style like? We’d love to hear how you put money away and your suggestions for success.