5 easy savings tactics to try in 2021

Every new year is an opportunity to start fresh and try something new. And if one of your financial goals this year is to save a bit more cash, getting inspired with some fresh ideas is a great place to start. 

To help you take your first step toward your savings success, we’ve jotted down our top five savings tactics we think are worth their salt in 2021.

Know your numbers

Before you can start chipping away at your savings goals, it’s important to establish how much you can afford to save each month. You can do this by sorting through your budget and tweaking certain kinds of spending, like reducing the amount of takeaway meals you have per week. Just remember to set aside enough ‘fun money’ for the month to keep you from dipping into your savings. 

Simplifying your cash flow this way will make saving easier to manage, as you’ll know exactly how much you’re spending on everyday essentials, while still giving yourself enough wiggle room to splurge.

Open another savings account

While you might already have your regular savings account for every day, reaching a specific money goal might need a separate account. By taking that extra step, you won’t be tempted to spend the money and jeopardise hitting your target. 

To further remove the urge to spend, it might even be worth opening an account with another bank. The trick is to make accessing the money difficult so you won’t bother to go to the trouble of moving the money back into your day to day transaction account.

Round up your spending

One of the latest ways to boost your bank balance is to tap into roundup features. These are tools that roundup every purchase to the nearest dollar and deposit the difference into your savings account. 

For example, let’s say you buy a coffee everyday for $4.20 and your round up tool automatically deposits 0.80 cents on your behalf. By the end of the year, you’d have $291.20 deposited into your account! 

Some of the banks that offer this feature are ING, Up, Bank Australia and Beyond Bank.

Block any chance to impulse spend

No matter how committed we are to saving, there’s always the urge to spend when we might not need to. For a lot of us, this could mean reining in our impulse online shopping. 

One easy way to curb your shopping habits is to unsubscribe from marketing emails from online retailers or install a free ad blocker on your computer. You can even do this on social media, all you need to do is go into your settings and opt out of receiving personalised advertisements.

Shop around and save the difference

Although your main goal might be to build a neat savings stash, there’s no reason you can’t kill two birds with one stone. Take a day to go over your expenses, like your home loan, insurance or energy bill and shop around to see if you could be on a better deal. 

For instance, if you live in Victoria, find out if your energy retailer is reducing their prices this year. According to the Essential Services Commission (ESC), the Victorian Default Offer (VDO) will fall by 10% for households, equating to an annual saving of $159. 

Once you’ve found a deal that’ll save you a bundle, make the switch and then transfer the difference into your savings.

Need a top notch savings account to stash your new found wealth? You can compare a range of high interest rate savings account options by using our comparison tool or by checking out the offers below.