Making the PDF…
About the savings challenge printable
A savings challenge turns saving into a small game. You put money aside step by step and cross off a box each time. The sheet hangs on the fridge, and every box you colour in shows how far you have come.
This tool prints the three most popular challenges on one page:
- The 52-week challenge — save 1 in week 1, 2 in week 2, and so on up to 52 in week 52. From $1 you end the year with $1,378.
- The envelope challenge — 100 numbered boxes (or envelopes). Pick a number, put that amount in, cross it off. All 100 make $5,050.
- Your own goal — type a goal and a number of boxes. The tool splits the goal into boxes that add up to the goal exactly.
Choose any start amount and any currency sign. The total is printed on the sheet, so you always know where you will end.
Features
- Three challenges — 52 weeks, envelopes (100, 50 or 30) and your own goal in 2 to 200 boxes
- Any amount and currency — start at $1, €5 or ¥1000; the sign goes before or after the number
- 52-week options — small to big, big to small or a random order, with optional dates for each week
- Exact totals — every box adds up to the total printed on the sheet, to the cent
- Equal or mixed boxes — split your own goal into equal boxes or a fun mix of amounts
- 5 styles — Classic, Minimal (black and white), Bold, Soft and Playful with coins and stars
- Progress bar — 10 steps from 10% to 100% to colour in as the money grows
- Live PDF preview — on US Letter or A4, saved in your browser, nothing is uploaded
The 52-week challenge: how much you save
Week *k* holds *k* times the start amount. The sum of 1 + 2 + … + 52 is 1,378, so the total is always 1,378 × the start amount.
| Start amount | After 13 weeks | After 26 weeks | After 39 weeks | After 52 weeks |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $0.50 | $45.50 | $175.50 | $390 | $689 |
| $1 | $91 | $351 | $780 | $1,378 |
| $2 | $182 | $702 | $1,560 | $2,756 |
| $5 | $455 | $1,755 | $3,900 | $6,890 |
| $10 | $910 | $3,510 | $7,800 | $13,780 |
These are the totals for the small to big order. With big to small, you put in $52 in week 1 (from $1), so after 13 weeks you already have $598. The year still ends at $1,378.
The envelope challenge: how much you save
Box *n* holds *n* times the amount per number. 1 + 2 + … + 100 = 5,050.
| Amount per number | 30 envelopes | 50 envelopes | 100 envelopes |
|---|---|---|---|
| $0.50 | $232.50 | $637.50 | $2,525 |
| $1 | $465 | $1,275 | $5,050 |
| $2 | $930 | $2,550 | $10,100 |
| $5 | $2,325 | $6,375 | $25,250 |
The 100-envelope challenge from $1 is a big goal. The 50 envelopes version ($1,275) fits a school year, and 30 envelopes ($465) fits one month of daily saving.
Your own goal in boxes
Type a goal, for example $1,000, and a number of boxes:
- 50 boxes, all the same — every box is $20.
- 30 boxes, all the same — $1,000 does not divide by 30, so 10 boxes hold $34 and 20 boxes hold $33. Together: 10 × 34 + 20 × 33 = $1,000.
- Mixed amounts — boxes from small to large, in steps of 1, 5 or 10. Press Mix again for a new mix. The boxes always add up to the goal exactly.
Five styles
- Classic — a coloured table with stripes
- Minimal — black lines on white, saves ink
- Bold — a colour banner and coloured boxes with white numbers
- Soft — pale colours, dotted lines and round boxes
- Playful — coins in many colours, stars to tick and confetti, great for kids
Tips to finish the challenge
- Hang it where you see it — on the fridge or by the front door.
- Try big to small. Pay the big weeks in January, when you are keen. December, with its gifts and parties, then asks for only $1 to $4.
- Use a separate account or a jar, so the savings do not mix with spending money.
- Saving with kids? Use a start of $0.25 or $0.50 and the Playful style.
- Fell behind? Fill two small boxes in one week. With the envelope challenge you can always pick the small numbers.
Frequently asked questions
How much is the 52-week savings challenge?
From $1, you save $1,378 in one year. From $5, you save $6,890. The total is always 1,378 times your start amount.
How much is the 100 envelope challenge?
$5,050 with $1 per number. Envelope 1 holds $1, envelope 100 holds $100, and 1 + 2 + … + 100 = 5,050.
Can I use euros, pounds or another currency?
Yes. Type any sign — €, £, ¥, R$, kr — and choose if it goes before or after the number. Numbers are written the way your browser's language writes them.
Can I do the 52-week challenge in reverse?
Yes. Choose Big to small. Week 1 is then 52 times the start amount, and the last week is the smallest.
Can I start in the middle of the year?
Yes. Set First week starts on to any date. Each row then shows the date of that week, for 52 weeks from there.
How do I save $1,000, $5,000 or $10,000?
Choose My own goal, type the amount and pick the number of boxes — for example 52 for one box a week, or 12 for one a month. The sheet shows the amount of each box.
Is this a bank or an investing tool?
No. It is a printable chart to track your own saving. It does not give money advice, and it does not count interest.
Related tools
- Savings Goal Calculator — how much to save each month to reach a goal by a date
- Budget Planner — a printable monthly budget sheet
- Goal Tracker — your goals for the year with a month-by-month tracker
- Printable Habit Tracker — tick off a habit every day
- Compound Interest Calculator — see how savings grow with interest
How to use it
- Choose the Challenge: 52 weeks, envelopes or your own goal
- Type a Title and what you are Saving for, if you like
- For 52 weeks: set the Start amount, the Order and, if you want dates, the first week's date
- For envelopes: pick 100, 50 or 30 and the Amount per number
- For your own goal: type the Goal amount and the Number of boxes, then choose equal or mixed amounts
- Type your Currency sign and choose where it goes
- Pick the Style, the Colours, the Heading style and the Paper
- Press Download PDF or Print, then cross off a box each time you save
