Why you could be ‘revenge saving’ without even realising it
While few of us long for a return to the days of lockdown, one small silver lining from that period was that Britons were able to save up their cash – simply because they weren’t able to go out and spend.
In 2020, households saved almost three times as much money as the previous year, according to an analysis of Bank of England figures by investment firm Hargreaves Lansdown.
But when restrictions eased, we saw people rush to the shops to splash the cash they’d saved up in a phenomenon dubbed “revenge spending”.
Today however, people across the world – particularly younger generations – are doing the direct opposite: revenge saving.
It’s emerging as part of a wider ethos of deliberately and diligently not spending, but ‘revenge saving’ takes this one step further: it involves tracking what’s being saved and taking part in some challenges to go even further in building individual financial resilience.
Why are people ‘revenge saving’?
Reasons for ‘revenge saving’ vary, but there is a growing trend of Brits simply wanting to get their financial house in order to better protect themselves against economic uncertainty beyond their control.
Not that it’s a uniquely British phenomenon – if anything, it appears to have started in China and spread from there.
It’s a method of taking power over their life’s direction, a decision to guard against the types of financial shocks which British people have experienced over the past few years: the cost of living crisis, followed by sky-high inflation and now concerns over tax rises.
“The UK’s mood around finances at the moment is pretty gloomy, so this social-media led trend of being frugal is a logical response to that,” Matt McKenna, money expert at Finder, told The Independent.
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“People are done with financial chaos. Now they want stability, security, and peace of mind, and they’re willing to go to great lengths to get it,” believes Will Fenton, finance expert at money platform Sterling Savvy.
“But revenge saving is more than just budgeting, it’s a total mindset shift. People aren’t saving because they ‘should’, they’re saving with the same energy and motivation they once used to justify big purchases.”
How are people revenge saving?
There’s no single method to do it – the point is more than people are purposely taking control of their finances and deliberately giving themselves a fund to fall back on.
One popular approach is “no buy” – going through fixed spells of not purchasing anything beyond absolute necessities, as well as using up all the products, food or materials already owned before buying any more. Some go even further, and force themselves to sell belongings to fund new purchases.
On Reddit, an active community details their savings adventures in the /NoBuy subreddit, while on other social media platforms, hashtags show both millennials and Gen-Z showcasing their aggressively built emergency buffers.
“The cost of living crisis didn’t ever really go away so whether it’s ‘revenge saving’, ‘no-buy months’ or ‘reverse budgeting’, they all reflect the reality that people are struggling to make ends meet and recognise the need to save,” said Mr McKenna.
“Social media trends can be great if they get you thinking about saving but make sure you are disciplined and stick at it.”
Other revenge savers insist on making a payment into their savings accounts as soon as they get paid each month, before they’ve paid rent, mortgages or other bills.
This isn’t limited to people with big incomes either – if you have zero savings and start adding £5 a week, you’re immediately building more resilience to unexpected costs and income shocks.
Expert tips for aggressively adding to your savings
If the idea of upping your safety net amount appeals, you don’t have to wait for next payday: consider which routes might work for you and do it.
That might be opening a higher interest savings account, cancelling an online order you made or not spending on something across the weekend that you normally would do, diverting that cash instead into your new savings pot.
“Getting into good savings habits will stand you in good stead for the rest of your life,” agreed Finder’s Mr McKenna. “Work out an amount you can put away each month and then try not to touch it. Budgeting apps like Plum and Chip have auto save features and most banks have spare change roundups to help you.
“Just make sure you aren’t missing any open goals. Keeping your cash in an account with no, or low, interest rates will hurt your ability to save massively. Similarly, use apps like Emma to ensure you aren’t wasting money on subscriptions you don’t use – over time this can really add up.”
Mr Fenton offered additional tips to get started. Setting a fixed savings target – a “revenge number” helps to give something to aim for initially, he says, while a “no-guilt jar” means you can enjoy some purchases and still benefit when you don’t make a transaction but could.
“Whenever you skip a purchase, like a takeaway, transfer that amount to your savings and celebrate the win,” he says, while noting that some savers “gamify” the challenge, such as doing a cash-only week to avoid digital spending.
Making the challenge visible like on a spreadsheet or paper chart is another approach, while the important thing is to search for the saving style which suits each person.
“There’s no one-size-fits-all,” Mr Fenton adds. “Strict planner or a spontaneous saver, the key is finding what feels good and sticking with it.
“People are starting to value financial calm the same way they once valued lifestyle splurges, and that’s a powerful shift.”
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