How to Save $1000 Fast {Tips that Actually Work!}

How to Save 1000 dollars Quickly

When you are living paycheck to paycheck, saving $1000 fast, or at all, might as well feel like saving a million dollars. Saving anything at all can seem daunting and a big ask like 1000 dollars can seem downright impossible.

But, if you take a closer look at where your money is going, and some options for how to save money, you might be pleasantly surprised on how much money you can find to save.

I want to share with you some ways to save (or gain) some actual money, and start working towards that initial $1000 goal, and eventually beyond be able to save much more.

Some of these ideas are easier to do than others. But all have their value in the process. None of these things alone will equal $1000.

However, if you can do several of them over the course of a few months, that $1000 goal will be a lot closer than you thought possible.

How can I save $1000 fast?

Here are 8 ideas you can start exploring today to get some extra money in your savings quickly!

Make a Budget and Track Expenses

When you take the time to lay out your money–your incoming and outgoing, you might be surprised on where the money goes.

An important step of budgeting is knowing EXACTLY where your money disappears to each month, which is why tracking your expenses is so important.

Making the plan for your money is just the first part. Knowing where it actually ends up is the critical second part. So take a month or so and track every dollar and where it goes.

Often times it is not the big monthly bills that will kill your budget, but the small every day $1, $5, $10 purchases that, in the moment, are so easy to justify.

So keep track of where your money goes each month and see if you can’t find some money to save simply by not spending it on a daily basis.

RELATED: Beginner’s guide to budgeting

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Take advantage of Cash Back Opportunities

I am all about getting free money. And when a company or business will give me cash for doing my regular shopping, I say “bring it on”.

Thanks to the invention of smart phones and apps, there are several cash back apps that will literally reward you for doing your regular shopping.

In the realm of the $1000 savings goal, this will add small amounts. But even small amounts add up over time. And when it is literally FREE money, and so easy to get, why not?

When shopping for groceries, I use Ibotta to get cash back. PLUS I will double dip the rewards and use Fetch Rewards to earn points.

Both systems require you to scan your receipt into the app. It only takes a minute and then you are done. Plus, you can scan 1 receipt into both apps to get double the rewards for one trip.

With Fetch Rewards, the points eventually add up to free gift cards to places like Amazon, Target, Walmart, etc. FREE gift cards, which can then be used to purchase more needed items.

Or the points can be saved up over the year to buy Christmas gifts in December. That is like a triple win!

When shopping online, Rakuten (formerly known as eBates) is seriously the way to go. Again, easy to use, and free money for buying stuff you were already buying! I’m struggling to see what is not to love about this option.

Cut subscriptions

There are so many monthly subscriptions we can sign up for these days. And, individually, they aren’t very much. But taken together, they could add up to hundreds of dollars every month.

So, take a look at your subscriptions and see which ones you really need and/or use and which you don’t.

I will tell you, we have a monthly streaming service subscription that we hardly use. It is $7.99 per month.

Now, granted, that isn’t much. BUT if we continue to not use it, we are wasting that $8 every month. After ten months, that was $80 wasted!

So check your credit card statements and see what you are paying for, and not using. And then see what you are using but could do without.

BONUS TIP HERE: Double check what you are paying for with Amazon. I had signed up for their Kindle Unlimited Plan. But I went to cancel the subscription and it did not show up anywhere on my account as me actually having it.

Yet they were still charging me $10/month for it! So go see if Amazon has sneakily added (or not cancelled) subscriptions to your account that you are unaware of. Others have found similar errors on their statements. It is worth the check.

Shop Around for Insurance

Insurance isn’t usually a fun topic to discuss. However it can often be a fairly big line item on your budget. Why not make sure you are getting the best deal you can?

Ask your insurance agent about your coverage. Ask about customer loyalty discounts, or ways to lower your premium.

Maybe look into bundling, or un-bundling your coverage plans. And don’t be afraid to shop around to other insurance places.

You can even look into talking with a broker who is not directly affiliated with any particular company–just to see what other options you have.

RELATED ARTICLE: Creative Ways to Save Money

Learn to Save at the Grocery Store

Oh man, groceries are such a BIG part of any budget. And it can be so hard to keep your grocery budget down. But there are some tricks you can do to help.

Learn to Meal Plan

Creating a meal plan, and grocery shopping for that plan is a great way to save money on groceries. You don’t waste time and money buying random things at the store and you can plan your meals around what is on sale for the week.

RELATED: Meal Planning for Beginners

Grocery tips

There are lots of ways and tips about how to save at the grocery store. Things like shopping the sales, minimizing your trips and so much more.

Check out our post about how to reduce your grocery budget and see if you can shave some money off that grocery bill.

Do A No Spend Challenge

Doing a No-Spend Challenge can be hard, but SO rewarding. A no spend challenge is where you commit to spend $0 (no, really $0) for a set amount of time.

If you have never done one before, I recommend starting with a week. Some people go a month or longer, but a week is a great starting point to try.

At the end of the week, the money that you would have spent during that week you can put towards savings instead.

So let’s say I usually spend $100 on groceries, $25 on odds and ends and $25 for lunch every day while at work. A no spend week would result in you NOT spending $150, which then goes right into savings!

A no spend week is hard–it isn’t supposed to be super easy. But it is a great way to jump start a more frugal life and a savings goal.

Declutter and Sell

Let’s be honest, we all have some things in our house that don’t need to be there anymore. A great way to get some fast cash is to declutter what you have, and then sell it.

You can try to organize a garage sale, put stuff up on ebay or craigslist or list it all on facebook marketplace.

I have had the most luck with facebook marketplace. We were able to sell several hundred dollars worth of stuff when we were getting ready to sell our house, and facebook made it so easy to do.

Work Overtime or start a Side Hustle

Sometimes the best way to get some extra money to start saving, is to work a bit more. I know, not the most fun idea. But if you can get overtime hours, that might be worth it.

There is also the option of starting a side hustle–something you can do from home (preferably) to earn extra money, while not having to work more at your regular job.

Just remember to save the extra money that you are making, not spend it.

I have had some great side hustles that have made REAL money. They do take some effort, but are so worth it!