5 easy ways to save PhP5,000 a month

Do you need to save up for an upcoming event or a trip? Or maybe you’d just like to jumpstart your savings but you’re not exactly sure how to go about it. No more excuses! With a realistic timeline and a well-planned, feasible strategy, you’d realize that saving as much as P5,000 a month is actually pretty easy.

To begin with, know what kind of savings account you need if you don’t have one dedicated to savings yet. There are 5 types of savings accounts in the country—they are basic, regular, passbook, digital, and joint banking account. Once you’ve determined which savings account is for you, remember these tips to get you started saving money.

1. Auto-debit from your payroll account.

This is just about the easiest thing you can do to reach your monthly savings goal. If you’re a regular income earner getting your paycheck on the 15th and 30th of the month, you can simply tell your company’s bank to automatically set aside P2,500 and deposit it into your personal savings account every payday. This helps you avoid the problem of not leaving enough money for your savings because you prioritized spending for other things or paying your bills. With this auto-debit system, you won’t have to think about saving that P2,500 because it’s already done.

2. Break it down daily.

Did you know that you’ll only need P166.66 daily for you to save PhP5,000 in 30 days? If the PhP2,500 auto-debit per payday is a bit too much for you, you can psyche yourself up another way and put away some cash daily instead. This amount roughly equates to one cup of your latte drink or an upsized version of a “value meal.” Make your choice and prioritize. Everyone needs to cut back on sugar and fast food anyway.

3. Go cash or go home.

Remember that time when you were still a student relying on your parents for allowance? You were given your baon either daily or weekly and you had to make it last the entire day or week. You probably didn’t realize it then but that was your Intro to Budgeting 101. Fast forward to today and you can go back to applying the same methodology, only now, you’re giving yourself baon. By having with you only the cash that you need (or a debit card), you are compelled to strictly follow your budget. It’s an effective exercise because you are made very aware of every choice you make.

4. Skip lunches outside.

Sure, it’s a great way to bond with your colleagues and it’s a good breather from the monotony in the office. However, if you’re set on saving P5,000 a month, preparing your own meals is just about one of the most surefire ways to go about it. Remember the PhP166 daily savings you can have if you skip a fast food meal? Replace that with your own healthy lunch. Prepare a simple lunch before you go to bed or better first thing in the morning, and save your cash.

5. ‘Auto-invest’ your funds.

Like auto-debit, this puts your savings in the hands of a financial institution. In this case, you can allocate your PhP5,000 per month to an investment portfolio like insurance. Most insurance providers nowadays like FWD Life Insurance offer investment component in their products like FWD Set for Life. It not only gives you life protection, it also works to grow your money.

You can also invest in your own health by getting affordable and easy to buy health protection products via shop.fwd.com.ph. Get life, critical illness, and accidental death cover in minutes, no medical tests required!

It may need some lifestyle changes on your part, and it’s going to be challenging for sure especially at the start. But with enough consistency and determination, there’s no doubt you’ll be able to reach this goal with an FWD financial advisor. Good luck!