New Year’s resolutions - we all have them, but we don’t all keep them.

Whether it’s giving up chocolate or training for a marathon, New Year’s resolutions are hard to maintain. Among the most popular resolutions in the UK is improving savings, yet only around ⅓ of people manage to keep this goal throughout the year.

We understand it's been a busy couple of weeks through the festive period, and your bank balance may have taken a hit, but don’t worry -we’re here to help! Here are some simple ways to boost your personal savings and make 2025 your most financially secure year yet.

Why not start a savings challenge? 

What’s better than starting a challenge with the new year? We’ve gathered a bunch of different challenges to inspire you. These challenges are straightforward and work for everyone, from saving newbies to seasoned pros. 

£1 challenge 

This is exactly what it says, each day throughout the year you pop £1 into your savings. Over the year this adds up, and by the end of the year, you would have £365 saved without even really noticing. 

1p challenge 

A slight change to the £1 challenge but the results are crazy! Day one you pop 1p into your savings, day two you pop 2p into your savings and so on, so on day 365 you would pop £3.65 into your savings. This took me a minute to get my head around, but by the end of the year, you would save £667.95!  Or, if you can’t be bothered for the constant back and forth, you can set up a standing order for £55.66 for 12 months and save yourself the hassle!

Monthly Savings Challenge 

A step further is this, instead of daily this is every month, which might not be for everyone, as when you do set aside money into your savings pot the hit feels harder. So how it works, in January you set aside£10, in February £20, and so on till December when you set aside £120. These bigger numbers however do act in your favour as by the end of the year you have£780 in your savings.

52 weeks savings challenge 

Ok you wanna push yourself a little further or each month seems like something you’ll forget. Let me introduce you to the weekly savings challenge. This starts nice and easy, in week one you set aside £1, in week two£2, and so on till week 52, £52. So, yes there is significant growth in the amount you put aside but it's gradual! Also, the results are nuts, with at the end of the year £1,378 in your savings account. 

£1,450 challenge 

The final challenge I present to you I like to call ‘the silent saver’ as it goes by week by week not realising. This works by on Monday you set aside £1, Tuesday £2, Wednesday £3, Thursday £4, Friday £5, Saturday £6,and Sunday £7, over a week that’s £28! If you repeated this for the entire year by the end, you would have a grand total of £1,456 in your account. If you look at it broken down to day-by-day saving instead of by week it doesn’t seem so scary, and the benefits are huge!

Shop using the Kaldi app

With Kaldi, you save on the shopping that does need to be done, like the groceries, necessary commuting coffee or the new socks to replace the ones with holes in. The Kaldi app helps you earn 3-4% cashback from your favourite retailers whilst you shop. As Benjamin Franklin said, ‘A penny saved is a penny earned,’ so why not earn extra pennies when carrying out your essential shopping?! 

You can make shopping with Kaldi easier and personalised to you as you can go through all the retailers within the app and favourite your most used ones. These will then appear on your Kaldi home screen allowing you quick access, helping you earn that extra 3-4% cashback on each purchase.

Use Kaldi to Save and Invest

Saving

I don’t know about you, but saving is a lot easier when you have a target in mind. With Kaldi, you can set this goal and make it a visual target too. It allows you to see your financial journey in real-time as you save, hitting those milestones en route to your end financial goal whether that is a new car or a house deposit. 

Investing 

Why not take your savings to the next level? Saving is a great place to start but why not take that a step further and make that money work for you instead of just sitting gathering dust? Kaldi lets you invest in a fund from as little as £1 and provides educational content throughout to help you along the way. Capital is at risk when you invest.

Automatic-Sweeps

Make saving effortless with Kaldi’s auto-sweep feature. By turning this on, any money left in your Kaldi spending balance at the end of the month automatically moves into your savings pot. You can even set up the auto-invest feature. Which automatically transfers money from your savings into your selected investment fund (minimum £20) once a month. It's a hands-free way to contribute to your investments regularly. Just remember that when you invest, your capital is at risk.

Additional tips

Create a monthly budget 

If budgeting is something you want to try, the 50/30/20method is great. Allocate 50% to essential spending, 30% to non-essential and20% directly into savings. Paired with Kaldi cashback when shopping your savings will see even greater results!

Check your subscriptions 

We have all at some point in our lives signed up for a subscription, so we could have a month's free trial, and then forget about it. So, a month later we lose a silly amount of money and feel annoyed at ourselves, am I right? 

So as the new year begins go through and make sure you don’t have any of these subscriptions linked to your bank account. And whilst you’re at it review all your subscriptions to see if there are any you aren’t using any more and could get rid of, or any that you could get a better deal on. 

My hot tip for this is to set reminders in your calendar to tell you a couple of days before those free trials end so that you don’t get stung when you inevitably forget.

Check your bills, broadband, car & home insurance

As you are already checking your subscriptions, why not also check your bills, broadband, car & home insurance providers? Cross-check the plans you are currently on with other companies, making sure you have the best deal possible allowing you to make sure you are making the most out of your money. 

Declutter your house 

New year new you, am I right?! Well, why not start that by selling anything you don’t use or wear. I personally live by the rule ‘if you haven’t worn it/used it in the past year you won’t again’ so why not sell it through eBay, Vinted or Depop to make some extra cash of bits and bobs you don’t need anymore?

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Whether you’re saving pennies or planning investments, we’re here to make this your most successful year yet. So, if you haven’t already done so, download Kaldi now to join our savings revolution and start your very own as we enter 2025! 

Important disclaimer from the legal team (again)

All investments carry risk, including the risk of loss of principal. Past performance is not indicative of future results. Index funds may not be suitable for everyone. Consider your own financial situation and investment goals, and seek independent financial advice if needed.