The 26 Bi-Weekly Money Challenge

I received several requests from readers asking if there was a better way to do the 52 week money challenge when they are paid on a bi-weekly basis. They mentioned that it tends to be easier to save the money for the week when they get paid, but more difficult to do it the second week when no income is coming in. Those who are paid bi-weekly may want to follow this bi-weekly chart.

26 Bi-Weekly Money Challenge (click on image to print)

The concept is exactly the same as the 52 week challenge, where you’re adding a single dollar for each week of the year. The only difference is that instead of making the payment each week, you combine two weekly payments into one, and make it every other week. There is no difference in the amount of money that is saved.

At the end of the year, you’ll still have saved $1378. The only difference is you’ll be making 26 payments during the year, corresponding to your paychecks, which should make the challenge easier to accomplish.

With the standard 26 week version, you would make a payment of $3 ($1 for week one and $2 for week two) for the first bi-weekly payment, $7 ($3 for week three and $4 for week four) the second bi-weekly payment, $11 ($5 for week five and $6 for week six) for the third bi-weekly payment until you reach the 26th payment which would be $103 ($51 for week fifty-one and $52 for week fifty-two). While straightforward and simple, there is a major drawback. As with the standard 52 week version, this can make if difficult to save money toward the end of the year with the high payments during the holiday season, and why we created an alternate version.

Alternate Version (click on image to print)

The alternative version gives you more flexibility while still sticking with the 26 bi-weekly option. With this version, you still make the same payments throughout the year, but you get to choose which one you make for each bi-weekly payment. The goal is to pay the highest amount from the options at the bottom of the chart that you can make, then cross out that number. That allows you to pay off the higher numbers when it makes the most sense as the year progresses, rather than at the end of the year when money might be the tightest. It takes into account that a steady increase in payments over the year doesn’t always correspond with the reality of life, and for that reason it’s nice to have some flexibility in the amount when making the payment.

Go With Passive Savings Apps

If all this seems like too much effort, consider a passive way to save money. The last couple of years have seen rapid growth in apps which help people passively build their savings. One great new piece of software is digit.co. Digit is clever. It analyzes your checking account balances and then automatically makes small deductions which are swept into a savings account for you. Its super easy to install. Once you have it configured you pretty much need to make no effort to save, Digit does all the heavy lifting for you. Check it out at digit.co here.

Finally, if you’re still looking for the right challenge to fit your personality, here are other variations that might be worth taking a look at:

52 Week Standard
52 Week Variation
52 Week Make Money
52 Week Kids
Twice a Month (Bi-Monthly)
Monthly
365 Days

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