
Calendar // Danielle Lingle
By: Claire McKenna
Staff-Writer
The No-Buy Challenge goes by many names: No-Spendtember, Low-Spend Year, No-Buy Week. Whatever you call it, this challenge is the ultimate way to get your finances right and help the environment by reducing consumption. Although it’s been around for years, no-buy challenges have made a comeback on TikTok and YouTube recently, with users documenting progress in their low-spend journey.
The first step in participating in this challenge is creating a set of rules. These are tailored to each person, but there is one common rule everyone has agreed upon: No impulse buys.
This rule is one of the driving forces of this challenge. Some other rules can include setting a timeline for how long you want to participate, reducing shopping temptations like blocking certain social media, banning online shopping and defining your needs versus your wants. Everything depends on your own style of living and realistic saving goals. You can also make a budget to follow so you know how much money you can spend and what that designated money can be spent on.
Two years ago, IU South Bend student Megan Gregor and her family participated in this challenge, deciding to save the cash they collected over the span of a year and a half. Their main rule was that they had to put cash into bags that corresponded with what week it was. Week one meant one dollar, week two meant two dollars and so on.
“I eventually realized that I’m really good with my money no matter what I do,” Gregor reflected. “It was easier to just collect my money each month.”
Once these rules are set, you try to spend as little as possible. This method is a great way to teach yourself how to save, learn what you can start removing from your spending habits or even pay off debt.
Some participants also take on the challenge with a sustainability focus, believing that the most environmentally friendly purchase is the one you don’t make at all. If this is your goal with a no-buy challenge, you might take stock of items you already have, asking yourself if you really need to buy a new water bottle when the one you have works, or deciding to fix or repurpose something you already own rather than buying a new version of it.
Other sustainability rules might include not buying things packaged in non-recyclable materials or things made by brands known to contribute to high waste, like fast-fashion brands.
Cut out the calendar attached to this article to try out your own 30-day no-buy challenge.