6 easy hacks to slay no spend January this year

By Charlie Sawyer

Published Jan 11, 2024 at 09:00 AM

Reading time: 2 minutes

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Images courtesy of TikTok

It’s a new year and I’m trying to embrace my inner finance baddie. While I can’t commit to a full 12 months of responsible financial decisions—that would just be setting myself up for a loss—I can try and make the most of this new mindset for the first 31 days of 2024. That’s where no spend January comes in.

Just in case you’ve forgotten, I’m Charlie, your favourite resident blonde, and I’m here to make adulting that bit less scary. Explaining is quite literally my forte, okay? In the past, I’ve covered the best and easiest side hustles of 2024, what exactly inflation even is, and how all of my fellow COVID students can snatch a refund from their university.

And now, I’m tackling potentially our biggest adulting challenge yet: no-spend Jan. Let’s remember, I’m just a teensy girly who’s trying to manage her way through a winter in London—there are only so many pink beanies I can find in my wardrobe. This is going to be the opposite of a walk through the park.

Anyways, rather than dwelling on the negatives, let’s focus on finding ways to make no spend January a bit more bearable. Spoiler: it’s going to involve a lot of loosening of the rules.

There are tons of meal prep companies out there that offer new customers their first box for free. There are even more that offer the first box at a massively discounted price. Gusto offers 60 per cent off your first box and if you’re referred by a friend, HelloFresh’s first box is practically free.

If you sell an item of clothing on Vinted and then use those earnings to buy yourself a new top or skirt, it doesn’t count. As far as I’m concerned, you are not spending one cent, you’re simply exchanging ‘fake’ app money for a cute new jacket. I don’t make the rules, okay?

If there’s one thing that’s going to be IN this month, it’s debt among friends. Don’t get me wrong, come 1 February, I will pay back all of my outstanding payments. Up until that exact moment, however, I’m keeping quiet. Think of the amount of money you’ll save if you simply ‘forget’ to make that Monzo transfer.

This one will definitely hit the hardest. 2023 was truly the year I discovered my love for acrylic nails, and having to give up that addiction has already been semi-traumatising. That being said, it was becoming a spenny habit that I just could not sustain.

In order to save money and hide my less-than-ideal short nails, I’ve decided to wear gloves… Every day. It’s so cold in London that no one will ever be suspicious.

There is zero reason for me to have a Lionsgate+ subscription, aside from the fact that they offer a seven-day free trial. A bonus of this is that I’ve discovered that I now have access to The Act, the iconic Emmy award-winning show that depicts the high-key spooky story of current internet sensation Gypsy Rose Blanchard and her mother Dee Dee Blanchard.

Tell me, what is the point of enduring hours of mindless small talk, if you can’t get a free spicy margarita or little garlic bread out of it?

I’m not saying that you should actively go on dates solely with the purpose of stealing someone’s time in exchange for a free drink or two. But, would I judge you if you did? Absolutely not.

This all being said, if you want to take no spend Jan a bit more seriously, I’ve included some of my favourite videos from creators on TikTok documenting their journeys, tips, and hacks: