How to manage your money as a teenager?

As a teenager, you need more and more money growing up, especially during your studies. It is therefore important to know how to manage it properly so that you don’t run out of it. We are going to give you several tips that we hope will help you manage your money in the best way possible.

The photo shows a girl sitting in a shopping basket and a pile of money.

Why is it important to manage your money as a teenager?

It is important to know how to manage your money if you don’t want to find yourself without savings or with debts at the end of the month. Knowing how to save your money also means knowing how to treat yourself without excess and being able to do your shopping for the month. It also means being able to buy yourself new clothes or go out from time to time.

How to manage your money better

The following tips can help you choose techniques that will improve your spending habits and save you money. You don’t have to follow everything to the letter and you can use the methods that best fit your lifestyle and needs.

Envelope system

As the name suggests, it is based on envelopes that will be used to allocate your budget. I will explain this system by giving you an example. Let’s imagine that if a person earns $1,500, they will have to withdraw this money in cash to put it in envelopes. They can make an envelope for rent and charges of $700, an envelope for food of $400, an envelope for going out of $300, and an envelope for savings of $100. With these envelopes, They will not be able to spend more than they have.

You can make a lot of envelopes according to your needs. You can also divide it into only three envelopes 50% of your budget for your food and rent, 30% for your needs (restaurants, clothes, etc.), and 20% to put aside in savings.

Plan for your bills

Plan for all your bills to be paid on time. If you, for example, have Netflix or Amazon Prime subscriptions pay attention to the date of withdrawal so you have the money you need on your account and don’t overdraw. Do the same for your transportation subscriptions, and try to pay them at the beginning of the month to get an idea on how much money you will have left.

Find a student job

If you don’t have enough money to go out or pay for yourself, you can apply for small student jobs like babysitting or waitressing on your school’s campus during your free time. You can also use your vacation time to apply for seasonal jobs that can pay for future weekends spent with friends.

Saving money tips

Here are some more general tips that can help you save money.

Self-control is key. Yes, this is easier said than done but self-control will play an important role in the way you spend your money. Sometimes you will want to buy something just to be able to enjoy it when it is not essential. This is when your self-control must intervene because it will be an unnecessary expense.
Still, on the theme of self-control, as much as possible avoid the home food delivery services like UberEats because you can cook at home and eat just as well for less money.
Regarding food, before shopping make a list of the really essential things and stick to it when shopping. Do not buy anything on a whim in the store. Also, be careful about buying fresh produce and make sure you are going to use it before it expires to avoid waste.
Finally, a tip that we don’t always remember is to show your student card everywhere you go and ask for student discounts. Sometimes it’s not a good idea, but many places do have discounts like that and don’t advertise them. So just asking is still the best way to pay less for your shopping.
Keep your pennies, when you pay in cash at the store. Keep them and put them in a piggy bank that you can’t open. Little by little you will start to have a nice little sum that will surely serve you well in the future.