Saving does not mean giving something up: Here’s how to put extra money aside
· Citizen
Most people see saving money as having to give something up: cut back on takeaways, cancel subscriptions, or skip your daily coffee. While this is the easiest approach for many South Africans, Charlot Mokopane, financial adviser at Metropolitan, said it is not the only way.
“In reality, some of the most valuable savings habits aren’t about spending less at all. They’re about paying closer attention to what you’re already covered for and what you’re already paying for,” she said.
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Referencing research from the Bureau of Market Research, she said more than a quarter of South African adults are not managing to save anything at all because every rand is already allocated.
Can you afford to save?
Papadi Rantsoareng told The Citizen she has always had a saving habit, so the issue is usually how much she can save in certain months, and if she wants to save more, she would have to cut something.
“My parents taught me how to save from a young age, and the more I saved, the more money they would give me, so I grew up with that habit. But currently, it is hard to save a lot of money because I am just a girl willing to pay whatever amount of money for convenience.
“For me to save a lot of money would mean I have to cut on certain things. For example, I might have to choose a cheaper medical aid plan, but I am not willing to do so because the current one I have offers me flexibility.”
Cut outings to save towards a goal
Tebello Mokhotso told The Citizen he has had to reduce how often he goes out for food and drinks to save towards his goals.
“Before I had a son, I was able to go out every weekend and spend whatever money I wanted. But since being a dad, I had to prioritise my little man and start saving for his future and an emergency fund.
“I did not completely give up on my social life; all I did was reduce how many times I went out. Now I only go out for drinks twice a month, and we only eat out on Sundays as part of our little tradition.”
Six ways to save without giving anything up
Mokopane said the answer to why people are not saving is not always a stricter budget, but looking closer at what is already allocated.
She gave six ways people can save by reviewing what they are already paying for.
1. Talk about it on a schedule
Most South African households would rather not talk about money at all. Financial decisions in South African households are also increasingly made jointly rather than by one person alone.
Mokopane said a short, regular check-in (once a month, nothing formal required) does more work than it seems to.
It’s usually where the other habits on this list actually happen: where overlapping cover gets noticed, where a forgotten policy gets remembered, where a family decides together what its emergency fund is actually for.
2. Read the fine print on what you’re already covered for
Many South Africans pay for benefits they never use simply because they don’t know they exist.
“Your bank account, credit card, insurance policy or employee benefits may already include roadside assistance, travel insurance, legal advice, shopping discounts or rewards programmes. Before paying for an additional service, check whether you’re already covered,” she said.
Mokopane added that families often end up covering the same thing twice without realising it: an adult child taking out funeral cover for a parent who’s also on a policy through her own employer, for instance, or two siblings each contributing to the same relative’s cover.
3. Make saving automatic
Saving is hardest when it depends on remembering to do it and on having the willpower to resist spending before you do.
She said treating saving like a bill, paid to yourself automatically the moment your salary lands, removes the decision at the exact moment you’re most likely to spend instead. Consistency, not size, is what compounds.
“Saving is easier to sustain when someone else is paying attention to it too or is holding you accountable.”
4. Create a little distance between you and your savings
A separate savings account, or a plan with a built-in waiting period, creates enough friction to reduce impulse spending, while keeping your money accessible on the rare occasion you genuinely need it.
Mokopane noted that the friction doesn’t need to be dramatic: a short notice period before you can withdraw is often enough to turn a moment of temptation into a moment of reconsideration.
“It helps to give that account a name, too. Money set aside for something specific, like a child’s school fees, a wedding or a deposit on a home, is harder to justify spending on something else than money that’s just sitting there labelled ‘savings’.”
5. Build the household’s emergency fund, not just your own
According to Mokopane, National surveys on retirement and savings consistently find that most South Africans have far less emergency savings than they need.
A personal buffer matters, but a family’s biggest financial shocks, like a retrenchment, a medical bill or a funeral, rarely land on only one person’s budget.
“A shared reserve, contributed to by more than one member of a household or extended family, spreads that risk further than any single notice account can.”
6. Lean on systems that help you stay consistent
She added that systems like a stokvel, a burial society or a savings challenge with friends remove some of the pressure from relying on willpower alone.
“None of the above requires giving something up. It requires noticing what’s already there, deciding-ideally with the people who share your life and your goals-where it should go next, and letting it do more than sit still.
“None of this is about earning more. It’s about deciding, together, where the money you already have is going to do the most for you, this year and years from now.”