Rant: I was dead wrong about cash stuffing envelopes

For the longest time I thought the cash envelope system was just for people who couldn't handle a debit card... seemed so old school. But my credit card debt hit $4,200 after a trip to Nashville last spring and I got desperate. I pulled out $300 for groceries in cash and put it in an envelope labeled 'food' and I actually stopped buying extras. After 4 months of doing this with gas and eating out too I paid off that debt and had $150 left over. Has anyone else found a weird method they never thought would work but totally did?

2 comments

2 Comments

sam_anderson3d ago

Hate to be the guy who goes against the grain here but cash stuffing sounds like a nightmare to me. I tried it for a month and ended up forgetting I had thirty bucks in a 'fun money' envelope and lost it in the couch for two weeks. Plus it feels like I'm just creating more work for myself having to physically go to the bank every week instead of just checking my app.

bettyhunt3d ago

The $30 cushion find is actually a great argument for cash stuffing, @sam_anderson, because that lost money is a built-in savings surprise versus the constant slow bleed from a card.