Confessions of a shopaholic: How I cut my non-essential spending to zero
05 May 2026
As a reforming shopaholic who has been known to ‘treat herself’, I’ve recently come to realise I need to develop smarter money habits. I got my first job at 15, but I certainly haven’t been the best at saving money (I am, however, very good at spending it).
Now in my mid-twenties, I have a clear financial goal in mind: save enough money to move out of home.
As a way to kick-start my spending rehab, I challenged myself to a no-spend week to see how much I could really save if I put my mind to it.
What is a no-spend challenge?
You may have seen the no-spend challenge pop up online over the years. Despite the name, it doesn’t mean you can’t spend any money at all–after all, you still need to eat and pay the bills.
Instead, you avoid spending on unnecessary items, eating out or indulging in retail therapy.
What does my typical spending week look like?
In preparation for my no-spend challenge, I went back through my bank statements to see how much I was spending on non-essentials in a typical week. While it varies week to week depending on my social schedule, I found I typically spend between $250 and $450 every week on non-essentials. Averaged out, this adds up to over $18,000 every year.
Cue my jaw hitting the flaw.
I’ll be honest, sitting down to crunch those numbers was confronting. I never expected it to add up to that much. I discovered I spend the most on eating out, buying coffee, and going out with friends.
Separating essential from non-essential expenses
I am very lucky that I still live at home, so I don’t yet have a mortgage to account for. My living expenses total about $2,200 per month and include my rent, contribution to household bills, my car loan repayments, car insurance, my phone bill, and my gym membership.
I know I should be using the time that I’m living at home to save as much as possible, and there’s no time like the present to start.
Rules for my no-spend week
My bank account audit had made it clear I needed some serious boundaries on my spending, so I set a list of rules to follow for the week.
- Only spend on necessities, such as bills, petrol, public transport costs, etc.
- Use what is in the pantry or fridge before heading to the grocery store.
- No takeout, ordering in or eating out (outside of pre-planned outings).
- No buying takeaway coffee.
- Stay away from shops when possible.
- If I see something I want to buy, add it to an online shopping cart or write it down. Use this time to consider if I actually need it.
For the purpose of this article, I’ve only included the amounts for my non-essential spending. I had to pay for some of my regular expenses during the week, such as medication and rent, but I haven’t included them in my spend total as they’re essential budget items.
My no-spend week
Monday – Day 1
The no-spend week started off strong. I worked from home on Monday, which made not spending money very easy. I was able to comfortably eat lunch and make coffee using what I had at home. Dinner was simple too: pizzas from the freezer.
All in all, a solid start!
- Total spent: $0
Tuesday – Day 2
Heading to and from the Canstar office today cost me a whole $1 (thank you Brisbane’s 50-cent fares). Instead of buying my usual $7.77 iced caramel latte on oat milk from the downstairs cafe, I used the office coffee machine for my caffeine fix. I got lucky at lunchtime as Canstar put on a spread for a staff event, meaning I didn’t even need to pack food from home! Dinner was homemade burgers using ingredients we already had on hand. The only purchase made was a medication refill from the pharmacy.
Again, another successful day.
- Total spent: $0
Wednesday – Day 3
Another day working from home meant that I was mostly free of the temptation to spend money. For lunch, I heated up a frozen meal that I already had in the freezer. For dinner, my partner decided we would go to our local Indian restaurant. When it comes to spending money, we can be just as bad as each other. I tried to discourage him but to no avail. I technically didn’t spend anything as he paid for it, but let’s call that one a close call.
- Total spent: $0
Thursday – Day 4
Another day heading into the office meant another $1 for the train. I used the office coffee machine for my first coffee. My second coffee was bought for me by my boss–was that to encourage me to keep up with the challenge or because she took pity on me? I’ll never know. Lunch was a simple wrap using ingredients from the office kitchen. I had a few bills automatically paid out of my account, but nothing else was bought.
- Total spent: $0
Friday – Day 5
I worked from home before heading to an event to see off one of my colleagues. I scored a lift to the venue, which saved me paying for public transport or an Uber. There was a tab on the bar so I enjoyed a couple of drinks and ate some food. It was at this point I was feeling good and merry and the urge to order more drinks kicked in, but I stopped myself. Instead of spending $50 on two drinks that I didn’t really need, I stuck to water. I caught the train back home at the end of the night, proud that I resisted the urge to spend.
- Total spent on non: $0
Saturday – Day 6
This was the day I was nervous about. I had already planned to see a friend for breakfast, another friend for lunch, and I was off to drinks with yet another group later (I’m so popular). Instead of going out to breakfast, my friend and I decided to hang out at her house with her kids. As for lunch, I had set myself a small budget of $30 since these plans were made in advance, but my partner decided to pay for my meal and drink.
Later, when it was time to meet up with friends for those pre-planned drinks, I decided to be the sober driver–good for my wallet and good for my friends, who I was able to drop home safely.
What I expected to be a tough day, actually ended up being successful. Even if I had spent the $30 on lunch, I still would have counted today as a win.
- Total spent: $0
Sunday – Day 7
After the busy day we had the day before, the last day of my no-spend week was spent in the house, relaxing. My partner and I had Sunday dinner with his family, which meant another successful day of no spending for me.
- Total spent: $0
Total spend on non-essentials for the week: $0
Where to go from here
In taking on this challenge, I’ve learnt that my spending isn’t the problem–my self restraint is. All the times I’ve thought “it’s just $20” or “I really want this” have added up to thousands of dollars in frivolous spending. And while I know it’s not realistic to spend zero dollars on non-essentials every week, these seven days showed me it’s certainly possible to cut back. A lot.
Going forward, I’m setting a strict limit of $150 on non-essentials each week. It means I’ll need to learn how to deny myself the dopamine hit of tapping my card constantly but the prospect of moving into a place of my own is a good motivation.
My goal is to find a healthy balance between smart saving and enjoying my social life. This week has shown me a path to doing that.
To some this may not even be a challenge, just part of their everyday life, to which I say, I hope I get there some day.
This article was reviewed by our Consumer Editor Meagan Lawrence before it was updated, as part of our fact-checking process.
