How Much Some Millennials Saved During 'Fruganuary'

Photo: Kieran Boswell

Millennials waste money on avocado toast and lattes, and that's why we struggle to get on the properly ladder – or so we're often told.

Obviously we all know this tired old cliché is completely misleading, but a new study suggests that millennials – people aged between 24 and 39 – are actually the most committed savers in the UK.

While 45% of millennials made an effort to save money during January, making it a so-called "Fruganuary", only 26% of older generations did the same.

The study of 2,000 adults by Zopa found that on average, millennials managed to save an incredibly impressive £568 during January by making lifestyle changes both minor and a little more major.

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On average, members of Generation Z – people aged between 18 and 23 – saved an average of £314.

Clearly not every millennial is in a position save more than £500 in a month – it depends on their salary and how much of that salary they have to shell out on rent. As readers of our Money Diaries series will know, both of these things can vary dramatically.

But it's definitely interesting to see how lifestyle changes that anyone can make can add up to a tidy saving.

Doing Dry January saved the millennials surveyed an average of £80, while doing Veganuary saved them an average of £70.

However, the study found that the most popular ways of cutting back were not buying clothes, making packed lunches and not getting takeaways.

Around 80% of millennial savers said that not buying clothes was one way in which they'd managed to put some money aside. Some 77% said making packed lunches was one of their saving tactics, too.

"January is often considered to be the time when our finances are in worst shape, but our research shows by taking control, some groups manage to create positive financial habits at the start of the year," Zopa's Clare Gambardella said in response to the results.

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