Little and often beats big and rarely. Squirrel away a slice of your pay — even 5% — and compound interest does the heavy lifting. See what your stash could grow into. 🐿️
Easy-access accounts currently pay around 4–5% AER; regular savers and fixes can pay more.
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Assumes interest compounds monthly at a steady rate, with contributions made at the end of each month — real rates change over time. Interest outside an ISA can be taxable above your Personal Savings Allowance. This is an illustration, not financial advice.
Squirrels don’t bury one giant nut — they stash small ones constantly, and that’s exactly how saving works best. Three things do most of the work:
Where to keep the stash: an easy-access account for your emergency fund, then consider regular savers and fixed-rate accounts for better rates, or a cash ISA if interest might push you past your Personal Savings Allowance (£1,000 of tax-free interest for basic-rate taxpayers, £500 for higher-rate). And if you’re carrying expensive debt, clearing that first usually beats any savings rate.
That depends on what you put away and what rate you earn. Starting from nothing at £125 a month with a 4% AER account, you'd reach £10,000 in almost exactly six years — you'd have paid in £9,000 and interest would have added the other £1,131. Push the monthly amount to £155 and you get there a year sooner. Set the calculator above to “How long until I hit my goal?” and put your own numbers in.
Set the calculator to “How much must I save each month?”, enter your target and your deadline, and it works backwards for you. To reach £10,000 in ten years at 4% AER, for instance, you'd need about £68 a month — you'd pay in £8,180 and interest would cover the remaining £1,820. Shorten the deadline and the monthly figure climbs steeply, which is the clearest argument there is for starting early.
It's a brilliant start — the habit matters more than the amount. A common rule of thumb is to work towards 20% of take-home pay across all saving (including pensions), but 5% squirreled consistently beats 20% attempted and abandoned. Start where you are, then nudge the slider up with each pay rise.
UK easy-access accounts currently pay roughly 4–5% AER, with regular savers and fixed-rate bonds sometimes higher. Rates move with the Bank of England base rate, so treat any long-term projection as a rough guide — try a pessimistic and an optimistic rate to see the range.
Basic-rate taxpayers can earn £1,000 of interest a year tax-free under the Personal Savings Allowance (£500 for higher-rate). Beyond that, interest is taxable — which is where cash ISAs earn their keep, since ISA interest is always tax-free.
A small emergency buffer first (£500–£1,000), then attack expensive debt — a credit card charging 25% costs you far more than any savings account pays. Once the expensive debt is gone, redirect the same monthly amount into savings; you won't miss money you were already spending.
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Cut £30 a month from your bills and squirrel the difference — you’ll never notice it leaving, but you’ll definitely notice the stash.
