yeah I noticed the same - but I guess it cannot be 1p Saving Challenge (2026) because it might not be 1p but 4p…
@davidwalton good for putting it up numbers. needs one correction here -
- For upside calculation - You are applying 5% interest rate to the total balance saved (e.g. £1,355.90 over the year for X2 plan) but it doesn’t work like that. Monzo pays interest on monthly basis (i.e 5%/12 = 0.41% each month on average monthly balance) so you needs to calculate accordingly and it will come our actually less
Yeah, my calcs were quick and rough (indication only - not accurate)
I did include the same calcs in my off-site spreadsheet showing the amounts and saw they were wrong, so rather than updating them, I took the lazy option and just removed them ![]()
Pretty sure the 5% (AER) interest is calculated daily and paid monthly.
You are correct, it is calculated daily and paid on the first of every month. The math on that (4.89% interest calculated daily and paid monthly) gives the following figures for one challenge pot at the end:

The absolute max interest one couple can earn, if you and your partner each 4x the challenge and the interest rate stays at 5% equivalent, is £87.75. Between the two of you you’ll have paid in £5,343.60 and you’ll have £5,431.35 between your pots.
Interestingly (pun intended), if you just take the average monthly amount on a two-person 4p challenge (£455.30) and put that in a regular savings pot earning 3.25% AER (3.2% Gross), you’d end up with a total of £5,437.07, slightly more than the challenge, even with a lower interest rate.
Given that December is typically a hard month for expenses, I found last year’s challenge quite frustrating at the end. I would love it if there was an option to randomise the day number so that on average a more even amount would be added each month. Or, to have some pattern like: day 1: 1p, day 2: 365p, day 3: 2p, day 4: 364p, etc.
I think making it random makes it unpredictable and so more challenging than it is now. Loads of people have asked for the reverse challenge but didn’t happen this year.
Thought since the draw for 2025 has finished, continuing the discussion here would be more appropriate. ![]()
I’m still on the 4p challenge but getting a bit tired with the mental gymnastics of spinning many plates at once to max out benefits/avoid fees.
Has anyone here already given up, or does the prospect of winning £10k still keep you going?
I closed it after a few weeks, the faff of trying to maximize the interest was not worth the stress for me.
Hope the more people dropping out of this the sooner they stop the gimmicky
and give us something with proper value. ![]()
I’m still going strong on day 44 at x4. Currently at £39.62 saved as of this morning which includes 2p interest from Jan.
Still going strong myself on this. Not really noticing at the moment but I know that will change.
Also still doing the savings challenge. It’s not really a hassle with Monzo being my main bank at the moment.
It’s handy that Trends tells you how much the challenge is going to cost you during your monthly budgeting period - jut ensure you have that much available in your Monzo current account.
I hope the more people dropping out of this the more chances I have of winning a prize ![]()
Yes, your chance of winning has doubled from 0.000001% to 0.000002%! ![]()
What might feel gimmicky to you… is the first time someone else has meaningfully set savings goals and followed through with it. For me it’s just a fun, no-brainer savings pot that pays for the Christmas period. I feel the negativity is a little strong, considering how many people benefitted from this. I suspect the majority of people in this forum are very much into their personal finances, but it’s worth remembering the vast majority of the population (including Monzo’s other 10million customers) aren’t. This could be the beginnings of somebody making a savings goal, they could then take these savings and open their first investment account with Monzo. Wouldnt that be a cool story and incredibly powerful
Same here…..
Yes, all your points are valid. Me and the other members who have stuck through last year’s challenge, we have a different views after seeing what’s at the end of the rainbow…
From product development point of view, I think it’s worth letting Monzo see both sides of the discussion so they can better their products. If they wanted to maintain that inspiration, they could’ve published winners’ stories, as previously requested by me and other regular forum users. But by withholding info and introduce more lucky draws (though I admit they’re good at gamifying personal finance), it’s adding lack of seriousness vibe to their branding while failing to inspire more savers. ![]()
For me the fact the amount escalates each day is what worries me, and I don’t plan on earning 365 times by the end of the year than the start. I also agree with the comments above in that it is about creating a habit.
I’m trying to think which app it was but instead of getting interest you got the option to enter a prize draw (maybe Tandem but don’t quote me) you got more entries for more money, but maybe Monzo could do you get 1 entry for each month you save and don’t withdraw for example.
Like save at least £50 a month and you get put in a draw with 1 entry, next month if you have saved a further £50 you now have 2 entries and maybe the prize is what you put in, so you would win £50.
Easy for Monzo to set a limit say £500 a month or something
