I Tried A “Fun Money” Budget — & It Completely Changed How I Spend

Becoming a baddie with money doesn’t happen overnight. You don’t wake up one day and suddenly become a budgeting pro, never again giving in to the impulse to buy a “little treat.” For many, getting better with money is more of a gradual glow-up. It happens by changing one money habit at a time.

One of the easiest (and genuinely fun) money habits I’ve picked up is something you’ve probably scrolled past on TikTok: the “fun money” budget. It’s exactly what it sounds like: a set amount of money you allocate in your budget each month to spend on whatever you want, without guilt. And the best part is that you make the rules. You can use it for clothes, makeup, beauty treatments, dining out, concert tickets, random little treats — anything that tends to become a sneaky spending vortex.

According to money-saving expert Andrea Woroch, having a fun money budget is not only a smart money move, but it’s also essential. Here’s why: When fun spending is planned, you don’t have to spiral every time you treat yourself because it’s not throwing off your goals, she says. On the flip side, trying to cut out all “fun” purchases can totally backfire. You’ll get burnt out, ditch the budget, and overspend to make up for feeling deprived.

Fun money also creates guardrails, Woroch adds, which help keep “just one little treat” from turning into a full-on spending spree, and it naturally makes you more intentional about what you’re actually buying.

I’ve been doing this for a few years, and it’s completely changed how I spend my money. Ahead, I break down tips on creating your own.

How To Create Your Own Fun Money Budget

Choose an amount that feels good.

According to Woroch, there’s no universal percentage of your income that should go toward fun money. It could be $20. It could be a few hundred. The key, she says, is to review your finances and determine what you can realistically set aside after covering essentials such as bills, debt payments, and savings goals.

For me, the sweet spot is $300 per month. It’s a number that feels doable in my budget and exciting enough to enjoy, but not so high that it encourages overspending and overconsumption. In other words, a number that feels juicy but is manageable.

Decide your rules.

You make the rules for your fun money, starting with what actually counts as “fun.” Think about where you tend to overspend. For example, if eating out is your weakness, that could go in this category. Some of the rules I’ve set that have worked really well for me include rolling over fun money I don’t spend month to month to save for something bigger, like a fancy handbag, and increasing my fun budget by a couple of hundred dollars during birthday months, holidays, or when I’ve hit a big milestone I want to celebrate.

Test it out as a monthly challenge.

If you’re not sure how much money to budget for fun, treat it like an experiment. Choose an amount and try it for one month, and adjust from there. The goal is to create a plan you can stick with long-term, not something you’ll abandon because it feels too strict.

What I Learned From Implementing A “Fun Money” Budget

It made me more intentional with purchases without feeling deprived.

Once I started a fun money budget, my impulse buying stopped almost immediately. I couldn’t just toss every cute pajama set, mug, or random Target décor find into my cart. I had to pause and ask myself: Do I actually want this?

And if I did buy it, it meant taking money away from something else on my wish list. Most of the time, it wasn’t worth it, which made walking away way easier. Now, I add things to my wish list and sit with them for days (sometimes weeks or months) before purchasing, whether it’s a pair of shoes I’m eyeing, new stationery goodies (my personal weakness), or a higher-ticket item like a handbag.

Even though I’m buying fewer things, somehow I don’t feel deprived. Instead of getting a quick dopamine hit and forgetting about it the next day, I actually enjoy and savor my purchases more.

Spending feels guilt-free.

You know the vibe when you overspend, and then the guilt ruins the thing you bought? With fun money, I don’t get that feeling because I already planned for it. I’m not ruining my savings goals or stressing about bills. It’s genuinely the best kind of spending: enjoyable, intentional, and drama-free.

It helped me save more and prioritize bigger goals.

Because I’m not constantly leaking money through random purchases, I’m able to put more toward goals that actually matter to me, like saving more, investing, and planning for bigger purchases. It’s wild how much money you can redirect when you stop doing “small” impulse buys that aren’t actually small when they happen 20 times a month.

Budgeting became… fun.

Something I didn’t expect: budgeting became enjoyable. Now I can plan and map out what I want. One month, I might refresh my shoe rotation. In another month, I’ll try out new makeup or skin care. Another month, I’m in my stationery era splurging on a leather journal cover like it’s a personality trait. It changes depending on my hyperfixation, and that honestly makes it feel even more fun.

The Takeaway

Having a fun money budget has genuinely changed my relationship with money and spending. I'm more intentional. I buy fewer things but enjoy them more. I’m saving more without feeling deprived. And honestly? It’s fun to plan out what I’ll spend my fun money on each month. Overall, it allows me to spend in a way that feels good and supports my bigger financial goals, which is exactly the kind of energy I want to bring to my finances.