Money saving trends are constantly popping up on social media, but one in particular has been gaining huge amounts of attention – loud budgeting. This trend, created accidentally by a comedian, is breaking down the taboo of speaking about money.
Loud budgeting is all about being firmer and more vocal about your financial boundaries in social situations. It’s about setting out what you are happy to spend your money on, rather than trying to “Keep up with the Joneses.” On TikTok alone, videos published under the hashtag #loudbudgeting have garnered more than 30 million views and the trend is only growing.
Lukas Battle, the 26-year-old who unintentionally created the trend as part of a comedy sketch, explained that loud budgeting is not about being poor, but about not being afraid to share your financial limits and what is profitable for you personally. It’s not about giving up your daily coffee to become a millionaire, but rather focusing your spending on things you enjoy and cutting out things you might feel pressured to spend money on.
The trend has been embraced by so-called American “finfluencers,” but people in the UK are also starting to practice it. Mia Westrap, for example, has taken up loud budgeting by embarking on a no-buy year and sharing her finances with her TikTok followers. So far, she has been able to save £1,700 and has found that talking openly about her money has been really helpful.
Financial expert John Webb believes that loud budgeting has the ability to help many feel empowered and create a more realistic relationship with money. However, he also warns that it’s important to be cautious and considerate of the reality of life, as it could potentially cause troubles within friendship groups if financial goals are not aligned. Ultimately, loud budgeting is designed to help people become more conscious and intentional with their money and reduce the stigma around talking about finances.