I also think the plan is to not use your plastic. which doesn’t mean leave it at home, does it?

either way seeing the stash spend down over the course of the month might give a needed visual context to the less conceptual spenders among us.

One of three things happens with change:

1) We lose it
2) We waste it away frivolously (sodas, candy bars, Starbucks, etc.) for no reason other than to get rid of it, else it continue to pile up.
3) We save it in an empty coffee can and cash it in after a couple years.

The only sensible use of loose change is #3, but once again, that money could have stayed in an interest-bearing account all those years. For some people, cash may have some psychological benefits, but it sure isn’t the most efficient way to go.

I take out 200 bucks every pay period for my budget of 2 weeks

I have found for me personally to be just enough for random daily purchases and 1 meal for lunch each week; Groceries are budgeted out of my card purchases– which is the only item on the card purchase budeget

this has worked for me and it took 2 years to develop and standardize…seriously

True, physically handing over five $20′s *can* feel more potent than using plastic, but absconding plastic also results in missing out on deals found online.

Additionally, by using cash pulled directly (and pre-emptively) from your checking account, you’re hurting yourself twice in comparison to using a credit card in terms of interest.

First: By keeping the money you spent in your checking account until the end of the month, you are accruing interest, effectively giving you an immediate “Cash Back” reward.

Second: By deducting money out of your checking account in the form of cash, you are giving up the interest that you could be earning on your assets until the purchase is made (compared to debit cards). In this sense, you are effectively paying a cash advance fee.

Another penalty you may face is coming across something on sale that you regularly use and need to restock on in the near-future, but are unable to because an ATM is not near-by.

Like I stated above, I understand the psychological effect of physically handing over greenback after greenback and seeing, then and now, how much money you have to spend. However, there is no substitute for responsible money management, and if someone cannot manage their money responsibly with programs that are effectively registers, regularly withdrawing cash from an ATM is unlikely to address, let alone solve, his or her problems.