Mar 10th, 2008
A Penny Saved is a Penny Earned - The Penny Saved’s penny experiment
A penny saved is a penny earned - we’ve all heard the phrase. There’s lots of variations on it too:
The Penny Saved is a penny earned
and some funny ones too:
A penny saved is a penny plus interest earned
A penny saved is a penny earned — and taxed.
Ok so the truth is, I don’t even like the phrase, its pretty cliche. But I figured after all this time calling this site that, I should probably do a little blurb to explain it for a little bit of Monday fun and start a little experiment. The original quote is indeed “A Penny Saved is a Penny Earned” by Benjamin Franklin. After looking up some quotes pages apparently a lot of the cheesy quotes we hear on a day to day basis came out his mouth.
So what does a penny saved is a penny earned mean exactly?
The general gist is pretty easy. Every penny you can save on something, is one less penny you have to earn, thus it is a penny earned. It could be extended though: for every penny you save and then invest, in 45 years that penny has turned into a dollar (assuming 11% interest rate).
If I saved a penny a day and invested it at 11% interest, how much would I have in 40 years?
$2,357.27
I read somewhere that the average american goes by 6 cents per day just laying around. I dont know if that includes in penny holders at gas station counters or driving in your car or what, but if you were to save that 6 cents a day, that would be $21.90 in one year, and if invested yearly at 11% that would be $14,143.61 after 40 years.
Well, I am going to test this out. Thats right, I am going to start picking up pennies, and actively watching for them. I am curious exactly how many pennies we pass by or throw out or get rid of per day. I am going to track this and post it in a nice little graphic.
Oh and I just found my first one laying on the ground, no joke.


8] Toilet Paper
7) Mouse
2) Engagement Ring
“Beyond its entertainment value, Baywatch has enriched and, in many cases, helped save lives. I’m looking forward to the opportunity to continue with a project which has has such a significance for so many.”

he hated working in a lab and went on to do other things. Just because you are really good at something doesn’t mean you should do it. This problem is particularly big when still in college. I switched majors somewhere in the range of four times before I finally settled on something. Just because a class is fun and you are good at the subject does not mean you should bank your life on it. Being good at something in college does not equate to real life success. Plus, there are very few jobs directly related to drinking beer.