These hiding ideas are brilliant. Just make sure no one tosses them out!
13 Tips and Tricks for Storing and Hiding Money
Updated on May 15, 2024
Your Phone Case
These days, you’re much more likely to forget your wallet at home than you are your phone. Keep a little extra cash tucked behind your phone case for emergencies. — J.M. Rotzenberg.
An Empty Chapstick Tube
Sometimes I don’t want to carry my wallet around. At the beach, I’ll leave my belongings unattended while I go for a swim, but I still need cash on hand for food, drinks, etc. So I turned an empty tube of lip balm into a secret cash stash.
You could do the same with an empty stick of sunscreen, too. A long nail works great for digging out any remaining bits of lip balm, and a cotton swab wipes away any waxy residue.
Not only is the tube small enough to fit in my pocket, but it’ll also fool any potential thieves. I mean, who would steal someone’s used lip balm? — Jenny Stanley.
A Toilet Paper Roll Holder
Take apart the spring bar that holds your toilet paper. Roll up a stack of bills, stash them inside and reassemble the bar for a hidden away safe.
Not IN the Drawer
Drawers don’t go all the way to the back of a cabinet, and there’s typically a little space on the underside too. Put cash or important papers in an envelope and tape them to the back or underside of a drawer.
An Old Small Appliance
It doesn’t have to be an old vacuum cleaner. Any common household item with a cavity will work as a secret compartment. Think old printers, computer towers, children’s toys, etc.
For easy hidden storage access, choose an item that opens instantly, like a vacuum cleaner bag compartment. For more security, choose an item with a cover that screws shut.
False-Bottom Drawer
Pick a deep drawer so the depth change won’t be obvious. Cut 1/4-in. plywood 1/16-in. smaller than the drawer opening and rest it on a couple of wood strips hot-glued to the drawer sides. Then hot-glue some item you’d expect to find in that drawer to the bottom, so you have a handle to lift the false bottom secret compartment and reveal the booty.
A Marker
Pop the end cap off a marker and remove the ink cartridge. Just right for a spare roll of cash.
Counterfeit Containers
Comet, Coca-Cola, Bush Beans — whatever. But you can craft a homemade version, too. This mayonnaise jar had its interior spray-painted with cream-colored paint for plastic.
An Old Shoe
Some shoes have a removable sock liner (the foam pad your foot rests on). Pull out the sock liner and slide in some cash. What thief is going to want to dismantle your stinky shoes?
This is also a good place to hide emergency cash on your person while you’re on vacation — unless your sneakers are nice enough that someone would want to steal them, too.
An Ironing Board
Many ironing boards have tubular legs with plastic caps. Pull the cap and you’ve got yourself a perfect little hidey-hole. I slide in a wad of paper towels first so my secret stays near the opening and doesn’t rattle around.
Which Paint Can Contains the Gold?
Next time you use up a can of paint, save it and fill it up with valuables. Then put it back on the shelf with all your other cans.
The Bottom of a Chair
Dining chairs often have a false bottom box space under the seat for a drop-down hinged panel. These can be one of the best places to hide large amounts of cash.
A Potted Plant
Roll up some cash, stick it in a medicine bottle or any other watertight container and bury it in a potted plant. For quicker access and to keep dirt from getting under your fingernails, place a stone or pine cone over it. Not many burglars are going to be excavating around your houseplants.
