This post may contain affiliate links. If you make a purchase through these links, I will earn a small commission at no additional cost to you. Read the full disclosure here.

Building a TBR Jar

A TBR jar is exactly what the name suggests: a jar full of your to be read books that you can blindly pick from when you want to start a new book. I’ve seen a lot of variations on these, from titles written on slips of paper to numbers corresponding to wrapped books on the bookshelf. My favorite, though, is the book titles. It’s the easiest option, especially when you need to add a new book to the jar.

What you’ll need:

• Some sort of jar (I used a decorative mug I thrifted)
• Paper
• Scissors
• A pen (or a computer and printer if you prefer to type up your list)
• Your bookshelf

You probably already have all of these things lying around your house, especially if you hoard empty jars like some jar goblin just like I do.

Once you’ve gathered your supplies, here’s what you need to do to make your jar:

1. Go through your shelves to determine which ones you still need to read.
2. Write each book on a slip of paper.
3. Fold that piece of paper and put it in the jar.

It’s as simple as that! My first iteration of my TBR jar only took me about an hour to make.

Since then, I’ve adjusted how I track my TBR, but the concept is still the same. I’m a big mood reader, so I’ve also gone a step further and color-coded each slip of paper to correspond to a genre. This way, if I’m in the mood for a particular genre, I’ll know at first glance what genre it is instead of needing to unfold the paper to find out. I’ve also added a little key to each paper for whether the book is physical, eBook, or on KU, and if it’s part of a series or not—because sometimes I want a stand-alone. Here are some pictures of the little legend I made if you too are a mood reader and want ideas for how to customize your TBR jar.

These adjustments are totally optional, though. If you prefer simplicity, all you need is the book title and you’re good to go!

Making a Book Fund Jar

The Book Fund jar is a little less self-explanatory. I’ve long lost the link to the TikTok where I first saw the inspiration for this, but basically, the point of this book fund jar is to reward yourself for reading books you already own by adding “money” to a jar. Then, once you’ve read enough books/earned enough money, you can buy more!

What You’ll need:

• Some sort of jar (I used an old candle jar)
• Paper
• Pen
• Tape
• A token to track your money with (I use these two color glass beads)

Unlike the TBR jar, you may need to go out to the store to get something to track your money with. Or, you could use actual money if you have that on hand. I just never carry cash or change.

Once you’ve gathered your supplies, here’s what you need to do to make your jar:

1. Determine the dollar amount you’ll “earn” for each book you’ve read.
2. Write that key down and tape it to your jar.
3. Every time you finish a book, add the corresponding dollar amount to your jar.

If you need an idea for values to assign to your books, here’s what I use:

• Unread Physical Book: $2
• Unread Kindle Book: $1
• Unread Library/Kindle Unlimited Book: $0.50
• Unread Audiobook: $0.50
• Re-Read: $0.25
• Series Bonus: $5 ($2.50 for KU series)

And that’s it! Mine only took me about 10 minutes to make.