4 Tips on Saving From Your Paycheck

A bad habit that many individuals face is not being able to save money. Fewer than 1/4 of American citizens have a savings account that would be adequate if an emergency happened, such as unexpectedly becoming unemployed. Over 26% of the population does not have a savings account at all. Listed below are a couple tips on how to make the most out of every paycheck that you receive. 

Start Paying Yourself

Since saving money is a habit that every person has to learn on their own, the best way to get into the habit of saving money is by paying yourself. Start out slowly by putting a certain amount of every paycheck that you receive into a separate account. The amount can be as little as $25 a paycheck to start with. A very simple way to do it is by having the amount automatically deducted from your check. Automatic deductions make the process of saving very easy, and with an amount as little as $25, you will never notice it is missing. 

Find A Free Checking Account

There is a wide variety of different types of checking accounts available, but the best kind for saving money is a free account. Even though there are accounts that pay interest, these accounts charge a monthly fee that can quickly add up and take away from your hard earned money. No minimal balance is also associated with many free checking accounts and can help when you are just getting an account established. Approximately 72% of credit unions throughout the United States offer some type of free checking account while nearly 38% of banks do. 

Shop For Deals

When trying to save money, it is important to shop for deals, even when buying groceries. Many local grocery stores offer weekly ads that outline products that are on sale. Many stores also offer rewards programs that quickly pay off and help you save money. Reward programs can range from acquiring points for each order that eventually pays with cash back or acquiring points that will pay back with a certain percentage off the total order once a threshold has been met. Any way around it, shopping around for the best prices pays off significantly in the long run when trying to save hard earned money. 

Pay Off Credit Cards

It is very easy to go shopping and swipe a credit card, but doing this too often can quickly lead to large amounts of debt. When trying to save money, pay off high-interest credit cards as quickly as possible. The national average for Annual Percent Rates on credit cards is currently at 14.95%. For every $100 that is left on the credit card as a balance at the end of the month, $14.95 will be charged to the card in interest. When credit card users only make the minimal credit card payments, it is not uncommon to only be paying interest and not even touch the actual credit card balance. When you are trying to save as much money as possible, make sure that credit cards are paid off at the end of each month to avoid the high-interest credit card traps.

Many individuals in the United States do not have any sort of rainy day fund if the need to use it should arise. Emergencies sometimes do unexpectedly happen, and the best way to deal with them when they do is to be prepared. These are just a couple of a wide array of different ways to help make each hard earned paycheck go a little bit further.

 

Amy Klimek is an experienced HR recruiter and VP of Human Resources for ZipRecruiter, a company that simplifies the hiring process for small to medium size businesses. Prior to that Amy has held similar roles at Rent.com, eBay and US Interactive.