Are YOU Keeping Too Much Money in Your Checking Account? 

What do you think is the appropriate amount of money to be in your checking account? Also, what percent is your phone🔋on? I'm on 65%😭

After i started watched you, i was able to save 26€ its not alot but it's the beginning

This is bananas. I worked in banking long enough to know that is not only dumb, but not real safe either. We have $1000 cushion. Payday comes along, we pay the bills and immediately move our money to other places. High Yield Savings accounts are your friend.

Pull up a chair. I have $1800 extra in my account. Started writing down what I was spending and making in January. When I had a tiny extra like $7, I would move it to my "christmas savings" in my book. Never spent from that column. Pretend it's not there. Did this since January. Love it so much that I don't want a pro manicure or coffee since that small amount can go in my save column. You can do this. Before you know it, you will have that 10 grand and your biggest problem will be where to put it. I started because I wanted to have a happy Christmas season without stress. Gifts isn't the issue, it's holiday lunches, special drinks, etc. Find your goal. You can get there every week with a few bucks.

$500 is the bottom of checking. That will cover a small emergency. 10k in high yield savings as an emergency fund. The rest is invested.

we keep bills in checking and rest in savings

I just put $6200 in my high yield checking account. It’s at 5.4% interest rate. I save over half my take home pay every paycheck. You have to live below your means. I still live comfortably.

$1000 in the checking account, the rest goes in my underwear for safekeeping

I'm a retail worker, currently studying to gain new skills and hopefully get a new job that allows me to actually survive. If I have at least $150.⁰⁰ in my checking account, that's a good day. I know that's hardly anything. I'm working on it.

Right, controversial.. I actually forecast all my expenses ahead of the month and remove any excess money right at the beginning into savings account. So by the end of the month, my checking account should say 0. And it doesn’t scare me because that’s exactly what I want. It’s stops me breaking my budget. Equally if I reallly end up needing extra money, I can go into savings, and it feels more sacrificial so I avoid spending money just because it’s there

I feel like I'm broke if I have less than $500 in my checking account, but at the same time I have a 6 month emergency fund. I have the money for my bills set aside in a completely separate account. My checking account is just for my day to day spending

"Its the mentality behind it," is key. I work part time at a convenience store that has slot machines, and we have one couple that comes in and just SPENDS HUNDREDS, if not more, on thr DAILY. After a few weeks, one of them told me that they had an injury at work and got a very large settlement... With the way they spend it, they are gonna be unable to work due to that injury, and broke on account of their gambling, in no time.

Like you said the amount in your checking should be determined by lifestyle and income. For some people a few thousand isnt a make or break. I know someone who makes 300,000 a year before bonuses. Their checking account will look much different from someone making 50,000 a year.

Enough to cover all your monthly expenses Plus at least a $2,000 emergency fund. And that's a minimum for me.

i have been so obsessed with your channel since I found it last week. I have already started to make changes in my financial planning and it’s amazing how much relief it brings you when you know you have money saved for emergencies.

10K in a checking account!? Why would anyone leave that much in there!? At least put it into a CD or HYSA.

I literally JUST transferred everything but $1500 into a high yield CD. I'm so excited to start earning money passively.

As a single income family pretty much living paycheck to paycheck, I know exactly what bills are due and once all of those come out what we are left with is groceries and gas money. We are not in the season of being able to always have a certain amount in our checking account. It is what it is. But we do keep $1000 in our emergency fund savings, so always having that there is definitely helpful with the stress of it all!

Not to sound ignorant but could you do a video on how to get interest on your money sitting in the bank? I was never taught about that so I wish I would have known sooner. I need to do research on this. Financial literacy isn’t something that’s taught to everyone but it’s highly important.

1 checking, 1 savings, same bank. Minimum 2k each in both. Pay everything off on checking account and direct deposit into checking account. 6 months emergency fund in a different bank that’s a HYSA. Everything else in investments

I just saved 250 and made it feel like a spree, I am so proud of being able to save $15 a month for the last few months, and your channel has me inspired. Thank You!! 🖤💜💙💚💙💜🖤 Much Love!!

I only keep about $100-300 in my checking. 😅 The rest goes to savings

Hi, I am a Jamaican Vlogger, I love your videos. America is built on consumerism. The People don't know how to budget nor spend money.1 Pair of shoes that cost 1070 usd is equivalent to $166,910 Jamaican dollars, that can pay for airlines and a hotel. we rather buy a shoe for 50 usd or 8000 jmd then invest the rest of that money. and our credit cards have a limit. if its maxed (which mine never is) the bank does not allow you to go over what you dont have

My finance professor from college said not to keep more than $2K in my checking account because if the balance is more you’ll always be tempted to spend more than what you have. $2K essentially is my 0 balance. You should keep an emergency fund of 3-6 months expenses in an emergency fund and he told me to keep at least $2500 in a bank savings account (not tired up in investments or an HYSA) in case I really need it in an emergency. The rest of my money gets invested.

Saving can be difficult if you're on a fixed income or below poverty, but some people don't even carry cash anymore. If you wanna make money, save change. You won't realize how fast that shite racks up.

$1,000 in checking and 6 months in a HYSA as an emergency fund. 401K and Roth IRA maxed out. Also have securities account.

I'm slowly putting the brakes on my online shopping addiction because of your channel. I know I have a problem, but at least I know about it. At least my debts are no longer growing at the rate they used to. I am paying off a lot more on them now as well, and I no longer keep a credit card.

1. Keep just enough money for your monthly expenses in your checking account. 2. Keep the rest in a savings account and/or invest and make sure it's not connected to any debit card. 3. It's better to have savings account in another bank for better security. 4. Use only one-time virtual cards for online shopping, never your actual physical cards.

The point of an emergency fund is for it to be liquid and quickly available in an emergency. Lock it up in the stock market and something happens on a Friday at 5pm well good luck until Monday to sell and then a maybe couple days for the transfer to go through. But I do park that money in a HYSA. You don’t need to be making a lot of money for $10k. My partner and I both make $20/hr however we also don’t have kids. The reason we keep it high is because if we lose our jobs we want at least 3 months to not worry about our mortgage and bills.

I keep basically nothing in my checking account. My bank doesn't charge me an overdraft fee until my account has been negative for like 48 hours. It gives me time to move things around before getting hit with a fee.

A better question is how much you have in the bank! Checking accounts and savings can be switched out at a moments notice. Plus many banks will pay out of your savings if the checkings gets accidentally over drafted. My checking account balance is what I expect to pay out within the next few weeks. If an unexpected bill hits, I’ll transfer more, no big deal

I try not to go below $2,500. I am pretty good with keeping a budget for myself. I use Monarch to help me track my expenses. I give myself $500 for the month for personal use. Once that $500 is done. I’m “broke” until the next month. Lately I’ve been doing a fiscal fast with not really spending money unless it’s an emergency or necessity

$5,000 is my minimum. I get uncomfortable with anything below that.

$1k is the amount I need to feel comfortable in my checking account. It’s a nice, safe, even number that covers any of my expenses in the event the debit comes before payday.

She said the secret of my success. A SEPARATE BANK, have two banks. I have my real savings away from my bank where I actually transact. Two reasons safety (the savings bank I have no debit card, do not use it to do anything other than transfer in and out) and two I forget about it so I dont spend it.

You only need enough for 1 months expenses and a small emergency in your checking account. The rest is in a separate brokerage account.

hello! i found your channel a couple of days ago and man i’m hooked (+subscribed 😀) it’s 1-2k in checking for me (the minimum balance in our local banks here is 1k) and i somehow clawed my way up to 40+k in savings (due for another evaluation and pump the excess into investments again soon though; i’ve been completely independent since i was 24 so i gotta be responsible for my own adulting lol). love your content and have a great week ahead! my phone battery is at 45% ✨

I have two debit cards. One for bills so it's an exact amount (sometimes there's extra if a cancel a subscription) then I have my spending card which I put about $400 a month on. I usually have remaining $500, 250 is for the high yield savings account and $250 into investment account.

I never felt more motivated to finally open a HYSA then after watching this video! Thank you!

I think with bank accounts we have to remember everyone's monthly expenses are different. So most people want to keep enough to cover one month of expenses without worry when finance allows. This can be a way of starting financial independence. Just another way to think about it. Thanks

AND THEY PROBABLY LYING--10, 000 IN THE BANK WITH 9,999.00 WORTH OF MONTHY BILLS!

I do a zero budget so I only have bits in my current account. It was hard to see it so low at the beginning, but actually I'm saving tons more by giving every £ a purpose.

5000 in a checking account isn’t that weird if that’s how you pay your bills. Throwing that in a high yield savings account won’t do anything for you if that’s how you pay your bills. And just curious, who’s offering 6% for a HYSA?

i absolutely adore your channel and the fact that you always talk about finances! don’t ever change ! ❤️

Less than 10k gives me anxiety less thank 5k I panicked. I’m am married with small children, and own a home. You do need access to money when things go out. Or other emergencies. If you’re money is tied up in investments you often pay penalties and taxes when you need access to that money. Our heating and air went out and needs to be replaced. 28k was the best price for a good system. I do keep my emergency fund in a totally separate bank. I do not have checks or debit cards to that account. So i either have to do a money transfer or go to the bank in person

I never have more than $150 after bills but I budget in groceries and gas so technically it doesn’t go anywhere until next payday

I have $100 in my checking account, $10k in a HYSA for paying expenses monthly, $140k in 1 month Treasury Bills, and $60k in long term retirement. I only have more liquid assets than retirement because I’m saving up to buy a house and they start at $600k in my area, so really the $150k I have is chump change in comparison.

Money Markets, HYSA, and saving certificates of deposits are your friend. Notice how banks pay like 3% dividends while those loans want like 20% interest. 👀

I really, really enjoy your content and I hope you blow up. I support you 100% sis

If you are worried about $10,000 in your checking account, then you already have a solid savings account, an emergency fund, and you're already putting money into investments. This $10,000 is just your quick access like readily available funds for you for living.

People also have to understand that in this economy 10k in saving is still only paycheck to paycheck adjacent. It takes one medical emergency or accident or something wrong with your house to become a victim of stuff. So when they’re saying I feel like I gotta start budgeting if my checking hits a certain amount it makes total sense. And most ppl are not keeping the majority of their money in checking. If so, more than likely it’s for rotating bills.

I usually keep about 500 or so in my checking, and the rest of what is needed for my monthly expenses (after investing my 20-30%) in a high yield savings account. I put everything that I purchase during the month on a credit card that gets cash back on every single transaction, and I keep a detailed list of every purchase in a notebook so that I'm never going over what the balance in that savings account is for the month. Then, on the final day of the month, I use that money to pay off the credit card. If anything catastrophic happened, then I could dip into the 6-month emergency fund, which is a separate thing.

I keep one month's expenses in my checking account, just in case. Then some goes into the emergency fund if it needs to be replenished, some goes into my rainy day fund, rest goes into investments. I do get where people keep high numbers in their checking accounts; I used to just because I wasn't educated on it.

Thank you for this. I judt opened a High Yield savings account because of you. RU-vid is so educational. THANK YOU!! I just subscribed

three months' worth of rent, food, and utilities in savings plus 80% of my check post-bills. and then everything beyond that in savings will go to investments such as government bonds long-term or cds shorter term. I'm a college student so it's a little different for me than someone with a more stable job

My wife and i frequently have over 10k in checking, but we don’t keep it there. At the end of the month, anything left over 1k goes in to investment accounts. I worry any less than that and a few auto payments we forgot about, or a credit card payment, or something, could overdraw and cause unnecessary headaches.

I budget one month ahead, so I basically keep the money for next month's bills and expenses in my account plus a buffer of $100. I have seen some folks complain about being taxed on HYSA interest, so that could be a factor for some not putting their money into a HYSA. I'm on 76%.

I absolutely love your channel. I just recently found it, and it has easily become one of my favorites. Great content! Keep up the great work ❤✨️

I used to be one of those heavy holders that held most money in between the main checking and savings. Currently, I keep about 2.5k in the main checking/savings. Everything else goes to HYSA, Brokerage and Roth.

Thank you for the video, I feel like sometimes I could improve my financial literacy and make better decisions with where I store and reinvest the money I earn to make it work for me so this video was very helpful.

I reset my checking account to $2,000 USD every payday and transfer the rest into my savings account. I need to move my savings into a HYSA though, just nervous about not really understanding the potential risks associated with some of the online-only HYSA bank with the highest returns.

listen tho. some banks are offering high yield interest (like 4%) in a checking acct. that's probably why they do that.

I put a certain amount in my checking usually 300-500$ to just blow on whatever and everything that is needs like groceries gas or docs appts is put on the credit that i pay off every statement, when my checking hits 0 i need to wait till next check before buying any wants

I keep like 100-150 in my checking. All my money is in my savings bc I get a 4.25% yield. I pay my car insurance/car taxes every 6 months so I take money out of every paycheck and set it aside in my savings to pay for it. I do that with a lot of monthly bills so it help accrue interest.

Another great video. Always leave your videos with something to think about.!🖤💚

1:26 people need to know more of this !!!!

10k in checking is crazy unless that is your monthly expense or just 1% or less of your net worth. I keep enough in my checking to cover auto pay for bills, and keep a months worth of expenses in a savings account with high yield that can instantly transfer to checking. The rest of my savings is 6 months to a year of expenses in a high yield (mine is 5.2%) the rest goes straight to investing whether its a brokerage or retirement account. Some money you just have to let depreciate cause you never know when youll need that the buffer but the rest should really be invested yesterday!!

10k was my emergency fund savings goal, and I ended up using it all right after I finally managed to save it on an urgently needed surgery. I think it's a good amount of cash to have on hand for emergencies, medical surprises, funeral costs, moving expenses, new car if the old one breaks down, etc. You never know what life is going to throw at you so it's best to be prepared.

I do a variation on zero based budgeting where my "zero" is my budget for the month. That way everything could come out on DAY ONE of the month and I would have to worry. My paycheck is thus just refilling the bucket. So I dont really worry about the current balance at all. Edit: and yes, already built into that budget is automatic deposits in HYS accounts

I think it depends on the stage of your journey. I split my 40k emergency fund of 6+ months of expenses between savings and checking. That may seem like a lot but it is a tiny fraction of my net worth and before 2 years ago savings accounts yielded nothing. Even now 5% on 40k is not worth enough to me to complicate my financial setup with another account. I would rather simplify rather than have 100% efficiency. I consider that “dead money” that I don’t count towards retirement so it just sits and is a cushion, that’s its only job.

I think folks is missing the point. The people with 10K in their checking account, have WAY MORE MONEY so why would they care about chump change interest growing on 10K. That amount of money, 10K is like $100 dollars in normal people's eyes. So all of these thoughts and analysis don't make sense. People also have MULTIPLE checking accounts / savings. Don't believe everything you hear off the internet.

I have 2 checking accounts. One which holds all my money for my bills. One for discretionary spending, which I like to keep around less than $1000.

I’m constantly checking my accounts and tracking my expenses. On average I have $500 but I have a “Bills” savings that has one month of rent and electricity and car insurance. That gets moved into the checking when needed. I have a separate savings for emergencies and other savings goals.

Great video! Personally I only use my checking account for bills or for an emergency that I need my debit. All other purchases I use my credit and pay it in full (it helps me keep track on what I'm spending). Maybe $150 on a debit is reasonable after bills, but the rest should be in a HYSA, emergency fund and the rest I'll personally put in a diverse mutual index fund.

I wish people would just talk in %s instead of exact numbers. You’re right that having enough to cover a month (or maybe 2 if you have unpredictable income) of bills is more than enough if you have solid employment. Just like an emergency fund size should vary with expenses and life circumstances.

I wouldn’t keep over 1000 in a checking account. I move excess to a high interest rate savings that isn’t used to shop online and stuff. I couldn’t imagine having 10k in my checking! 😮

We have checking for main bills, household for food/gas/eating out, personal allowances, plus savings account

I slightly disagree. 10k is a reasonable amount for an emergency fund especially if u are a home owner. Ur emergency funds are not for investing. U need that money as liquid as positive. Alot of HYSA with good interest rates are online banks with no physical locations. And may take 2 or 3 Business days to give you your money. Also. U have to pay taxes on Hysa earnings. Puting emergency fund a brokerage account also not a good idea. Any stocks sold in less than a year is subject to capital gain tax. Emergency funds are not Investment funds. They must be kept separate. Emergency stay as liquid and easy to access as possible for emergencies. Investment funds go in for the long term. Every reputable bank is fdic insured and has fraud protection for ur checking account. Also never pay for anything with ur debit card. That what credit card Liability protections are good for. Good luck.

The guy was on point. Yes there are a few with several thousands in checking but it's not the norm. So many people be on straight CAP no matter what it is.

I keep very little in my checking - usually upcoming bills and $150 for spending. I have a HYSA that I can create "vaults" for, and I move my budgeted money into those vaults until it is time to be used. This weekend my debit card was stolen. The thief got $124.80 (one transaction) out of my amount before I knew what happened. I immediately locked the card, reported it, etc. I'm fortunate that if I never get that money back, I'll be okay. There was another time in my life, it could mean I would be homeless in the next few weeks when rent is due. I can't imagine holding $10k in checking just because. If I'm going to keep it liquid, at least it's in my HYSA. My propensity to not keep a lot on checking also likely saved me from bigger concerns due to the theft.

I love your channel, I love how financially solid you are

This is so hard for people who dont participate in interest culture. How can we protect our money without getting involved in interest? 😭

I like your channel a lot. Thanks for creating and sharing.

Financial literacy and wealth do not necessarily have anything to do with each other. You have him out here who have existential wealth because of generational wealth, that are completely financially illiterate. Likewise, you have people who are completely financially responsible and intelligible, but unfortunately DC new life and circumstances, have a little bit of funds to work with. But all their bills are paid, and they are careful to budget what they have left after they've taken care of their business. I feel like she wanted to stop pursuing that because someone's wealthy, that means they somehow earned it, or are just more deserving of it, and that someone who is financially struggling or not currently well off somehow did it to themselves. Those are oftentimes inaccurate assumptions to make

Fun money comes out of checking. Savings, investments and bills are sent to other accounts every paycheck. I try to make sure the checking stays above 50$ in case of an automatic withdrawal or whatever and the bill checking always has 1 month of expenses.

So I just ignore the first $1,000. Like in general if I have $1,200 I think oh I have $200 to spend. However once it’s starts to creep up in the next few thousand ie 3,4,5 it varies, I move a few k into the savings account. Keep doing this over and over.

We used to keep a $1000 "buffer" but since buying a house, we don't like going below 1 month of expenses.

I only keep a max of $500 in my checking. I don’t have a mortgage/rent, car loan nor credit card debt so my monthly expenses are extremely low. Thank god I learned about financial literacy in high school by taking the work/study program my senior year. I never wanted to be like my parents. They were terrible with money and I did everything to not be like them!

I think some people have so much in their checking to pay their big bills like their mortgage/escrow accounts, water, and electric bills. Instead of having it pulled from savings they have it pulled from their checking account. While I do agree that having so much sitting in checking is unsafe I do think most of them do this because of the limit on the number of times you can pull money from your savings account in a month.

The people i know who have 10k or more n their checking have 7 figures in their savings and investments accounts...its just different levels

what's the best least risky way to put your savings to use besides a HYSA?

Love your vibe and advice! Subbed 🩵

Everything in savings and transfer as needed. Bills come out of savings no card for the savings account and tap for the checking. I’ve saved thousands this way also having a transfer limit to once a day.

My checking account has $500 and sometimes less than that in it. I use credit cards for all my expenses to earn points (paid off every Friday) and all other money goes in to a savings account etc. I am always baffled when I see someone use a debit card for purchases.

Where I am from there are some chequing accounts where if you keep a min of $5000 you don't have to pay any bank fees and receive other services eg free safety deposit box, no annual fee credit card etc. .So for some people there may be a reason why there is always a certain amount in their chequing account.

This is such an interesting topic~ tbh I am not able to keep such high amounts of money, because I usually transfer everything to a savings account, but I do feel quite stressed when I see the amount decreasing as I pay each bill or as I put the money into savings, for some reason there is a correlation for me with seeing the number going down and my anxiety levels going up.

I don't keep much in my checking account. I pay my bills and move almost everything over to my savings. It safer that way because it's less likely to be stolen. Also, savings account have higher interest rates than checking.

I usually have 1.5 to 2.5 times my mortgage payment in checking account so that the autopay have no risk of overdraw. This could be sizable, especially back in the day when I was paying extra. I stopped paying extra because right now I can get higher interest in certifcates than the loan, so now I roll whatever excess into a certifcate every 2 month or so (I have multiple certificate on multiple bank so maturity time comes somewhat frequently, during which I can add more)

500 in each checking account (2), 2k in minor emergency (savings), 10k in high yield saving (Emergency Fund), then sinking funds for Christmas, Car Insurance, etc. Everything else is invested or paid on mortgage principal.

$200 in checking. I put all my money in savings