 TITLE: What Is the Best Way to Save Money? CONTENT: How to Start Saving Money\n-------------------------\nThe first step to saving money is thinking about your goals. Why do you want to save money? Perhaps you don't have an emergency fund and want the security of knowing you're covered if an unexpected expense arises. Or maybe you're trying to squeeze some extra cash out each month to start saving for a down payment on a house or your retirement. You might have a goal to save up for something fun like travel or tickets to that music festival you've been wanting to go to for years. By setting a goal (or several), you can focus on the benefits you'll get from saving instead of feeling deprived or cheated about the things you're giving up.\nSaving money can reduce financial stress and improve your life in many ways. But if you're not in the habit of saving, getting started can be a challenge. If you're unsure where to begin, here are two ideas to help.\n### Pay Down Debt\nIf you owe a large amount of outstanding debt, especially on high interest credit cards, paying down that debt can save you a lot of money in the long run and is a good first step toward saving. To figure out how much debt you actually owe—and to monitor your progress once you start paying it down—check your free credit report.\nWrite down all of your debts, focusing on revolving or high interest accounts first. From there, you can figure out how much extra money you can apply toward eliminating those debts each month.\nYour best bet with credit card accounts is to pay them off in full each month. However, until you can reach that goal, saving on interest offers another way to help you pay down your debt so you can start saving more. Here are a couple ways to do that:\n*   **Get a balance transfer card.** If your credit scores are in decent shape, you might be able to qualify for a new balance transfer credit card offer with a low introductory interest rate. These offers can motivate you to tackle your credit card debt more aggressively because you'll have a period where you'll pay no or low interest on your balance. But you need to manage these cards wisely because once the introductory low rate ends, you don't want to end up with a large balance at perhaps an even higher rate than you were paying before. For more information on whether a balance transfer card might be right for you, see \"Should I Make a Balance Transfer?\"\n*   **Consider a debt consolidation loan.** Consolidating your credit card debt could help you save money on interest as well, though likely to a lesser degree. Paying off your outstanding revolving debt with an installment loan may help you get a better handle on your monthly expenses because you'll have just one payment to make each month instead of several, provided you manage the new account properly and don't take on more credit card debt.\nThere are several other approaches to paying down your credit card balances; check out these tips for paying off your credit cards for more.\n> Find the best personal loans in Experian CreditMatch™.\nAt first, applying extra money from your income to pay down debt might seem like it's costing you more and taking away from your savings goals, but stick with it. In reality, paying down high interest debt will save you money on costly interest and create additional room in your budget once your debt is paid off. For more, see \"How to Get Out of Debt.\"\n### Create a Budget\nPutting as much money as you can toward paying off your credit card debt will eventually free up more money to help you reach your savings goals, but you might even be able to set aside more than you think. The key to figuring out where you can find extra cash to put toward your debt and your savings goals is creating a budget.\nThe first step to creating a budget is tracking your spending. However you manage your money—through an online financial management service, your trusty checkbook or payment apps—figure out how much you spend each month in the following areas:\n*   **Fixed expenses.** These are your regular monthly expenses, or overhead, including rent or mortgage, car payment, student loan payment, utility bills and the like. For bills such as gas and electricity that can vary over the course of a year, figure out the average you pay each month. Experts also recommend committing to a certain amount, even as little as $25 a week to start, to an emergency fund if you don't already have one. While not technically a fixed expense, considering it one will help you stay on track with your savings plan if unexpected expenses pop up.\n*   **Variable expenses.** These expenses are not set and can fluctuate each week, month or year. They include groceries, entertainment, gas, personal services and more.\nThis exercise will give you a good idea of where you can cut back. Map out your monthly expenses and be sure to include your savings goals alongside your monthly bills. Even if you begin by saving just 2% of your income to put toward your goals, it's a start. If you can afford to save a larger amount, go for it. As you save money in specific areas (more on that below), you can free up extra money to set aside for those bigger goals you're trying to achieve. END