Budgeting basics

A budget is a spending plan that helps you understand how much money you're making and where you're spending it. A budget is the cornerstone of a strong financial plan.

Envelope budgeting

Zero-based budget

Create a home budget

Budgeting tips

A couple budgets together.

Bankrate offers 18 ideas for stretching your budget to save money.

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Understanding discretionary income can help you with your budgeting strategy.

Our guide tackles the basics of disposable income and how you can use it to budget.

Essential reading

Calculate your savings

Use our Savings Calculator to help you quickly and accurately estimate the growth of your investment. Set a goal and figure out how much you need to save each month to hit the mark.

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CDs Savings Accounts MMAs Checking Accounts

Latest articles

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How to find the best high-yield savings account in times of high inflation

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Get the latest rates on top-yielding money market accounts.

Woman watering plants.

Check out the latest CD rates from Bankrate’s weekly survey of banks and thrifts.

Image of the back of a man in a suit standing in front of a large line graph that is on top of a half shredded U.S. Dollar.

Stagflation is an economic “super villain,” bringing high inflation and unemployment.

Woman reaching in to the air for cash

Prices rise and fall all the time in the U.S. economy. It’s not always inflation.

Whimsical illustration of a hand putting a quarter into a miniature but realistic high end safe. As if it were a piggy bank

Comparing savings rates can ensure you get the best return on your savings.

Side view of father cooking food while daughter having apple in kitchen

These simple moves can help you build a cash cushion.

Image of Jerome Powell and Donald Trump side by side above the Federal Reserve building.

Lower rates won’t fix trade uncertainty, and credit could still be tight.

Person shopping at grocery store choosing oranges in the supermarket

Monthly budgets are popular because many expenses, such as rent and bills, occur monthly.

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It’s important to find the right accounts for your emergency savings.

Illustration of construction workers on a roof

An emergency fund is an essential part of a solid financial plan.

Mother and daughter shopping for vegetables

These simple moves can help you build a cash cushion.

Calendar of 2023

Use this challenge to stash more cash toward your savings goals.

illustration of money growing on trees

Here’s a helpful guide to how much you need in savings over the course of your life.

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Creating a timeline is a useful way to plan and meet all your financial goals.

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Rainy day and emergency funds differ but together provide a sound financial plan.

Five participants won the Bankrate Drop Your Debt sweepstakes

Five winners won $10,000 each in Bankrate’s first Drop Your Debt Sweepstakes.

Couple works on bills

U.S. consumers see inflation as the biggest threat to improving personal finances.

Two young brothers bake cookies together.

It’s easy to get caught up in the holiday spirit and overspend. Here are ways to avoid that trap.

Cashier and customer wear face masks at a store during the pandemic

More than 3 in 5 Americans are worried about their incomes over the next six months.

Holiday shoppers gather in Macy's for holiday shopping during the coronavirus pandemic.

Experts say it’s time to prepare now for an expensive gift-buying season.

A couple looks at finances.

The coronavirus pandemic drained Americans’ savings accounts.

Mother helping her son with schoolwork

The first of six monthly Child Tax Credit (CTC) payments start July 15.

Watering the plants

The savings account has always been a time-tested standby. Here’s why it still matters.

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