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.

Woman using a calculator and examining financial documents

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.

Explore banking products:

CDs Savings Accounts MMAs Checking Accounts

Latest articles

People walking back and forth in front of Capital One Bank entrance.

A CFPB lawsuit claims Capital One underpaid savings account interest by $2 billion.

Image showing a dumbbell wrapped with U.S. dollar bills

If your New Year’s goal is to practice self-care, use these tips to stay on budget.

image of calculator and christmas tree ornament

Here’s how you can start paying off that holiday debt and building up your savings.

Mother and daughter shopping for vegetables

These simple moves can help you build a cash cushion.

A couple budgets together.

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

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.

Financial manager meeting with couple in bank branch office

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.

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 construction workers on a roof

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

illustration of money growing on trees

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

young woman smiling on city sidewalk

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

Man using cell phone in living room

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

Young man choosing oranges in the supermarket

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

Mechanic uses force to unlock bolt

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

measuring the waistline of cash bills, comical

A spending diet can help you pursue your financial goals and save cash. Here’s how.

Piggy bank with doctors equipment. Cute and comical

A mid-year checkup is the most effective way to ensure my finances are on track.

Illustration of a pile of cash inside of a life raft

The amount varies by individual, but there are guidelines.

Young family managing budget and paying bills and taxes

Barely above the poverty line, ALICE households struggle to make ends meet.

Woman working from home with a child in the background

A new Bankrate analysis shows mothers earned 31 percent less in wages than fathers in 2023.

Woman taking safety deposit box out

Some items are good candidates for storage in a safe deposit box, but others aren’t.

University student, woman and outdoor for graduation with memory, smile or thinking

Don’t let these financial mistakes prevent you from reaching your financial goals.

Money next to flashing sirens

If you’re struggling to pay off debt and build savings, you’re not alone.

The trusted provider of accurate rates and financial information