Acorns anyone?

[maxiesmom]

I keep seeing this advertised on tv and was wondering if anyone on here uses it. It is supposed to be a way to do a little investing by rounding up your purchases via their Visa debit card.

 

[DLgal]

I think it's silly. You're talking VERY little money being saved. It's essentially a virtual piggy bank for loose change.

I find automating savings by choosing a fixed amount to transfer into my Ally account on the 1st of every month to be a far better savings strategy.

 

[5kidsmommy]

We use it, It's not our only savings but it adds up. It is like a virtual piggy bank. I have found it's great for my husband. He is on the road a lot for his job and use to just pay with cash which meant he had a pocket full of change. Now he just has his debit card linked and instead of jars of change we have a little account with change.

He checked it the other day and we have about $5000 in the account. Not too bad.

 

[HeatherC]

I also use it and so do my kids. I contribute a small amount each week and it does add up. I have a couple thousand in it so far and haven’t been doing it that long. I also do the same thing with Stash.

Certainly not silly to me.

 

[barkley]

i prefer using the credit card my credit union offers. you get to choose the categories for the tiers of rewards so i chose the ones we use most frequently (groceries/big box/restaurants-opted for gas in the lowest b/c around here there's an up charge if you use anything other than a debit card or cash at a station). it doesn't round up but i earn 3% (and during some promotional times upwards of 6%). so i let those stack up and after a year of paying for all the normal household expenses i end up with over $1000 that i could put into a gift card but i prefer to use as a credit on the card's statement for the following year (and bank that amount). i pay it once a month in full so i'm not paying to use it via interest. all those extra pennies acorn would garner me are still sitting in one of my other accounts earning interest so i figure that puts me ahead of what they offer.

 

[DonnerB]

You aren't required to use their debit card to get the round ups. I have my debit card and several credit cards linked to the account (so you can still earn rewards on your credit cards). You're basically investing in fractional shares of ETFs, so you'll earn dividends.
A negative aspect of Acorns is that the $1 monthly fee, though it seems low, may actually eat up most of your earnings if you only have a small amount invested in the account. But it's a very simple way to get started in investing!

 

[disny_luvr]

How exactly does this work? Do you link a debit card to an Acorn account and then the change from every transaction is deposited into the Acorn account? So, for example, if I make a purchase using my debit card for 11.88, 12 cents is put into the Acorn account?

 

[DonnerB]

How exactly does this work? Do you link a debit card to an Acorn account and then the change from every transaction is deposited into the Acorn account? So, for example, if I make a purchase using my debit card for 11.88, 12 cents is put into the Acorn account?

Correct; once the "change" from all of your purchases reaches $5+, a deposit is made from your linked bank account (you are paying yourself). You can also set recurring deposits ($5 each week, $10 each month etc.) or make a one-time deposit.