A new study has found that nearly half of Americans have less than $25,000 saved up for retirement. With the cost of living on the rise and retirement still decades away, this isn’t a statistic to take lightly. There’s no time like the present to start investing your money so it can grow and become worth more over time.

Acorns is a small investment startup company that helps people turn spare change into big investments, with an app that rounds up purchases and invests them in a diversified portfolio of stocks and bonds. It’s simple, foolproof, and easy for anyone to use. All you need is your spare change and about 10 minutes a day!

The Importance of Investing

A central driving force behind Acorns is the common misconception that we don’t need to invest our money if we have a smart savings strategy. After all, we have enough money in the bank. And the concept of saving without investing sounds sensible, especially when you only have a few spare dollars.

But many studies show that most Americans are missing out on potentially more money by not investing, and we can expect an even bigger retirement gap for those who don’t make an effort.

According to a recent survey, less than 25% of Americans have enough cash in their checking account to cover six months’ worth of expenses. Clearly, Americans have a major problem, and it’s linked to not investing, but how can that be changed without Wall Street knowledge?

What is Acorns?

Acorns app is a low-cost investment app that allows you to invest spare change from your daily purchases. It rounds up your purchases and invests the money in a diversified portfolio of stocks and bonds, where you can earn 2% to 3% in return. That may not seem like a lot, and may make you wonder “is Acorns worth it?”, but once you add it up over time, you could be taking a large step toward your retirement.

It invests your money into a portfolio of twelve different ETFs (exchange-traded funds), which include stocks, bonds, and securities. You can invest as little as $5 at any time, and the app keeps track of how much money you’re saving. Your transactions are logged, and your progress is tracked automatically.

It uses a Round-Ups feature which means any purchase you make from a linked account is rounded to the nearest dollar, and invested automatically. In this way, you’re investing your spare change, and earning a little interest, without even thinking about it. But you can also make manual investments as well.

Getting Started with Acorns

Getting started with Acorns is pretty simple, although it does require some investment first. You simply download the app to your smartphone or tablet, and link your Acorns debit or credit card. Then you make your first purchase using the app. Afterward, you can start investing your spare change. You can either open a new investment or make a round-up contribution.

To make a round-up contribution, simply download the app and link your debit or credit card to the account. When you make a purchase, you’ll see the savings amount on your debit card statement. You can round-up to the nearest dollar, and invest your savings in the appropriate portfolios.

Why You Should Use Acorns

In some ways, Acorns is an ordinary investment app. That’s the beauty of it. You can invest your spare change, and you can make an investment with no questions asked. But when you add it all up, Acorns has a big advantage over other investment apps. It provides lower fees, and it also offers a wide selection of stocks and bonds that you can invest in.

In fact, Acorns is so accessible that you could take your money, buy a single share of stock, and still have enough spare change for coffee with your friends. That’s the power of Acorns. It’s flexible, and easy to use, but it also offers reliable, profitable investment options.

Conclusion

If you’ve ever wondered if you could invest spare change, Acorns is the answer. The app allows you to invest spare change into an easy-to-follow portfolio of stocks and bonds.

You’ll barely notice the $.40 cents here or there being invested with every online purchase you make, but over time, your savings will add up. Think of it like a coin jar that you keep adding to, but it also keeps growing when you aren’t looking.