You’ve done it. You’ve built up a little cushion in your bank account — $1,000! It feels good, right? Those days of checking your account balance in a panic are behind you.
Congrats! You’re on the right path. Now it’s time to think about some longer-term goals. What do you want to accomplish next with your money? Do you need to save more? Do you want to buy a home someday? Invest?
What’s the next step you should take? What are some specific things you can do to take your finances to the next level?
We’ve got some ideas for you:
1. See if You Can Get More Money From This Company
Here’s the deal: If you’re not using Aspiration’s debit card, you’re missing out on extra cash. And who doesn’t want extra cash right now?
Yep. When you sign up for a debit card called Aspiration, you could get up to 5% back when you swipe at certain stores — plus they give you up to 50 times the normal national interest rate on your savings balance.
It’s perfect for earning extra cash for things that are already on your shopping list. You were going to buy these things anyway — why not get this extra money in the process?
This card used to have a huge waiting list, but now you can sign up for free.
Just enter your email address here and link your bank account to see how much extra cash you can get with your free Aspiration account. And don’t worry. Your money is FDIC insured and under a military-grade encryption. That’s nerd talk for “this is totally safe.”
2. Cancel Your Car Insurance
Here’s the thing: your current car insurance company is probably overcharging you. But don’t waste your time hopping around to different insurance companies looking for a better deal.
Use a website called Insure to see all your options at once.
Insure is the largest online marketplace for insurance in the US, so you’ll get the top options from more than 175 different carriers handed right to you.
Take a couple of minutes to answer some questions about yourself and your driving record. With this information, Insure will be able to give you the top recommendations for car insurance. In just a few minutes, you could save up to $610 a year.
3. Stop Paying Your Credit Card Company
Credit card debt is the worst. It can be super expensive, not to mention stressful.
And guess who doesn’t care? Your credit card company. While you struggle to keep up, they’re getting rich charging you high interest rates — some up to 36%.
A company called AMOne may be able to help. If you owe between $2,500 and $50,000*, they could offer you a new loan — at a potentially lower interest rate than your current credit card rate. And you could use the new loan to help reduce some of your balances.
And thanks to the potentially lower interest rates (starting at 7.99% APR)*, you might be able to reduce your debt that much faster.
You don’t need perfect credit. AMOne looks at more than just your credit score, and they’ll even help you find any available discounts*.
It’s free to get a quote, and it won’t affect your credit score to see what you pre-qualify for. Just tell AMOne some basic info about yourself: your name, address, phone number and income, and you’ll see what you may be pre-qualified for in just a few minutes.
If you’re approved and you decide to accept the loan offer, you could have funds sent to you within 24 to 72 hours†. It takes just a few minutes to see what you may prequalify for.
4. Let This Card Add Points to Your Credit Score — Even if You Don’t Qualify for Credit Cards
It’s not personal. It’s business. Credit card companies see numbers, not stories. So if you have a low credit score, most of them won’t lend you money.
But without credit cards, how can you raise your score in the first place? They aren’t all betting against you, though. Chime could help you add points to your score — even if you don’t qualify for other credit cards. People who use this card add an average of 30 points1 to their score.
Chime doesn’t ask you to pay annual fees, maintenance fees or interest charges — and you don’t even have to have a hard credit check.
To apply, all you have to do is set up a Chime and make a qualifying direct deposit of at least $2002. Then just move money into your secured account — this becomes your credit limit and you can use this money to pay your balance.
Chime reports your payments to the major credit bureaus. If you use your card responsibility and make on-time payments every month, your score will reflect that progress.
Chime users see their credit score improve by 30 points, on average. And the app will let you follow along and track your progress.
Get started here to see how many points you could add to your credit score.
5. Invest in Apple, Tesla, Crypto or Amazon for just $1
Once you’ve paid all your essential monthly bills, take a look at what’s left in your bank account and come up with an investing strategy. Even if it’s not a lot of money, don’t let that stop you – you can start investing with just $1.
Stash is a great place for beginning investors to get started. You can invest in fractional shares (partial shares) in companies that are household names like Apple, Tesla, Crypto and Amazon. A single share of some companies could cost hundreds or even thousands of dollars, but with fractional shares you can invest with as little as $1.
If you’re thinking about saving for retirement, you can start investing in an IRA and enjoy the tax benefits that come with retirement accounts. Stash also offers tools and guidance to help you along the way.
As a bonus, Stash will give you $10 towards your first investment after you sign up and deposit $5 or more into your personal portfolio. 2
6. Get paid up to $225 a month while watching viral videos
It sounds crazy. And maybe you’re not even sure if it’s worth your time. But come on… you’re at least a little curious. Getting paid to watch viral videos is a real way to earn cash, and you can do it with a company called Inbox Dollars.
No… it’s not going to get you rich. Yes… it’s probably one of the lowest-effort side hustles. But it’s totally worth it if you’re just sitting on the couch scrolling anyway. Instead of watching viral videos on YouTube, you could be getting paid actual cash to watch those videos and take surveys instead. Every little bit of extra money counts.
It’s simple. You sign up here and confirm your email. Then you watch. Then you earn cash (yes, actual cash… not “points”). And taking these surveys whenever you’re just chilling on the couch can earn you up to an extra $225 every month.
*The Aspiration Spend & Save Accounts are cash management accounts offered through Aspiration Financial, LLC, a registered broker-dealer, Member FINRA/SIPC, and a subsidiary of Aspiration Partners, Inc. (“Aspiration”). Aspiration is not a bank.
*Investing involves the risk of loss.