Does saving vs. investing come to mind when you have some cash?

Which is more appealing, traveling to Bali in the next six months or living a luxurious life from 50 years old? I hope you chose both; this is the most straightforward overview of saving vs. investing.

People often use these words interchangeably, but they mean different things and achieve different purposes. However, there are some similarities too.

Depending on your goals, both can come in handy at different seasons of your life for different purposes. Regardless, the goal is to spend your money wisely while putting it to good use, yielding both short-term and long-term satisfaction.

Let’s look at these two terms even further. Understanding the meaning of each word, its similarities, and differences will help when deciding which to opt for in certain situations.

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To cover all foreseen expenses for your traveling to Bali in July, you are likely to start putting some cash aside beginning in January. For example, after creating your travel budget, you calculate $5000 for your 10-day trip. With six months between January and July, you start putting aside $5000/6 = $840 monthly out of your $4,200 monthly paycheck.

The money put aside is savings, woohoo! Savings is intended for a short-term goal involving you setting aside cash for a set goal.

Savings usually come with little to no risk. For instance, there is a low risk associated with saving in your Bank Of America savings account for six months unless the bank shuts down. Even if they do, they are less likely to run away with your money.

You can get some additional interest on your savings with a savings account, but it’s nothing huge.

What is investing?

On the other hand, investment is a long-term game that uses cash to buy assets to generate more cash. Living a luxurious life from 50 years old is a long-term goal that requires strategic financial planning so is your unborn children’s college tuition.

This is where a 401(k) plan comes into play or buying reliable stocks, real estate, shares, gold, mutual funds, bonds, etc. These assets appreciate with a calculated expectation of vastly increasing your initial investment.

Some investment plans are rock solid with medium risk, while some have high risks. With this understanding, it’s advisable to do your thorough findings on your investment options before deciding on a plan or some plans.

Saving vs. Investing explained!

I’m sure you now know the uniqueness of saving vs. investing, but let’s dive deeper into their similarities and differences.

Similarities

Both saving and investment achieve a common goal: to accumulate money, whether it is a trip to Bali or your child’s college tuition 18 years from now.

Involving in any of these actions explains you are dedicated to a future of financial freedom. It shows you’ve developed great habits that many Americans struggle with.

According to the Federal Reserve reports, 36% of Americans don’t have enough money on hand to cover a $400 emergency. Also, the average American’s savings account balance is $4,500.

“62% of Americans aged 18 to 29 have some retirement savings, but only 28% feel on track for retirement.” ~ The Motley Fool

Another similarity is that savings and investing give you some percent of interest.

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Differences

“The three most important words in investing are margin of safety.” ~ Warren Buffet.

I smiled after reading this quote by Warren because it pretty much summarizes one of the significant differences between saving vs. investing, THE RISK FACTOR.

Using the example I shared at the start of this discussion, let’s analyze the difference between these interesting terms.

FEATURES	SAVINGS	INVESTING
DURATION	Used for short-term goals, < 5 years	Used for long-term goals, >5 years
RISK	Comes with low risk	Comes with risks; medium or high
Return on Investment (ROI)	Small ROI	High ROI
LIQUIDITY	Cash is easily retrievable	Cash isn’t easily retrievable
ECONOMIC INFLATION	It’s devalued by economic inflation	Value is seldom devalued by economic inflation
ACCOUNT TYPE	Types of accounts include: bank savings account, Deposit account, or Certificate of Deposit	Stocks, mutual funds, bonds, shares, broker account

Duration

Here are some examples of different goals, duration, and whether to save or invest

Son’s basketball-themed 18th birthday
Buy a home nine years from now
A trip to the Maldives
A 28-year-old who wants to build an orphanage home in their 40s

Examples 1 and 3 fall under savings because they are short-term goals and need immediate access to cash. Whereas examples 2 and 4 are long-term goals requiring large sums of money, thoughtful planning, and a longer timeframe to achieve them.

Risk

With savings accounts, the risks associated with losing your principal are close to none, but losing your capital is a chance you should be ready to take with investment accounts.

Return on Investment (ROI)

Investments usually come with compounded interests, while savings come with simple interest.

Take a look at this example.

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Mr. B has $4,200 per month of expendable cash and is wondering if he should save or invest. He has a wiggle room of 6 years to save or invest this amount. What should he do?

	SAVE (3% simple interest)	INVEST (25% ROI, Real Estate)
Today	$4,200	$4,200
Year 1	$ 55,415. 30	$63,155
Year 3	$ 162,501. 38	$235,369
Year 6	$ 335,481. 56	$721,036

Note: Investments usually have higher interest rates than regular savings hence the different interest rates used in the above simulation.

Liquidity

You can see investing as a locked savings plan that you don’t have access to for a long-time while saving is the opposite. This is why understanding these differences is vital to your decision-making process.

It would be a disaster if you invested in your trip to Bali and couldn’t access the money close to July when you need to travel.

Economic Inflation

As inflation goes up, the value of your savings goes down and vice-versa. But, investments rarely change, and they can even increase with inflation. For example, gold appreciates unless there is a great economic depression, but in the grand scheme of things, the value of gold goes up with time and not the opposite.

Account type

Refer to the table above.

Pros and cons of investing

Yes, investment is risky, but there are still many reasons to invest. Check out my pro-con sheet of investing.

Pros

Your invested money isn’t affected by economic inflation
You have a higher return on your investment, as shown in Table 2
It’s great for building wealth

Cons

You could lose your capital in minutes
It can be hard to access invested assets as cash quickly
You lose money for withdrawing cash too soon

Pros and cons of saving

Saving sounds like a pretty safe option to save you some anxiety, but it has its cons.

Pros

Quick access to cash
There is a high level of certainty with your ROI. What you see is what you get
There is less risk and market complexity

Cons

Value is based on economic stability
It is associated with a small interest rate

When should I save, and when should I invest?

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I’m bringing back these examples for illustration purposes.

Son’s basketball-themed 18th birthday – it’s a short-term goal, SAVE.
Buy a home nine years from now – > 5-year duration and requires lots of money, INVEST.
A trip to the Maldives – another easily achievable short-term goal, SAVE.
A 28-year-old who wants to build an orphanage home in your 40s – 12-year duration, and much money is needed here. Definitely invest in a high ROI investment plan.

To put these examples in perspective,

When to save

If you need the money within the next five years
If it’s a financial goal that requires less strategic financial planning, like examples 1 and 3
For miscellaneous situations when you need immediate access to cash
To buy a new car, credit card payment

When to invest

When you have a long-term goal that requires thoughtful planning and a large sum of money, like examples 2 and 4
If you won’t need that money five years (and above) down the road
Towards your retirement plan, e.g., 401(k)

Final thoughts

“Buy stock as you would groceries: when they are on sale.” ~ Christopher Browne.

Another funny and wise quote. Saving vs. investing both requires a great deal of intentionality and discipline. When contemplating the better option for your expendable cash, all the tips and examples shared in this post will help you make the best-informed decision.

To create wealth and have fun!

Do you have an active saving or investing culture? What’s your best investment type?

Saving vs. Investing: Learn the best option for your money ( 2024)

What is investing?

Saving vs. Investing explained!

Similarities