There are benefits of both investing your money, as well as straight-up saving your money. Ideally, you should be looking for ways to do both, but it is also understandable that everyone has their own financial goals, where either investing or savings may make more sense than the others.

So what are the pros and cons of saving and investing? When should you be saving and when should you be investing?

One of the biggest factors that should be considered when determining whether to save or invest your money is whether your financial goals are long or short term. If your goals are more short-term, such as saving up for travel or to move within the next 2 years, I recommend that you place your money in a high yield savings account.

This is because your money will be much easier to access when you need it in comparison to investments in stocks and crypto. In addition, there is no chance that your money can drop due to the more volatile nature of investing.

If your goals are long-term and more geared towards your retirement, it’s recommend investing, as smart investments can increase in value significantly, both will not see an immediate impact. If you do not have any imminent financial goal that you are currently striving for yet still want to improve your overall financial wellbeing, I recommend splitting your money up between savings and investments.

The savings portion of these investments can offer you a safety net in the form of an emergency fund, while the investment portion gives you something that can grow into something much greater down the road. The combination of both of these will give you a good balance with finances.