You're listening to Life Kit from NPR.
Hey everybody, it's Marielle.
If you have money in a savings account, I want you to check something.
Log into your account online and see how much interest you're making a year.
It'll say, you know, 0.5% APY, annual percentage yield.
Now I want you to think about another number, 2.1%.
That's the inflation rate in the US as of April.
It's actually down.
It was much higher in the past few years.
But still, the difference between those two percentages,
that's how much the money you have in savings is losing value every year.
When we put money in a savings account, we like to think of it as safe.
But with inflation, your money isn't safe.
Its value is eroding a little bit at a time.
Arzu Resvani covers personal finance and housing for NPR.
She says there's this inertia that happens with our savings.
I have talked to a lot of people about this and what happens really is that they started a checking or savings account when they were really young and then they've never really bothered to check back in to see,
oh, what is my savings account making for me?
And look, switching savings accounts might seem annoying.
You're sitting down, taking a look at the various websites,