Americans are too lazy to save money

By Catey Hill, Moneyish

March 21, 2017 | 3:40pm

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Another day, another dollar wasted.

More than one in five (21%) of Americans don’t save a single dime, according to a survey released Tuesday by Bankrate.com. And while about half of Americans do save, they don’t save enough — experts recommend socking away at least 10% of your income — the survey of more than 1,000 adults revealed. That leaves only about one in four Americans who are fall into that coveted “responsible savers” bucket.

And while 38% of Americans say they don’t save because they have too many other expenses, the No. 2 reason is something entirely in their control: laziness. Indeed, 16% of Americans say they don’t save because they “haven’t gotten around to it” with millennials being among the most likely to cite this answer.

“This illustrates what is wrong with Americans and their savings,” says Bankrate.com chief financial analyst Greg McBride, CFA.

What’s more, Americans can’t blame their income on their lackluster savings habits. Households making $30,000-$49,999 per year were nearly twice as likely to be saving more than 15% of their incomes as households making between $50,000 and $74,999 annually.

Here at Moneyish, we can respect that you’re busy and saving money can’t always come before your nightly Netflix binge. So here are a few simple ways to make saving as easy as swiping right.

Step One: Set up automatic transfers from your checking account to a savings account on a certain day, in a certain amount, every month. It’s that easy. Once you set up this recurring payment, you’ll never have to consciously save again.

Step Two: Enroll in your company’s 401(k) during open enrollment. After you do, your employer will funnel the money you earmark for your retirement savings right from your paycheck before you can even touch that money.

Step Three: Try one of the myriad apps that automate your savings, like Acorns, Digit and others, which Gizmodo just ranked this year.