Wow. I just found that I’ve collected over $17 in change in my desk at work, from the rare occasions on which I spend cash. Sounds like a nice chunk of change. But it isn’t really.
This is saved over the last two years.
Contrast that with the over $500 I’ve accumulated using Bank of America’s “Keep The Change” program in the same time period.
Big difference, eh?
When I think about the weight that all those coins would’ve added to my life, and the incredible inconvenience of storing/collecting them and redeeming them for more easily-spendable forms of currency, I appreciate the magic of this program. In all likelihood, I would’ve lost or thrown out most of this money.
It does add up, I guess - all those pennies and nickels and dimes.
Using a check card to make all of your small (even large) purchases makes very good sense. Even if you don’t have a program like Keep The Change at your bank, where the virtual spare change from a purchase is automatically transfered to your savings account, you still completely eliminate the possibility of losing quarters here and there and having it add up to hundreds of dollars in losses by the end of the year.
I know that not every place is equipped with card-readers, but when a place is, there is no good reason not to use a check card to make the purchase - even if it’s something as small as a toothbrush.
P.S. Toothbrushes are freakin’ pricy these days. $3-something for a piece of plastic and some bristles? Where can I buy Oral-B in bulk?
