Tips to help you reach your saving goals

Have a savings goal and budget

It's much easier to be a good saver if you have a goal in mind. It might be a holiday, a house deposit, or just a rainy day fund.

To work out the amount you’ll need, be realistic about what you can afford to save each week, fortnight or month.

A well-planned budget will get you started on your savings path. Check out our articles on budgeting tips and sticking to your budget for a few pointers. You may also be interested in learning how to bucket your money, which is a great way to automate your savings.

Earn your bonus interest

Good savings habits can reward you with bonus interest on some accounts. Be disciplined and it will pay off in the long run by helping you save a little faster.

How it works

With accounts like NAB Reward Saver, you get bonus interest each month if you make no withdrawals and at least one deposit before the second last banking day of each month.

Then, if you follow those simple rules, you’ll receive your regular interest plus bonus interest at the end of the month. Learn more about how interest rates work and how they can help you save.

An example

In your first month, let’s say you’ve saved $4,000 and your interest rate is 2.50% per annum. This means you’ll earn approximately $8 in interest for this month.

Your bonus interest varies from different accounts—some need a minimum monthly deposit, some no withdrawals, and some have no conditions (check the account details before you open the account).

For this example, we’ll assume there are no conditions and your bonus interest is 0.90% per annum. So, for month one your bonus interest will be $3.

Every month, you’ll see your interest and bonus interest (if you stick to the conditions) increase along with your savings.

Think of your interest as extra money you might not otherwise have had. Eleven dollars might not sound like much, but at the end of 12 months you may have earned an extra $130.

Set up a regular payment

If you get your phone or power bill direct debited from your account, why not apply the same concept to your savings account?

Simply set up a regular automatic payment to go into your savings account every day.

It’s best to make your payment early in the month, because transfers could take a few days to reach your account – and you don’t want to risk losing your bonus interest.

Learn about setting up a regular deposit.

Compare our savings accounts

Just like with insurance and mobile phone plans, it’s best to compare which savings accounts are right for you. To get started, think about your needs.

Perhaps an account you can access at any time will work best. This means you can access your money any time without fees. Depending on the type of savings account you choose, you may lose bonus interest for any withdrawals you make.

Another option is a term deposit. A term deposit is a savings account where you lock the money into the account for a certain time and interest rate. The interest rate is usually based on the amount and length of time you put the money away for. This is fine if you don’t need access to the money during the fixed term. If you need to withdraw the money before the fixed term is up, you may be charged economic costs (not all the original interest you would have received will be paid to you).

If you’re a student or just starting out on your banking journey, our youth banking hub will help you decide on your next steps.

Track your savings goal

Another secret? Keep track of your savings goal.

You can do this with our online savings tool, NAB My Goals, which you can find in the NAB app.

This handy tool enables you to add a savings goal to any of your savings or transaction accounts and can help you easily track your progress against your goal.