Sumday – Saving Starts Somewhere

Financial jargon, high account minimums, and complicated withdrawal penalties are enough to prevent some people from saving and investing altogether. Sumday is a barebones, straightforward, banking application that encourages people to start saving their pennies and their dollars right away.

Go grab your wallet, and get out a dollar bill. That’s how much you need to start saving and investing with Sumday. Create an account with as little as $1, and watch as your account grows with gradual investments over time. You can add money each month, each week, or just whenever you’re just feeling inspired. The money you add to your Sumday account is invested in the Dreyfus Basic S&P 500 Stock Index Fund, which means you’ll be investing in a mutual fund without dealing with all the complicated financial complexities that typically go along with investing.

One of the most interesting parts of Sumday is how users are able to add money to their accounts. In addition to traditional bank transfers, Sumday also gives users the option of adding money to their accounts by tagging social posts on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter with the #Sumday hashtag. Users can transfer anywhere from $1 to $25 with “hashtag transfers,” up to a total of $1,000 per month.

Practical Uses:

• Invest your money in the stock market
• Open a savings account for your children
• Start saving money for retirement
• Add the same amount to your savings account each month

Insider Tips:

• Users can choose from multiple layout options
• Money is deposited into the Dreyfus Basic S&P 500 Stock Index Fund
• Transfer up to $1,000 via hashtag transfers each month
• A 6-day holding period may be necessary for withdrawal requests

What we liked:

• People can open Sumday accounts with as little as $1
• Sumday gives people without much money a way to invest in mutual funds
• Multiple beneficiaries can be added to a single Sumday account
• Sumday doesn’t charge any fees to withdraw money

What we didn’t like:

• Only one Sumday account can be associated with each social security number, which means parents can’t open multiple accounts for their kids

Alternatives:

• Simple – https://www.simple.com

Company Info:

• Privately Held
• Headquarters: New York, New York
• Founded by: BNY Mellon
• Web site: https://www.sumday.com

Costs:

• Sumday charges a 0.2% fee per year to have an account