Money can’t buy happiness, but not having any savings at all is very stressful, and it’s hard to be happy when you’re stressed.

How do you begin building a savings account?

How much should you have?

Where do you put it?

Most of us will never be gazillionaires, but because we need to reach some level of financial security, these questions matter. It’s hard to answer most of these questions without a budget, however, so for most of us that is the first step.

In this section we’ll cover everything you need or want to know about budgeting, and then do the same with savings accounts. No matter where you are starting from or where you want to go, you can build a savings account that will help you weather life’s financial storms and ease the stress of living paycheck-to-paycheck.