How much do you keep in checking?

[Coronet]

I usually try to keep about $500-1000 in there for safety in case I need to withdraw something. I put the rest in savings accounts at the very least.

[tripods68]

We only keep the minimum requires us to have a checking account balance which is $1.00 and remaining monies are transferred to our MMA. Not only help increase our saving rate but it also prevent us from spending on privolous non-essential 'stuff'.

[TheStreetCeo]

I pay the bills and raley have much left over. Maybe a few hundred bucks. It just stays there and does nothing until the next bill shows up. Sometimes, there is lavish spending ($50 bucks) but for the most part, my wife and I are on the same page and are paying the bills and saving for a cabin and retirement.

[snshijuptr]

My husband's paycheck comes in on the 5th and is always something different, so we keep $4000 in checking to cover $1580 in automatic savings withdrawals + 1410 rent + buffer for checks bills and varying paycheck. That is just under our monthly budgeted amount. At the end of the month, I take any extra money over $4000 and transfer it to savings.

[snshijuptr]

My husband's paycheck comes in on the 5th and is always something different, so we keep $4000 in checking to cover $1580 in automatic savings withdrawals + 1410 rent + buffer for checks bills and varying paycheck. That is just under our monthly budgeted amount. At the end of the month, I take any extra money over $4000 and transfer it to savings.

[Debt Vigilante]

I always kept what my monthly expenses are from my budget + 500 in my checking. The rest is going to paying off my student loan debt. My situation is a little different though because as of right now, I am not saving.

[jaine]

This thread makes me realize how much mint.com has abstracted my budget. I have no idea how much is usually in my checking account - mint tells me I'm on track with my budget, and my budget was set up so that spending + saving is slightly less than income. I think I have approximately 1 pay check in there but I'm not sure.... To me it's not one of the important numbers in my budget.

[biff]

I keep at least 5k in my checking account. To pay bills and mortgage via online bill pay... And to accumulate credit card points I charge everyday purchases wherever and whenever I can on the cc and transfer from checking to zero the cc out. I get about $500 back in cash rebates every year.

[bjl584]

Not much. Just enough to pay all of my budgeted expenses for the month. This amount includes money that I transfer to my various investment accounts.

[jaystone]

I keep enough in to pay any upcoming bills plus a buffer of $100-$200 for incidentals.

[Slug]

Roughly $5k with a range of $2-8k throughout the month. I think I get charged $1 for over-drafts, and I think that's happened once. I hate fees too much to not keep a solid buffer in place. The reality here is most of us spend less than we earn and have nest eggs and EF's so it's relatively easy for us to keep these large buffers that allows to simply not worry about it. Nice luxury we've worked hard to achieve.

[ez1]

I use Quicken for all of my various accounts (checking, credit card, 401-k, etc.). I also keep tabs on money people owe me or vice versa. The good thing with recurring payments or scheduled payments with quicken is that I can know several days (often a couple of weeks) in advance when there is a critical situation with my expected balance. So, I don't ever keep any more cash than I need to stay above water. I would never be able to do that if not for the detailed tracking.

[Cassius King]

I keep between $500-$1000 as a buffer in my checking account. I think of it as a mini emergency fund. I hate to take money from savings, so this helps accommodate this for me.

[greenskeeper]

I keep between $500-$1000 as a buffer in my checking account. I think of it as a mini emergency fund. I hate to take money from savings, so this helps accommodate this for me.

I am about the same as well...$500-$1000 float in the checking.

I pay all of my bills on the first day of every month....including "paying ourselves" with what we put away in various forms of savings.

At the end of the month, whatever is over the original balance to start the month is set moved to savings as well, typically whichever savings vehicle can give us the most bang for the dollar in that month.

Example:

month start - $4000

end month - $4300

an additional $300 is saved so that the next month is started at a $4000 balance.

[Joi]

I finally figured out how to come in under budget at the month's end. So I'm trying out the same method of shaving off what's above my cushion and putting it into a savings account.

I don't have overdraft on my checking account so I keep $1000 as a cushion. That way I can cover unexpected emergencies such as a delayed paycheck or travel advance from my job.

I am about the same as well...$500-$1000 float in the checking.

I pay all of my bills on the first day of every month....including "paying ourselves" with what we put away in various forms of savings.

At the end of the month, whatever is over the original balance to start the month is set moved to savings as well, typically whichever savings vehicle can give us the most bang for the dollar in that month.

Example:

month start - $4000

end month - $4300

an additional $300 is saved so that the next month is started at a $4000 balance.