Table of Contents
How to invest small amounts? This question is asked by people who have small capital. Contrary to appearances, investing small amounts makes sense, and an investor with small capital has a lot of opportunity. Where to invest small amounts and what to pay attention to?
How to invest small amounts of money?
It is worth knowing that it is best to start saving with small amounts. The situation is similar for investing in the stock market. Even with an amount of $500, the investment can result in the accumulation of a relatively high capital. Investing small amounts in the stock market and beyond is therefore a good solution for beginners.
However, it is worth knowing that investing money is always associated with certain risks.
It may happen that stocks lose value, and the market may suddenly collapse. An investor must be prepared for this. Therefore, the question arises – How to invest small amounts so as not to lose? In particular, in shares of large companies that have a stable position in the market.
One should pay attention, for example, to their position in relation to competitors. Besides, a good solution is to invest in companies that pay dividends – assets that are a reward for providing capital. However, it is worthwhile to familiarize yourself with brokers’ offers to avoid excessive investment commissions. This is important especially when investing small amounts. Then, through carelessness, at best, the investor comes out at zero, but usually, however, loses a lot.
For those who do not want to take risks, securities will be a great option. One can then opt for a Treasury bond. The second option has a lower interest rate, but is more secure. The first, on the other hand, although it is associated with greater risk, allows you to earn a much higher profit. Treasury bonds can be purchased online, as well as at bank branches.
For those who are not familiar with the stock market, bonds or investments, it may be a good idea to invest small amounts in ETF funds. This is a good way to invest, reflecting the state of one stock market. In this case, one does not look for individual companies, but invests in indexes. These funds allow you to trade ETF units, in turn, there is often no fee for buying them.
Small amounts, meaning what kind of amounts?
What does it mean to invest small amounts? For everyone, a small amount will mean something different. For some, a small amount is $100, while for others it is $5,000 or $10,000. So it’s hard to determine a specific number, as it is subjective for everyone and depends on the overall financial state of the investor.
However, it can be assumed that a small amount is a sum ranging from a few hundred U.S. dollars to a few thousand, but less than $10,000. While this may seem like a high amount to many people, it is small money in the financial world.
What to invest US$1,000 in?
This is a small amount of capital, but a valuable one. The sum of $1,000 is good for the beginning of the adventure of investing in the debt market. You can use government bonds and opt for three-month bonds.
They are designed for people who want to know their profit on the day of purchase and are willing to commit their savings for a short time. Such debt securities are on continuous sale, with an interest rate of 0.5% per year and a selling price of $100. After 3 months of purchase, an amount in the order of $100 along with the interest due for each bond will be credited to the investor’s account. Thus, he will quickly find out that it is possible to multiply money safely and conveniently.
What to invest $5,000 in?
This is no longer such a low amount, although it is still relatively small when it comes to investing. Such a sum can be invested in Family Treasury Bonds in two variants – 6 and 12 years. The maturity allows you to freely adjust the savings period to suit your farthest plans.
The interest rate on family bonds is based on inflation, which is increased by a preferential margin. Interest is capitalized after each annual interest period and strongly increases the profitability of this type of saving. In this way, the accumulated interest once again works for profit. What’s more, in the case of 12-year bonds, you can shorten the savings period without loss.
Diversification of the investment portfolio
How to invest small amounts? In what instruments to invest such capital? In the case of small sums, the question arises, whether to diversify the investment portfolio or not? Diversification involves investing funds in different financial instruments, thus minimizing investment risk. If you have more capital, there is no problem in investing it, but what about in the case of small amounts?
In this case, two approaches are possible. The first is to bet on diversification, since even small sums can be divided into smaller ones and invested in different ways. Even a beginner can buy himself a few shares of one company and a few shares of another or a tiny bar of gold.
According to the second approach, when investing small sums, diversifying an investment portfolio does not make much sense. First of all, because with small transactions you will have to pay a commission anyway, which can take away a large part of the profits. Secondly, in the case of having small amounts, it is better to put everything on one card, because in the case of a profit the investor will have a significantly large amount of money, and when he loses, small amounts will not be regretted.
Is it worth investing small amounts and where to get the funds for it?
Investing small amounts, even in the order of $100 every month, can result in the accumulation of really large capital. In addition, money invested in shares of companies, bonds or mutual funds can be liquidated very quickly and withdrawn to a bank account. For this reason, this type of investment can be treated as a hedge for a black hour.
However, many people in such a situation wonder where to get the money for investing.
Home budgets are very often so burdened that even systematic investment of small amounts can be a problem. How to cope with this?
One method is to slightly reduce unnecessary spending. This doesn’t mean completely reducing spending on pleasures, but giving up one or two a month. The second way to get money to invest is to carefully analyze expenses and give up those that are unnecessary.
Safe investing – what to invest your capital in?
First of all, it is important to remember that there is a risk in any investment. The stock market, like other financial instruments, is subject to various cycles of ups and downs, so when deciding to invest your money there, you need to take into account the possibility of raising losses, especially in the short term.
This, however, does not mean that profitable investments are unattainable. When deciding to invest for the long term, an investor will experience both a slump and a boom. The key to making a profit is to choose the right investment strategy and stick to it consistently, but also to approach investing without emotion or use orders such as stop losses.
What to invest $100 in each month?
Below are some sample ideas for investing $100 each month. This is a small amount that most people are able to set aside each month.
Listed stock companies
Every year, the stock market is becoming a more accessible place for new investors. Company listings can be observed even on the screen of one’s phone, and modern applications that are offered by brokerage houses make it easier to manage one’s portfolio, but also to perform technical analysis and make investment decisions.
How to invest small amounts in the stock market? First of all, in the stocks of stable companies that have a big advantage over their competitors. Another good idea may be to invest funds in companies that pay dividends.
Unfortunately, the stock market can carry the cost of not inconsiderable commissions, so the investor should carefully study the offers of brokers. Many of them, especially modern companies allow investing in the stock market without any transaction fees. This is important especially for small amounts.
Read also: Best CFD broker and CFD trading
Bonds of the Treasury and private companies
If an investor thinks the stock market is too risky a place, he can opt for another group of securities, namely bonds. These are fairly safe investments, and investors can choose either corporate or Treasury bonds. The former are characterized by a much higher annual interest rate, which, however, also has a higher risk.
For those who prefer to opt for lower-risk investments, a good option would be Treasury bonds, which are more secure, but also feature lower interest rates.
ETF funds
A good option for multiplying capital are ETF funds. They allow easy entry into the world of the stock market, commodities and bonds. They are usually passive investments, meaning that investors invest in stock market indexes rather than searching for new companies. For this reason, assuming that global companies will grow, it is enough to buy exposure to the entire market, and this will minimize the investor’s exposure.
Investing small amounts successfully is possible with ETFs. This can be done by using online brokerage accounts. In addition, it’s relatively easy to find an ETF for which you don’t have to pay any commission, which is great for holding small amounts (read more: Investing in Exchange-Traded Funds).
Bank deposit
In order to accumulate money on deposit, you only need to have $500, and some banks offer this option starting from $300. Interest rates on deposits are not high and are usually between 2 and 4% per year.
Sometimes there are promotions that raise interest rates, but they usually last a few months and apply to deposits that are linked to a personal account. When it comes to this form of saving, inflation is also an important factor, which has the effect of lowering the profits generated.
Cryptocurrencies
How to invest small amounts? You can opt for currencies. These do not have a physical form and are virtual currencies (read more: How to invest in currencies online). As they gain popularity, their value increases, so those interested in them should follow the market situation related to cryptocurrencies.
Cryptocurrencies can be bought on exchanges, but it is advisable to do it on those that are well established and have a good reputation. Cryptocurrencies are immune to inflation, are not dependent on governments and feature low transfer fees (read more: Investing in cryptocurrencies). They are also infinitely divisible, so the percentage transaction costs are comparable for any amount.
What to invest $500 in?
Half a thousand U.S. dollars offers considerable investment opportunities. In addition to the above-mentioned possibilities, such a sum can also be invested in precious metals or Forex, among others (read also: Forex for beginners and Forex demo).
This is a way of investing that is based on currency exchange transactions. The participant buys one currency and at the same time sells another. Exchange rates are therefore important here, and unfortunately the speculation that occurs plays a big role (read also: What is the best currency to make money on).
Investing small amounts in Forex makes sense. Specialists even recommend not to allocate a large amount of money for investment at the beginning, but to start with small amounts. This way, in case of failure, the investor does not have a big regret that he lost a large sum of money. Both the disadvantage and advantage of the forex market is that it is open 24 hours a day and there is no supervision (read more: Forex investments).
Although a trader can enter a trade at any time, he can also very easily miss a change in the market and fail to react at the right moment. On the other hand, the lack of external control over those who participate encourages fraudulent activities and practices.
The forex market is affected by many factors, such as the political and economic situation in the world (read more: Online forex and Best forex broker oraz Making money on forex). This kind of investment therefore requires a lot of skill and experience. However, it is a huge market that generates gigantic turnover every day (Forex trading).
Crowdfunding of real estate
This term means collective investment in real estate. With the help of an online investment platform, a developer can make an offer to sell equity instruments in his own project. The purpose is usually to buy, build or renovate a specific property.
Investors pay money and thus become shareholders and, by achieving the goal, can sell shares to other people. Very often it is the developer who guarantees the repurchase of 100% of the shares or offers profits, coming from the finished project. How to invest small amounts? It can be done on a crowdfunding platform. This type of investing is characterized by simple rules.
For the developer, it’s a form of obtaining capital to complete the project, and for investors it’s a method to make money. When it comes to crowdfunding, the big advantage is that you can invest small amounts while being able to take part in large projects.
Precious metals
Buying precious metals has for many years been considered a safe form of investing and depositing one’s savings. Investing in gold and silver is most profitable when planned for the long term. This is due to the high sales commissions, as well as the high margin that is imposed by the mints. For this reason, in order for it to earn for itself, gold and silver must “age” its own (read also: Gold investments).
How to invest small amounts? There are many possibilities, and one of them is precious metals. Investment gold has quite a few advantages. These include its limited quantity, as well as its long life. Moreover, gold is a bullion that is resistant to inflation.
It is a valuable raw material, having a high density, and its value is determined by weight. For this reason, even sizable amounts of gold are very easy to store. One gold bar, which weighs 250 grams and is worth several thousand U.S. dollars, occupies roughly 12 cubic centimeters. Investing small amounts of money in this case should consist of placing funds in gold investment coins.
Cheaper and less durable silver is a good option for investors who want to allocate $500 every month for investing. This type of amount allows you to purchase various silver commemorative coins, which are issued by the national bank.
In addition to their investment purpose, coins can turn into a means of payment at any time. Despite the fact that they are more durable than denomination due to their raw material, in case of financial problems they become money with which to pay.
Derivatives
How to invest small amounts? In derivatives, which do not require investors to deposit the entire amount of the value of the instrument, but only a margin. The investor can regulate the size of the position by changing the amount of the underlying instruments or by changing the amount of leverage.
However, it is worth knowing that derivatives are associated with high volatility in the value of investments. In a situation where the margin is zeroed out by a loss, the broker will have to close the position. The consequence is that the investor will lose all his capital.
Community lending
How to invest small amounts? You can choose community lending, because in this case, investing starts from as little as 25 US dollars. The return on investment reaches up to 10 percent. However, there are certain risks that the investor must be familiar with. In order to start borrowing money at interest, the investor must create an account, send a scan of an ID card, and search for loan offers.
The way it works is that if a person wants to borrow $4,000, and the investor’s share of the loan is 10%, it means that he borrows only $400, and the other users subsidize the rest.
In this way, the borrower receives the entire amount and the investor earns a certain percentage upfront. The interest rate and time are more attractive than from a deposit, but at the same time this is riskier. There is no 100% certainty that the borrower will pay back the full amount.
Automatic investments, or peeking at others
What is the best way to invest small amounts? Investing $100 each month on an automatic basis is a very good option for generating additional income.
The easiest way to make that $100 return is to use Copy Trading. This is a system that allows you to automatically copy other traders’ trades. All you have to do is select the best traders, based on their performance. Then you have to click on the selected profiles and from that moment on all their trades will be duplicated in the trader’s account. He or she can choose to bet 20 euros on each investor.
Investing small amounts in startups
There are special services that allow startups to find funding for their projects, and investors can invest their money at a profit and help develop the idea of others. These services are startup exchanges.
Thanks to them, an investor can evaluate the investment options offered, but also the expected term and profit, and then choose the most suitable one for himself. Examples include startupnetwork or beesfund.com.
On the second platform, various projects are implemented at different levels – prototype, idea, development, startup. The startup organizer determines the essence of his business, the percentage of profit or the amount of investment required, etc.
The amounts and conditions can vary greatly, depending on the type of business, and the investor’s share is usually between 10 and 80 percent of the expected profit. A big advantage of such services is the possibility of co-investment. Even in the most expensive and largest startup, an investor can invest any amount, becoming one of many investors among whom the profit will be divided. This makes it possible to invest in a project on a large scale, even with a few hundred US dollars.
Read also: Online stock market simulator
Investing small amounts does not have to be time-consuming
People who do not deal with the world of finance on a daily basis may be concerned that even investing small sums may be associated with the need to spend a lot of time on it. For this reason, it should be emphasized that this type of money investment does not have to require a large amount of time at all.
All you need to do is to develop the right investment strategy and, in accordance with its assumptions, deposit a certain amount of money every month into a brokerage account or investment account. Deciding on a time horizon of several decades and constantly adding funds to the account, the investor does not have to worry about temporary stock market corrections or even serious crises in global markets.
How to invest small amounts? A few rules
There are important rules, recommended to novice investors regardless of whether they trade small amounts or have a large capital.
Of course, larger amounts allow more freedom and greater diversification, but this should not discourage an investor with small capital. It is by no means the case that with small amounts, an investor is doomed to failure. It’s just that more stringent rules need to be put in place to manage your money wisely (read also: How to invest in the stock market and How to start investing in the stock market).
Simple instruments
Investing small amounts is a good idea to start by investing funds in simple and intuitive financial instruments. An investor should opt for what he or she understands, such as stocks of stable, large companies. Alternatively, one can opt for a simple ETF that covers a well-known stock index or a gold bar. Each of these investments, of course, can be better or worse at different times in the market, but they illustrate the first rule – invest in what you know. This will help break the initial ice in the financial market and help the investor gain confidence.
Stable companies
This rule applies especially to investing in stocks, since the stock market is huge and there are a lot of companies to choose from. Most novice investors wonder which stocks of companies to choose (read also: How much can you earn in the stock market and Investing in the stock market).
Investing in stocks is a process, where choosing the right investment strategy is crucial. Therefore, there is no single answer to exactly which companies are best to invest in. If a novice investor hesitates, he should choose those that are more reliable and stable. Then a lot of nerves can be saved.
It is worth remembering that investment opportunities in stocks come and go (read also: How to invest in stocks). If an investor does not take advantage of one, he will take advantage of another. The more he learns at the beginning, the faster he will be able to spot the best opportunities.
Without leverage
Leveraged instruments allow to play with more capital than the investor has in the account. This has its advantages, as the investor can multiply his capital faster. However, it also has downsides, as the account will go to zero faster. You can even lose more than you invested. For this reason, at the beginning of the investing adventure, leverage is not recommended.
It can be a nice addition, of course, but at a later stage of investing. However, it is worth starting with simple instruments, and then gradually the investor can get used to larger changes in the value of investments.
Variety of investments
How to invest small amounts? Preferably in several different financial instruments. This way you can learn them, as well as your own reactions to changes in quotations. After all, each transaction teaches the investor something.
It is known that in the case of small sums of money, also the field is not large. You can not divide such amounts indefinitely. Having, for example, $500, it does not make much sense to divide such capital. However, having a few thousand, you can reasonably divide such an amount and work a little more. Therefore, it is worth betting on diversity as much as it is possible for a given capital.
Increase positions gradually
It is not worth rushing to add money to your brokerage account. An investor should feel confident before investing larger amounts. With larger savings, it will certainly be tempting for an investor to put them in investments. Of course, if he can afford it, why not, however, it is always advisable to exercise caution.
How to invest small amounts? Some questions and answers
Below are the most frequently asked questions that relate to investing small amounts.
How to invest small amounts?
Small amounts of $100, $300 or $500 each month are worth investing in basic simple financial instruments, such as bonds, stocks, investment metals or real estate crowdfunding.
Investing small amounts – passive or active?
Having the time and willingness to acquire new knowledge in the field of investing, to take an interest in businesses and companies, it is worth betting on active activities, e.g. cryptocurrencies, stocks. Otherwise, it is best to invest passively, i.e. in bonds (read also: Stocks and bonds and How much money you can make on stocks).
Where to start investing small amounts?
In particular, by learning and acquiring a certain level of knowledge, as well as by carefully studying the terms and conditions of any investment in which a person plans to put his money. At the very beginning, it is best to opt for the simplest options, so you can develop investment habits, such as mutual funds or deposits.
What is safe to invest small amounts in?
It is advisable to invest money in shares of the most popular companies, bonds, mutual funds, gold and other precious metals, and even decide to collectively invest in real estate (read more: Investing in gold).
How to invest small amounts? A few rules
Of course, few people manage to develop a large fortune quickly from small savings. Small money also means small profits. However, for several reasons, it’s worth starting to invest now, without waiting for the savings to grow. First of all, allocating small, but systematically deposited sums each month for investing will result in a positive outcome. After several months, the investment funds will look much better. Secondly, the actual invested funds are not so easily accessible and the investor is not so tempted to spend them on pleasures.
Read also: Stock market investments for beginners
When deciding to invest small amounts, it’s worth remembering a few rules that make it easier to achieve much better returns on investments. Unfortunately, a huge enemy of profits are middlemen. The best thing to do where this one is concerned is to avoid them. If an investor does not know how to choose certain financial instruments on his own, he should at least limit the number of intermediaries that offer them. It is also worth paying attention to costs.
Buying units in funds makes it very easy to invest in specific assets, but if the initial costs and the percentage of carrying out the investment is high, the profits may not be there at all. It is also worth paying attention to taxes.
Investing borrowed funds is also worth avoiding. Initial successes and profits make it tempting for an investor to take a loan to increase profits. In this case, it’s not about deliberately taking a loan to invest. It is about hidden forms of borrowing money. An example of this is when an investor puts money into investments that should be used to pay off a credit card or other obligations.
It is worth remembering that interest in the case of debt is difficult to cover with profits, coming from investments. Very often paying off interest-bearing debt is the best way to invest money.
How to invest small amounts? It is also worth avoiding putting money in investments that will not be easy to withdraw from. One of the key issues in investing is the exit plan. If an investor does not know how and when the money paid in can be recovered, it is better to avoid this type of investment. Do not borrow money at interest in case you do not know when you will be able to get it back. You should also not choose to invest in rare items or works of art if trading in such things is not easy and liquid.
How to invest small amounts – what to pay attention to?
Here are some issues that every investor should pay attention to, before investing their money.
The cost of trading commissions
The cost of commissions always reflects negatively on investments, but when it comes to investing small amounts, it reflects even more. In most cases, financial institutions charge a minimum amount of commission on each transaction, regardless of its size. With small amounts, usually investors are forced to change positions more often. So for each transaction, the costs multiply.
Costs of operating a brokerage account
In the case of small investments, account maintenance costs can effectively deprive investors of all profit. It is worth looking for a broker that does not charge such fees or allows you to easily avoid them.
Minimum deposit size
Most brokers require investors to have a minimum deposit in the account in order to make this type of transactions. When it comes to investing small amounts, this may not be an option to jump over. Despite everything, if the broker has a really favorable offer, it’s worth spending some time to raise a sum that exceeds this value. A larger deposit will allow such a one to hold the position longer, if the investment would generate losses for a while.
Spread between the purchase and sale price
The lower the amount, the less favorable the relationship between the price at which the investor is able to sell a certain asset and that at which the investor is able to buy it. This is especially evident when acquiring commodity assets, such as physical gold. The features of small coins or gold bars at dealers, compared to the exchange price of gold, are very often a dozen or even tens of percent higher.
On the other hand, if an investor wants to sell a bullion he owns at a dealer, at the dealer he will gain a price significantly lower than the one at which he can buy this gold from him.
The situation is similar in the case of currency trading, since handling large sums often allows negotiating the spread.
How to invest small amounts?
Small investments are a great opportunity to learn to be systematic when making investment decisions. Since most instruments will be beyond the reach of such an investor until he collects an amount above their market price, he must systematically put aside a certain amount of money.
In order to reduce transaction costs, it is advisable to focus on executing trades only when the amount of commission begins to exceed the minimum value. It is best to make position changes as infrequently as possible.
At this stage, it is best to focus specifically on increasing your income, so that you can invest increasing amounts. Investing small amounts is best treated as a learning experience, and to gain experience. Even if the investor loses money, the capital will not be large, so it will not be so noticeable.
So how to invest small amounts? The possibilities, as well as ways to invest are really many. Much depends on the size of the capital, the expected profit and the ability to freeze the funds. However, as it turns out, also having small amounts, you can effectively invest and save money.
