Not the Right Gift? These 6 Stores Offer Extended Return Policies

Getting stuck with a gift you don’t want is one of the most frustrating parts of the holiday season.

It may seem ungrateful, but we’ve all been there! Some gifts just won’t fit right, aren’t the model we needed or simply weren’t a good choice for us.

Unfortunately, you could ultimately be penalized if the giver of your ill-fitting gift planned too far ahead. Typical store return policies often require an item to be returned within about two weeks of purchase. That’s pretty tough to do when your aunt starts shopping in July!

Thankfully, many retailers understand this dilemma and have extended return policies to accommodate unwanted holiday gifts.

Here are the special holiday return policies for some of the most popular retailers this season.

6 Popular Retailers With Extended Holiday Return Policies 

1. Amazon

You can return items Amazon shipped between Nov. 1, 2019 and Dec. 31, 2019 for a full refund until Jan. 31, 2020. 

Items shipped from other sellers should fall under this policy, unless otherwise noted in the seller’s Return Policy.

2. Walmart

Items at Walmart have varying return policies: 15 days, 30 days or 90 days. 

For items purchased between Oct. 24, 2019 and Dec. 25, 2019, here’s the deadline breakdown:

• Jan. 10, 2020 for items with a 14-day return policy.
• Jan. 25, 2020 for items with a 30-day return policy.
• No change for items with a 90-day return policy.

3. TJ Maxx

With an extension to the typical 30-day return policy, you can return purchases made between Oct. 13, 2019 and Dec. 24, 2019 until Jan. 25, 2020.

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4. Best Buy

The store’s extended its return period through Jan. 14, 2020 for purchases made between Nov. 1, 2019 and Dec. 31, 2019. 

This excludes cell phones, tablets, wearables, major appliances and AppleCare monthly plans.

5. Sears

Items purchased between Nov. 1, 2019 and Dec. 24, 2019 have a return period that extends through extended through Jan. 31, 2020 — including sales with or without gift receipts.

6. Lululemon

The yoga-wear retailer makes an exception to its return policy for the holidays. 

For purchases between Nov. 4, 2019 and Dec. 24, 2019, you’ve got until Jan. 24, 2020 to make a return. 

Dana Sitar (@danasitar) is a former branded content editor at The Penny Hoarder.

This was originally published on The Penny Hoarder, which helps millions of readers worldwide earn and save money by sharing unique job opportunities, personal stories, freebies and more. The Inc. 5000 ranked The Penny Hoarder as the fastest-growing private media company in the U.S. in 2017.

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These 8 Questions Will Help You Find the Perfect Savings Account

Savings accounts are a safe way to store your money thanks to FDIC and NCUA insurance — and you can grow that money over time thanks to interest. 

There are numerous savings account options available through banks across the globe, so you might be wondering how to choose a savings account. Here are some factors you might not have considered.

How to Choose a Savings Account: Ask These 8 Questions

Before rushing to open an account at the first bank you see, ask yourself these questions.

1. Do You Need Brick-and-Mortar Locations?

Online banking is growing in popularity, and it’s easy to see why: Because of low overhead, online savings accounts can offer annual percentage yields (APYs) in the 2% to 3% range, while most traditional brick-and-mortar banks have much lower interest rates. The national average is at an unimpressive 0.09%, which would be much lower if you took online savings account rates out of the equation.

However, traditional banks offer easier access to funds and in-person support for those stressful moments where you need to talk to a real human being face to face.

2. Is a Credit Union a Better Fit?

Your community likely has at least one credit union offering savings accounts. Though credit unions have specific eligibility requirements for joining, you can likely find a way to join. 

Many credit unions offer higher APYs for savings accounts and also pay dividends to their members. Not sure if a credit union is right for you? Use our guide to credit unions vs. banks to make the call.

3. How Often Do You Need to Make Cash Deposits?

The 21st century is becoming increasingly cashless, but many of us still deal in physical dollars, whether it’s from birthday cards, you’re paid in tips or you’re having a garage sale. 

If you want to easily deposit cash into your savings account, choose a bank with several branches in your city or with a large ATM network. Many online savings accounts offer an ATM network to make cash deposits possible, but a big-name brick-and-mortar bank offers greater convenience.

4. How Much Do You Plan to Keep in the Account?

Savings accounts are crucial for building an emergency fund (experts typically recommend somewhere around three to six months of expenses) and for specific savings goals like a down payment on a house or car, vacation expenses, a wedding or renovations. 

Compared with other saving and investment options with much higher interest rates, savings accounts make access to your funds relatively easy and without penalty.

If you intend to keep a fair amount of money in your savings account, choose an account with a high APY. If you don’t plan to touch it too often, you can be less concerned with ease of access and instead focus solely on the account with the highest interest rate.

However, if you plan to deposit tens of thousands of dollars into your account, consider instead a money market account, which will typically pay a higher APY than a traditional savings account.

Once you have reached your target savings goals, you’re probably better off investing your money. Your money will be less accessible (and may come with penalties for early withdrawal if your funds are in a retirement account), but the return on your investment will usually be much higher.

5. How Often Do You Transfer Funds?

Federal law limits the number of withdrawals from a savings account each month to six. Some savings accounts observe this hard limit, while some permit excess withdrawals for a fee. A select few waive any fees as part of their account benefits, allowing you theoretically unlimited withdrawals. 

If you think you might need to occasionally dip into your savings more than six times in a month, find an account that has some leniency on withdrawals.

However, remember that savings accounts are not meant to operate like checking accounts. If you’re treating your savings account like a checking account, you’re better off choosing a high-yield checking account, so you can avoid withdrawal limits and get easier access to funds.

6. Do You Want to Have Your Checking and Savings Account at the Same Place?

If you already have a checking account with a specific bank, it may be in your best interest to open a savings account there as well. This is the most convenient way to transfer money from your checking account directly into the savings account — or vice versa. However, most banks do have a process for connecting external accounts with other banks to ease the process of transferring funds.

So why would you possibly not keep your checking and savings at the same bank? Some banks offer checking accounts with higher APYs and better features, and others have more competitive savings accounts. 

If you can handle the minor inconvenience of separate banks, you should search out the best savings account that meets your needs, regardless of where you bank for checking.

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7. What Rewards Can You Get for Opening a New Account?

Before you throw out today’s junk mail, take a minute to see what offers banks are sending you for opening an account. You might be surprised to see how many cash bonuses banks offer for opening a new savings account. You can also browse these rewards online.

So should you choose a savings account based on a promotional offer? That depends: If you’ve narrowed down your search to a few banks and would be happy with any of them, go with the one offering the best sign-on bonus.

8. What Do the Reviews Say?

When in doubt, read the online reviews to determine which bank offers the best customer service for its savings account, which bank has the fewest reported issues and which bank has the best mobile app. You can go directly to the App Store or Google Play to read what people think of banking on their phones with that specific bank.

But don’t forget about social media. Crowdsource opinions on banks from friends and family, who can share positive — or negative — experiences with the savings accounts you’re considering.

Ready to ditch your current savings account for a better option? Here are our favorite savings accounts.

Timothy Moore leads a team of editors and graphic designers at a market research company as his full-time gig. As a freelance writer, he writes about personal finance, careers, education, pet care, travel and the automotive industry. His work has been featured on Debt.com, The Ladders, Glassdoor and The News Wheel.

This was originally published on The Penny Hoarder, which helps millions of readers worldwide earn and save money by sharing unique job opportunities, personal stories, freebies and more. The Inc. 5000 ranked The Penny Hoarder as the fastest-growing private media company in the U.S. in 2017.

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Save More Money in 2020: Our Top Tips and Strategies

Saving money is like working out. You may grumble and groan your way through it, but the results feel oh so good.

Who doesn’t want to have more money in their bank account? Whether it’s cash for something fun, reserves to use in case of an emergency or a nest egg for the future, increasing your savings is vital.

Going into the new year, we want you to be armed with the know-how to beef up your savings account. Here are eight of our favorite stories from 2019 that’ll help you do it.

1. Make Your Emergency Fund a Priority

An emergency fund is your financial safety net. Unexpected expenses are bound to crop up. It’s wise to have money saved for when something happens.

Here’s how to start an emergency fund today, so you don’t rack up credit card debt or take out a payday loan when your dentist says you need a crown or your car needs a new alternator.

2. Stack Up Cash Quickly

Money tends to grow slowly, but sometimes our savings need a boost ASAP.

These 44 suggestions on how to save money fast will increase the balance in your account without having to wait a whole year to see results.

3. Challenge Yourself to Spend Less

If you want to save money, it’s pretty obvious you’ll need to spend less. One way to accomplish that is with a no-spend challenge.

Now before you get intimidated by the name, the aim of this money-saving strategy is to significantly reduce your spending. You shouldn’t be going hungry and falling behind on bills just so you can say you didn’t spend a dime for an entire month. 

Curious about the nuts and bolts of it all? Here are four different ways to participate in a no-spend challenge.

4. Have Fun Without Reaching Into Your Wallet

Sometimes it feels impossible to have a social life — or entertain your kids or treat yourself to something nice — without spending a bunch of money.

But the solution isn’t locking yourself inside your house and succumbing to absolute boredom. You can find entertainment that doesn’t include a price tag. Bookmark this list of 100 free things to do for those days when you want to have fun but need to save money.

5. Rethink Your Living Arrangements

Housing is often the single largest monthly expense people face. You’ve got to have a roof over your head, but a little out-of-the-box thinking can help you reduce your rent or mortgage.

If you’re willing to break from the tradition, these six alternative housing options can save you hundreds of dollars each month.

6. Save Money at Home

Chances are, there are several opportunities to save money hiding right under your nose. Take where you live, for example. These are several easy ways to save money around the house. 

By tweaking your habits when it comes to food, utilities, clothing and cleaning supplies, you can lower your expenses and build up your reserves.

7. Get the Best Deals on Flights

It’s hard to relax on vacation when you’ve spent so much on plane tickets that you can’t even afford a mai tai on the beach. 

Save money on upcoming travel by being strategic about when you book your flight. Knowing the cheapest days to fly will help you pocket more of your hard-earned cash. Just try not to spend all your savings on souvenirs.

8. Be Smart About Your Next Car Purchase

When it comes to buying a car, going with one that’s new to you rather than brand new can help you save thousands. Our ultimate guide to buying a used car gives tips on when, where and what to look out for when getting your next set of wheels.

Nicole Dow is a senior writer at The Penny Hoarder.

This was originally published on The Penny Hoarder, which helps millions of readers worldwide earn and save money by sharing unique job opportunities, personal stories, freebies and more. The Inc. 5000 ranked The Penny Hoarder as the fastest-growing private media company in the U.S. in 2017.

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Best Background Check Companies

Running background checks is an essential part of the hiring process. The information revealed in a background check can give you crucial information about a prospective employee.

According to a recent survey, 96% of employers run at least some type of background screening before they hire someone.

So if you’re running a business, you need to be doing this as well. But where can you get a background check done? Are all background checks the same?

If you run a quick Google search, you’ll learn that there are countless types of background checks offered by hundreds of different services. It’s tough to figure out which ones will actually give you the information that you’re looking for.

That’s what inspired me to write this guide. I’ll show you the top background check services on the market today, and help you decide which one is the best for your business.

The 5 Best Background Check Companies

In a market flooded with background check services, there are really only five companies that I would consider using as an employer. I’ll explain the pros, cons, and pricing of each service below.

GoodHire

As the name implies, GoodHire is clearly intended for employment background checks. It’s one of the most popular background check services for small business owners. But it’s also used by some larger and well-known companies like Tuft & Needle and Draft Kings.

More than 75,000 businesses trust GoodHire to run background checks.

72% of GoodHire customers say that these background checks are faster than other services that they’ve used in the past.

One of the reasons why GoodHire is such an excellent choice for small business owners is because of the flexibility in their pricing.

Since a small business owner doesn’t hire as frequently as a larger organization, you won’t have to pay a monthly fee for background checks. If you plan to run less than 25 background checks per year, then GoodHire will only charge you for each report. Only need five checks? Just pay for the five; it’s that simple.

The cost of a background check depends on how much information you want to find:

Basic — $29.99 each

• 1 business day
• SSN trace and associated countries
• National criminal database search
• Sex offender search

Standard — $54.99 each

• 1-2 business days
• SSN trace and associated countries
• National criminal database search
• Sex offender search
• Domestic watch list search
• 7 year county criminal court search

Premium — $79.99 each

• 2-4 business days
• SSN trace and associated countries
• National criminal database search
• Sex offender search
• Domestic watch list search
• 7 year county criminal court search
• 1 education verification
• 1 employer verification

As price increases, the background checks become more extensive. GoodHire also gives you the option to add-on other screenings and services like:

• Ongoing monthly monitoring — $2.50 per month per employee
• Education verification — $14.99
• Employment verification — $14.99
• Professional license verification — $14.99
• Motor vehicle records search — $14.99
• Credit report — $14.99
• International employer verification — $53.99

GoodHire provides additional assistance for drug screenings and healthcare sanctions as well. At the end of the day, they have nearly every type of background check that a small business owner would need before hiring someone.

One downside of using GoodHire is that they charge a one-time setup fee to verify your company. This $49.99 cost might be tough to justify if you’re only running a couple of checks per year. But if you plan to use the service at least a dozen times or so, it’s worth it.

The add-ons can also drive up the cost of your checks. So if you need lots of add-ons for each background check, it might be worth requesting a custom quote from their sales team.

B&B Reporting

B&B Reporting has been in business for more than two decades. On average, they turnaround reports in less than 24 hours. B&B Reporting also has a 19% criminal hit ratio, which is above the industry average.

I like B&B Reporting because they use superior technology. This cloud-based platform makes it easy for you to order and review background checks online.

Each background check is completely customized. Choose exactly what types of records you want to search for or verify, and the price will vary based on those inquiries.

Unlike other background check services on the market today, B&B reporting does not require a monthly minimum or charge you for an initial setup cost.

The B&B Reporting technology allows you to send electronic consent forms to applicants to initiate the process. They also have a visual dashboard that shows you the status of candidates and reports at a quick glance.

With B&B Reporting, you can run background checks for:

• Multi-jurisdictional criminal search
• County criminal search
• Statewide criminal search
• Federal criminal search
• Public records
• Professional references
• Employment verification
• Motor vehicle records
• Education verification
• Licenses and professional certifications verification
• Employment credit checks

Again, B&B Reporting is another background check company that provides basically everything you could possibly ask for when screening an employee.

The biggest downside of this service is that the pricing isn’t very transparent and getting started isn’t so simple. To start running background checks and get a quote, you need to fill out a form online to discuss your screening program with a sales agent.

Prices for the services won’t be listed until you’ve been verified and set up an account with B&B reporting.

AccurateNow

If you want a simple and straightforward way to run background checks for your small business, AccurateNow will be a top choice for you to consider.

The platform is advertised for small and medium-sized companies. But I’d recommend it to microbusinesses and companies with very small teams.

AccurateNow is affordable and does not require any monthly minimums for background checks. They are FCRA compliant, which will help you avoid lawsuits while screening employees.

To get started with AccurateNow, you’ll need to register your account, e-sign their agreement, and get approved before you can start ordering reports. This company does charge a one-time setup fee of $25 to verify your business.

Once you’ve been verified, you can order the following reports:

Basic — $29.95

• Social security trace
• Address history
• Current criminal county search
• National criminal check
• National sex offender registry

Standard — $59.95

• Social security trace
• Address history
• 7 year criminal history
• National criminal check
• National sex offender registry
• Global watch

Premium — $74.95

• Social security trace
• Address history
• 7 year criminal history
• National criminal check
• National sex offender registry
• Global watch
• 1 education verification
• 1 employment verification

As you can see, these plans are very similar to the ones offered by GoodHire, which we reviewed earlier. The biggest difference between AccurateNow and GoodHire is the add-on options.

AccurateNow doesn’t offer as many add-ons, but the add-ons they do offer are cheaper. GoodHire’s add-ons typically start at $14.99, whereas AccurateNow begins at $9.95.

All of this makes AccurateNow a better choice for smaller businesses that don’t need features like international employment verification. But this does make AccurateNow a bit more limited than some of the other options on our list.

Intelius

Intelius is slightly different compared to other background check services that we’ve reviewed so far. It’s marketed toward the average person, as opposed to employers.

However, an employer could still use this service to find information about a prospective hire.

You can use Intelius for free to search for names, phone numbers, and addresses. But the results will be extremely limited. It will show you the person’s age and a few associated cities.

To get the most out of Intelius, you’ll need a premier account. These reports include:

• Full name
• Possible relatives
• Phone numbers
• Email addresses
• Social networks
• Employment
• Education
• Current and past address
• Age and date of birth
• Known aliases
• Criminal records
• Marriage and divorce history
• Lawsuits, bankruptcies, and liens

With Intelius, you’ll pay a fixed monthly fee to run unlimited reports. Memberships are month-to-month and cost $29.95. You can try your first month for a discounted rate of $14.95.

The price of Intelius is definitely appealing, but the reports are limited compared to other companies. If you have a large business that runs tons of background checks, you could use Intelius as a way to pre-screen candidates before running a more thorough report.

For example, the $29.95 per month fee could save you money in the long run if you avoid wasting upwards of $100 on extensive reports.

A red flag on Intelius would be enough to narrow down your candidate pool. Then you could always run a full background check through another platform.

Verifirst

Verifirst has been running background checks for 15 years. They offer a wide range of services including:

• Customer ID verification
• Employment screening
• Tenant screening
• Corporate screening

While all of these options are viable, I’d prefer to use Verifirst for niche-specific solutions. Their tenant screening services stand out the most to me.

Whether you own one investment property or run a larger property management business, Verifrist has what you need to find the most qualified tenants.

If you’ve been managing properties for a while, you know that renting a unit to the wrong person can be a costly mistake. Not only are you putting your property at risk, but this decision can also result in thousands of lost rent, legal fees, and turnover costs.

Verifirst offers specific background checks for tenant screening. These reports include:

• Identity checks
• Criminal searches
• Rental history
• Eviction records
• Credit and financial history

In addition to the actual reports, Verifirst makes it easy for you to manage applicants and view everything online. You can access this web-based platform 24 hours per day and grant access to an unlimited number of users.

This is perfect for those of you who run a property management business. Furthermore, Verifirst integrates with popular property management systems that you’re already using.

You’ll also benefit from complimentary pre-screenings of an applicant’s income and analysis of their assets.

Verifirst lets you run multiple screenings simultaneously, which is ideal for joint applications or leases with co-signers.

All pricing on Verifirst is custom. So you need to contact their team to get started and learn more about the rates for running reports.

Overall, Verifirst is the best background check company for tenant screening. But I’d look for other options if my business was in another industry.

How to Find the Best Background Check Services

When searching for the best background check company, there are certain feature sets that you need to keep an eye out for. This is the methodology that I used in this guide. I’ll explain why each one is important as you’re narrowing down your choices.

Types of Background Checks

Not every background check service is the same. Some are intended for personal use, connecting with relatives, or finding information about your neighbors. None of these are really useful for employers.

When running a check on potential hires, these are some of the most common types of searches you’ll want on the report:

• SSN trace and identity verification
• County, state, and federal criminal search
• Sex offender registry
• Employment verification
• Professional certifications and licenses verification

Depending on the type of business you have, you might also want to run motor vehicle records, or various international screenings.

Turnaround Time

Basic information like identity verification is usually instant. Other reports can take a few days, depending on what you’re searching for.

It’s important to understand how long your reports will take. If it’s taking companies a week to get reports back to you, then it’s way too long. You don’t want that much time to pass, as it extends the hiring process longer than it needs to be.

Company Size

The size of your business is crucial when looking for a background screening service. Smaller companies obviously don’t run checks as frequently. So as a small business owner, you should find a service that doesn’t require monthly or annual minimums.

Very small businesses don’t always need extensive reports either. A basic identity verification and criminal check is usually sufficient.

Initial Setup and New Background Checks

If you’re running a background check for the first time with a new service, you might need to get your business verified before you get started. This process is easier with some services compared to others.

Sometimes you can just sign up online, but in other instances, you’ll need to request a quote and speak to an agent to get set up. In some cases, you’ll need to pay a one-time setup fee as well.

Once approved, look for background check services that make it as easy as possible for you to run a new search. Companies like B&B Reporting let candidates e-sign consent forms, which speeds up the process.

Report Accuracy

At the end of the day, accurate reporting is probably the most important part of the background check process.

It would be terrible if a report came up clean, but the person actually had a criminal history. This is something you need to know about before hiring someone.

All of the companies in this guide have been around for years, which should help you rest easy when you’re running reports. But it’s always a good idea to check and see what databases they are using for screenings.

Conclusion

Background checks are common practice in the hiring process. As a business owner, this is something that needs to be taken seriously.

If you’re looking for the best background check services, these are the companies that you need to consider:

• GoodHire — Best overall background check company.
• B&B Reporting — Background check services with superior cloud-based technology.
• AccurateNow — Best background check company for small business.
• Intelius — Best for pre-screening potential job candidates.
• Verifirst — Best background check service for tenant screenings.

You can’t go wrong with a service like GoodHire. It’s made for employers and has every possible report you’d need to screen for. But with that said, these other options are viable choices as well, especially if your company falls into a certain category with specific needs.

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Best Credit Card Processing Services

If you want to accept credit card payments from your customers, you need to find a payment processing service. This holds true for both ecommerce and in-person retail sales.

However, all credit card processors are not the same. So it’s tough to name one as the definitive best option.

Finding the right credit card processing service for your business is crucial, since the fees, performance level, and customer experience will vary based on your choice.

An ecommerce giant and small local coffee shop shouldn’t be using the same processing company.

Whether you’re looking to switch processors or you’re accepting credit card payments for the first name, this guide will help steer you in the right direction. My methodology will make it much easier for you to find the perfect credit card processing service for your business.

The 8 Best Credit Card Processing Services

The credit card processing industry has become extremely competitive over the years. With ecommerce on the rise, companies have adapted accordingly. New players are emerging in this space as well.

But with so many options to choose from, there are really only eight different payment processors that I would recommend.

You’ll likely be familiar with at least a couple of these names, but others are lesser-known.

For each processor, I’ll breakdown the pricing, benefits, drawbacks, and explain which types of businesses should consider the processing service.

Stripe

If you’re accepting payments online, Stripe should be one of your top choices. In fact, Stripe ranked first on my list of the best payment methods for your ecommerce site.

Stripe is built for developers, so you might be a little overwhelmed when you first land on their website. However, you’ll quickly realize that this payment processor is easy to use, regardless of your technical experience.

For those of you who want to take advantage of the developer features, you’ll be impressed with the Stripe API and UI toolkit.

Another top benefit of Stripe is its built-in fraud protection system. This will help you manage and avoid ecommerce chargebacks.

It’s easy to integrate Stripe with your ecommerce store, regardless of the platform that you’re using. Stripe accepts a wide range of payment options, including digital wallets like Apple Pay, Microsoft Pay, Google Pay, and Visa Checkout.

Stripe helps simplify your checkout process. According to a recent IDC report, businesses using this payment processing service were able to increase their revenue by 6.7%.

The report also found that Stripe resulted in 59% higher productivity, 81% fewer unplanned outages, and 24% lower operating costs.

Speaking of costs, Stripe is an affordable payment processor, even if you’re just starting out. The fixed pricing model is very straightforward:

• Online transactions — 2.9% + $0.30
• International cards — Additional 1% per transaction
• Currency conversion — Additional 1% per transactions
• ACH debits — 0.8% with a $5 max per transaction
• In-person payments — $2.7% + $0.05

If you use Stripe to set up recurring charges for subscription customers, your first $1 million is free. After that, you’ll pay $0.5% on all recurring charges.

I like Stripe because you pay the same flat rate for all credit cards, including digital wallets and premium cards like American Express.

For those of you with unique business models and large payouts, you may qualify for a customized pricing solution. Contact the Stripe sales team about volume discounts, interchange pricing, and multi-product discounts.

Overall, Stripe is an ideal solution for any ecommerce business. It is highly technical, which can be a drawback for companies that don’t have a developer on staff.

Helcim

Helcim is an all-in-one payment processing service for retail locations and online stores. It’s a top choice for small business owners.

Transparency is the reason why Helcim ranks so high on our list. Their interchange pricing structure shows you exactly how much you’ll pay above the interchange rate set by the credit card companies.

Helcim has arguably the best rate guarantee in the industry. They will never increase your rates for the lifetime of your account. While the fees for certain cards might go up, the Helcim margins will always remain the same.

When you sign up for Helcim, you’ll choose between two base plans:

• Retail — $15 per month
• Online — $35 per month

While Helcim does have the online feature, I’d personally just consider them for in-person payments.

Your rates will vary by industry, monthly processing volume, and average transaction amount.

The industry options are:

• Retail
• Restaurant
• Online
• Charities
• Real estate and property management
• Online international

Here’s a detailed look at the pricing rates for retail merchants based on monthly volume.

If you compare these rates to other processing services out there, you’ll see that Helcim interchange pricing costs are below average. So it’s an excellent way for small businesses to save some money on credit card processing, even if they are in the lower pricing tiers.

Helcim contracts are month-to-month, and they don’t charge any cancellation fees.

You can integrate Helcim with QuickBooks to improve your small business accounting process as well.

Helcim offers a POS system, with an app that’s free with your plan. However, the app does not integrate with the credit card terminals as of now, which isn’t ideal. Terminals purchased through Helcim range from $229 to $649 per unit.

While Helcim prices are competitive and generally low, it’s not the best choice for those of you who are only processing less than $3,000 per month. You can probably find a more cost-effective alternative elsewhere.

Square

More than 2 million businesses use Square to process payments. Square offers POS systems with built-in payment processing. This company ranked first on my list of the best POS systems, so the fact that they double as a payment processor is an added bonus.

Any business accepting in-person payments needs to take a closer look at Square.

Square also processes payments online, on the go, through recurring invoices, and manually for orders taken over the phone. But with that said, the in-person POS processing is where Square really shines.

Another standout of Square is the ability to get paid fast.

While most processing companies usually take a couple of days for funds withdrawals, Square gets money in your bank account in the next business day. They also offer instant transfers for a fee.

Square’s pricing is straightforward and transparent. You’ll pay the same rate for every card, including Discover and American Express.

They don’t charge any startup fees, monthly fees, cancelation fees, authorization fees, statement fees, terminal fees, or other common industry-standard markups.

Square pricing varies slightly by industry and POS hardware, but here are the most common rates offered:

• Square Point of Sale — 2.6% + $0.10 per transaction
• Square For Retail — 2.5% + $0.10 per transaction
• Ecommerce transactions — 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction
• Card not present transactions — 3.5% + $0.15 per transaction
• Card on file transactions — 3.5% + $0.15 per transaction

Square provides you with everything you need for success when processing payments. They have active fraud prevention, account takeover protection, dispute management, other security measures like PCI compliance and end-to-end encryption.

Signing up and getting started with Square is simple.

The only major drawback of Square is that its customer service is not available 24/7. Most processing companies can be reached on weekends, nights, or other odd hours.

If I were running a physical retail store and wanted a POS system and payment processor from the same company, I’d choose Square.

PayPal

PayPal has been a giant in the world of processing transactions for more than a decade. It’s a name that we’re all familiar with, and there’s a good chance that you’ve used PayPal in some form or another in your personal life.

While PayPal has always been known for its P2P payments, it’s also a great choice for businesses to use as a payment processing service.

You can use PayPal to accept payments both online or in-person. It’s the best option for low-volume businesses to get paid online.

I recently wrote an article comparing PayPal vs. Stripe for ecommerce. While Stripe definitely has its fair share of advantages, the PayPal technology is much simpler. It’s also extremely easy to set up. You won’t need to worry about all of the developer features like you do with Stripe.

Let’s take a closer look at PayPal’s processing fees:

• Online payments and invoicing — 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction
• Mobile and in-store payments — 2.7% per transaction
• Manual entry transactions — 3.5% + $0.15 per transaction

As you can see, the pricing is nearly identical to Stripe.

One of the best parts about using PayPal as your online payment processor is that you’ll be able to accept PayPal, Venmo, and PayPal credits in addition to all major credit and debit cards.

This is a massive advantage over other payment processors, where you would need to integrate PayPal separately.

While I personally like PayPal’s online features, the flat rate of 2.7% per transaction for mobile and in-store payments is appealing for low-volume merchants as well.

The biggest downside of using PayPal is that customers will be taken to the PayPal website to finish processing all online transactions. You can eliminate this step and integrate PayPal directly into your site, but there is an added fee for that.

Speaking of added fees, PayPal has a long list of add-ons and other incidentals that they charge for. They are transparent about these prices, but make sure you review all of them in your contract so you fully understand the terms.

Overall, you know you’re getting a trusted and reputable brand if you use PayPal to process credit card transactions for your business.

Flagship Merchant Services

Flagship Merchant Services is a bit different compared to other credit card processors that we’ve reviewed so far. If you land on their website, you’ll quickly see that there aren’t prices listed anywhere.

In fact, their website is just one page. There’s nowhere to really navigate and learn much more about their services.

The benefit of Flagship Merchant Services for credit card processing is that everything is totally customizable. They offer flexible terms and month-to-month pricing for all businesses.

Types of pricing plans are customizable as well. Flagship Merchant Services has tiered pricing and interchange plus options, whereas other payment processors typically just offer one or the other.

More than 25,000 small business owners trust Flagship Merchant Services to process their credit card payments.

While this payment processor might be a bit smaller or lesser-known than some of the other options on our list, working with a smaller company has its benefits.

Flagship Merchant Services offers exceptional 24/7 customer service. You’ll get a free EMV terminal or Clover Mini POS system when you sign up. If they can’t lower your processing rates, they’ll send you a $50 AMEX gift card.

The downside of this payment processor is the setup and getting started. No prices or contract details are available online. So you’ll need to speak to a sales rep to request a quote, which isn’t convenient for everyone.

Payment Depot

Payment Depot processes more than $4 billion in credit card sales with over 3 million transactions per month. Their system is simple; they charge a membership fee to give you access to wholesale processing rates.

Think of Payment Depot as the Costco for credit card processing. The prices are lower than the competition, but you need to be a member.

For this reason, Payment Depot is the best option for high-volume merchants.

Payment Depot does not take a percentage of each transaction. They simply charge a fixed amount per transaction based on your membership tier on top of the interchange fee.

Here’s an overview of the plans, features, and pricing:

Basic — $49 per month + interchange 

• $25,000 monthly processing limit
• $0.15 per transaction
• Reprogram your existing equipment for free
• Free gateway

Most Popular — $79 per month + interchange 

• $75,000 monthly processing limit
• $0.10 per transaction
• Free standard terminal
• Data breach protection
• Premier 24 hour support

Best Value — $99 per month + interchange 

• $200,000 monthly processing limit
• $0.07 per transaction
• Free standard terminal
• Free pin pad

Premier — $199 per month + interchange 

• Unlimited processing
• $0.05 per transaction
• Free standard terminal
• Free pin pad
• Free terminal upgrade every two years

All plans come with a 90-day free trial.

Payment Depot is used by big brands like Dominos, Boost Mobile, Subway, Arco, and Sprint. I wouldn’t consider this payment processor unless you’re over the $25,000 monthly limit.

As you can see from the rates, you can save lots of money on processing fees with a Payment Depot membership.

Overall, this is an impressive payment processing service. The only downside is that it’s not realistic for most smaller businesses to consider.

CDGcommerce

CDGcommerce offers custom credit card processing services for different industries. Some popular categories include:

• Retail
• Restaurant
• Service
• B2B
• Ecommerce
• Nonprofit

Clearly, all of these different business types will have varying needs. But overall, CDGcommerce is the best choice for nonprofit organizations.

That’s because CDGcommerce doesn’t charge any monthly fees or require monthly minimums for nonprofits. You can get an integrated mobile card reader, set up recurring billing, and benefit from special nonprofit rates.

The rates will vary based on volume and specific needs, but nonprofit processing typically starts 0.20% + $0.10 per transaction, plus interchange costs.

If you fall into one of the other categories, CDGcommerce has flexible pricing options based on your monthly volume.

One Rate Pricing: $1,000 – $10,000 monthly volume

• Flat rate and fixed monthly fee
• Customer tracking
• Loyalty promotions
• Invoicing, virtual terminal, ecommerce solutions
• Fully integrated credit card terminal
• Nonprofit campaign and donation management

Interchange Plus Pricing: $10,000 – $200,000 monthly volume

• Full transparency
• Pass-through pricing
• $100,000 data breach protection plan
• PCI security tools and solutions

Wholesale Membership: $200,000+ monthly volume

• Discounted pricing based on annual membership
• All benefits of the other plans

Again, the specific rates will vary for each business based on a number of factors. You need to contact the CDGcommerce sales team to request a quote.

I chatted with an online sales rep just to see how long this would take, and I got a quick answer in just a couple of minutes. This wasn’t an official quote, but it’s nice knowing that they are quick to respond. That’s where I got the starting rates for nonprofits, which isn’t listed anywhere on the website.

Payline

Payline is another lesser-known payment processing service. But they have a wide range of solutions for mobile payments, ecommerce payments, and in-person payments.

They can meet the needs of small business owners, enterprises, and everyone in between.

However, Payline is the best option for a very specific type of business—high-risk merchants.

For one reason or another, certain merchants are considered a high risk to credit card processing companies. It could have to do with the history of your company, or maybe it has to do with the types of products that you’re selling (CBD, firearms, vaping, etc).

It’s tough for these merchants to find a credit card processing service that will work with them, and even harder to find one that will offer favorable rate terms.

So if you fall into the high-risk merchant category, Payline will be your best option.

Payline will even work with businesses in online gaming, casinos, multi-level marketing, and adult industries.

Rates and plans are customized for each merchant. But if you’re struggling to find a payment processor that will accept your business, I’d schedule a call or apply online with Payline.

How to Find the Best Credit Card Processing Services

There are certain features that you need to keep an eye on when you’re evaluating a credit card processing service. This is the methodology that we used here at Quick Sprout to filter results and come up with the list above.

Pricing Type

There are two main pricing structures for credit card processing.

• Fixed
• Interchange

With fixed pricing, it’s the same rate for each transaction, regardless of the credit card that the customer uses. Stripe, Square, and PayPal are examples of processors with fixed prices.

For interchange pricing, you pay the amount charged by the credit card company, plus the markup fees of the processor. Helcim has interchange pricing.

Flagship Merchant Services offers both fixed-rate plans as well as interchange pricing, since they provide custom solutions for different businesses. Some credit card processors, like Payment Depot, will charge you a monthly rate to access wholesale prices.

It’s crucial to figure out which pricing structure works best for your business because the structure will ultimately affect how much you pay.

Monthly Volume

In most cases, high-volume merchants can get lower processing rates per transaction. You can request a custom quote from nearly every credit card processor, even if they have fixed rates advertised on their website.

With that said, there are certain services that are best for high-volume merchants, and others that are better for low-volume merchants.

I’d recommend PayPal for low-volume processing and Payment Depot for high-volume credit card transactions.

Industry

The type of business you have will affect your credit card processing terms. Rates vary if you’re processing cards online, in-person, or over the phone for “card not present” transactions.

Stripe is the best provider for online transactions, while Square is better for brick-and-mortar retail locations.

Other payment processing services specialize in nonprofit organizations or high-risk merchant industries. So if you fall into one of those categories, you’ll need to find a processor that can meet those needs.

Funds Withdrawals

How soon can you get your money?

In most cases, funds are available in your bank account after two business days. Sometimes this period can be a bit longer when you’re just starting out.

Other credit card processors offer next-day delivery for funds. Some providers will let you do an instant funds withdrawal for an added fee. So if you need your money immediately, this is definitely something that you need to keep in mind.

Extra Costs

In addition to the transactional fees or monthly plan rates, there are other costs that you need to keep in mind when you’re evaluating a credit card payment processor.

I’m referring to things like hardware, POS systems, and payment terminals. Some providers charge extra for international transactions, setup fees, or cancellations.

So make sure you review all of this before you decide on service based on the transactional rates alone.

Conclusion

Every business needs a processing service to accept credit card payments, whether you’re selling in-store, online, or both.

What’s the best credit card processing company? It depends. All credit card processors are not created equally. Here’s a recap of the best processing services for specific instances and business types:

• Stripe — Best credit card processor for online payments.
• Helcim — Best credit card processing service for small business.
• Square — Best POS system with integrated payment processing.
• PayPal — Best for low-volume credit card processing.
• Flagship Merchant Services — Credit card processing with flexible terms.
• Payment Depot — Best high-volume credit card processing service.
• CDGcommerce — Best credit card processor for nonprofits and specialty industries.
• Payline — Best credit card processing for high-risk merchants.

No matter what type of business you have, I’m sure you fall into one of the categories above. I made sure to include something for everyone on my list.

Use this guide to find the best credit card processor for your company.

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12 Ways to a Frugal New Year

The end of the year is just around the corner, and with it comes New Year’s Eve celebrations. New Year’s Eve often conjures up visions of big parties, a big ball drop, and an off-tune singing of “Auld Lang Syne.” However, hosting a big party can be really expensive, as can going out to a pricy club.

Sarah and I usually host our own small party with a pretty small guest list. We got into this routine after having children and we kind of became the “default” New Year’s party host for our group of friends who aren’t big social partiers or hard drinkers. Rather, we just have a potluck dinner and a game night, both of which I’ll tell you about in a bit.

Here are twelve fun options for New Year’s Eve that don’t require you to just open up your wallet.

Find free events in your area.

If you want to go out for New Year’s Eve without emptying your wallet at a club or a bar or a restaurant, the first thing to do is to visit some local community websites and find free events in your area. Most cities have some kind of community calendar or upcoming event listing on their website, so that’s a great place to start.

Don’t just look at your own city’s website, either. Look at the websites of nearby cities and also all of the locally published newspapers in your area. Take a look at community Facebook groups for your community and for adjacent communities. In fact, it’s not a bad idea to jump into one of those groups and simply ask what public New Years celebrations are going on in those communities.

Rather than deciding on a single option right away, just make a big list of all of the potential events available to you and make a decision later after giving it a bit of thought. You can run the set of ideas by some friends and decide on an event together to make it much more social.

You will probably find that there are a lot of events hosted by bars and restaurants, so be sure to check for cover charges and other expenses. Many larger communities do have a selection of free events, however, but you may have to dig for them.

Go to a local fireworks show.

A public fireworks show can be a really nice capstone to a New Year’s celebration and it’s often a free one. Even if you decide to mostly stay home for the evening, many communities have a fireworks show at midnight and you can simply go out to see the fireworks. (If you’re lucky, you may even be able to see them from home.)

Just as on July 4, fireworks shows for the new year tend to be completely free to the public, though there may be a donation requested for future shows.

Of course, it can be quite cold to stand out in a public park for an hour or two around midnight in the middle of December, so be sure to bundle up nicely before going out.

Attend someone’s house party.

Rather than going out to a bar or a restaurant, see if anyone you know is hosting a party and simply go to that one instead. Even if you need to bring your own drinks or bring a side dish, it’s still going to be far less expensive than going out to a club or bar or restaurant to celebrate the new year.

Pay attention to your texts, emails and voice messages in the coming days and see if any invites come down the pike. You might also have friends that just publicly invite all of their friends on social media to come, so keep an eye on there, too.

If you get invited to multiple parties, it can be a good idea to put in an appearance at more than just one. Just tell the host that you wanted to stop by and hang out for a while but you received more than one invite and want to make it to all of them for a bit.

If you intend to drink at these parties, make sure that you have a designated driver or are prepared to spend for a ride. The cost of drinking and driving is very high, both for your own risk of a DUI, but also the risk of injuring or killing yourself and others.

Host a potluck dinner party.

If you want to host something yourself, consider hosting a potluck dinner party in which you prepare some type of main course and ask others to bring additional side dishes and beverages.

One really great way of doing this that we often use at our larger dinner parties is to just prepare a couple of slow cookers full of soup. Cook them on low so they’re just barely done when people might start eating but will still be fine for hours afterward. Put a ladle by each pot (on a saucer so you don’t have a mess) and a big stack of bowls, spoons, crackers, and other soup extras (which you might have to refresh occasionally).

This is a very convenient and cost-effective way to serve food for a party. Not only does it put all of the prep work earlier in the day before guests arrive, it allows guests to arrive and eat on their own timetable and allows you to mingle with guests rather than hanging out in the kitchen, which keeps you away from the fun.

A good idea is to make your favorite soup and then make your favorite meatless soup, which will often cover most dietary needs. If you know of other dietary requirements (vegan, gluten-free), make at least one soup that covers most of those conditions at once (you can make a that works for a lot of diets).

If you like this idea but don’t have a slow cooker, check out what’s available at secondhand shops in your area before buying one, or simply ask a friend if you can borrow their slow cooker for a few days.

Alternately, host a party with just snacks and beverages and start a little later.

I’ll be honest: many of our friends have children, so our hosted New Years Eve parties tend to start earlier and have a mass exodus once children start collapsing around 10 p.m. That may not be your style at all and you may want to have a party that starts later and ends later.

In that case, just have a party that starts later than the usual dinnertime — say, 9 p.m. — and simply provide a bunch of snacks and drinks. Set up a side table that’s full of snacks and a cooler nearby to keep drinks cold and you’re good to go.

Encourage guests to bring an appetizer or drink.

If you’re worried about the expense of a bunch of snacks and drinks, you don’t have to provide them all yourself. Simply ask those coming to bring some kind of snack or drink, and just set up a side table to collect all of that stuff.

You might want to get a couple of things just to make sure that you don’t run out and to balance things out in case all of your guests bring drinks and no one brings snacks or vice versa, but you can rely on your guests for a lot of the food and beverages.

Host a game night.

For some, the idea of a generic “party” with loud music and small talk doesn’t sound particularly appealing, so you may want to center your party around something to do that, at the very least, facilitates people getting to know each other. My personal favorite method of doing this is to host a game night, something we’ve done traditionally for almost 20 years now. Yep, our hosted New Years event is a game night.

For our game nights, we usually pre-select a handful of games and put them out on a side table so that people can arrive and choose games that they want to play right then and there. We usually set up enough tables so the group can break into sub-groups of four or five for smaller group games, with one bigger table that can seat a lot of the guests at once.

Our group tends to thrive with a mix of party games and strategy games. Some good lighter choices that are hits with our group include Codenames, Monikers, and Dixit. Honestly, however, the games you have in your closet along with a few decks of ordinary playing cards can provide all of the gaming entertainment you need.

Depending on your guests, video games might also be popular, so if you have a gaming console, have the controllers charged up and ready to go.

Another good strategy is to ask your friends to each bring a game they like and can quickly teach. This multiplies the options and gives everyone the chance to share a game that they really enjoy without costing you a dime.

Binge-watch some movies with your partner and/or some close friends.

Another option is to have a movie night or a “binge watch” night where people get together to simply watch a movie or two or to binge watch a season of a series. For example, I know of a group that’s getting together on New Year’s Eve starting in the afternoon to binge watch the latest season of The Expanse together with a meal in the middle, snacks throughout, and a break at midnight for the ball drop.

This one’s a great option if you just want to stay home by yourself or with a partner. New Year’s Eve is a great time to stay up late and watch a movie series or binge-watch an entire season of a show on your preferred streaming service.

This can pair well with a potluck dinner party, too, as you can cook some soups in the slow cooker, have friends bring snacks and drinks, and just stop and eat when everyone’s hungry. This allows you to be in with the binge-watching or movie marathon yourself. You can keep it simple, too, and just watch one movie starting at 9 or 9:30, which should end before the ball drops.

Buy drinks at a discount and bring them home.

Many people like to drink alcohol on New Year’s Eve to toast the end of the old year and the start of the new. However, going out to bars for New Year’s Eve can be a really expensive proposition.

It is far less expensive to visit a liquor store or, even better, a warehouse club and pick out your preferred drinks and bring them home with you. You will save a large percentage of the cost of drinks by doing it this way. For you, it’s also safer because you’re already at home and there’s no driving involved.

If you do have guests, make sure that they have a safe way to get home, whether it’s a designated driver or that they’re prepared to call for a cab, Uber, Lyft, or other service. A responsible host doesn’t send an intoxicated guest out to drive.

Repurpose your holiday lights for decoration (or get cheap ones right after Christmas).

What if you want to decorate your place to give it a bit of a New Year’s vibe? The truth is that if you have some holiday decorations and accouterments already on hand, you probably have most of what you need.

Strands of white holiday lights work perfectly as an illuminated decoration for New Year’s. You can easily hang them or place them around your home to give the area a festive glow.

If you have extra ribbon, particularly ribbon with a metallic or silvery sheen, simply curl it with a pair of scissors and you have nice decorations for various spots.

If you have any glittery or metallic ornaments from the holidays, those can also be repurposed. I tend to practically think of metal and glittery balls as New Year’s decorations anyway.

Another nice step is to pull out a bunch of candles and light them, particularly as midnight approaches. You likely have many candles already on hand from the holiday season.

Stick with a subtle decorating approach using the items you already have on hand and you can make your place look pretty festive without dropping a dime.

Make confetti by shredding magazines and catalogs.

For many years, we would throw confetti in the air at midnight because it was so fun to watch it drift down all over the place and made for some great photos (even though it made a mess). However, it seemed incredibly silly to buy confetti.

A much better approach is to simply take some of the abundant holiday catalogs and other recent magazines you’ve received and cut them into strips or squares, depending on the kind of confetti you want. I find that large-ish (maybe 3/4-inch) squares look great fluttering in the air, plus they’re relatively easy to clean up as a broom and a dustpan can get rid of them in short order. Put them out in bowls so people can grab handfuls.

Not only does this give your party a fun “confetti” moment at midnight, but it’s also free and gives the catalogs you received in the mail a second use when they would otherwise be trashed.

Buy noisemakers at the dollar store.

If you want to have some noisemakers on hand, the first place to check is the dollar store in the days leading up to the new year. They often have a bunch of low-cost noisemakers on hand – you can usually get a bundle of them for a dollar, which should more than cover your party needs.

Just put the noisemakers in a bowl somewhere, set it off to the side, and pull it out as midnight approaches so your guests can grab one and have some silly fun blowing on the noisemaker as the clock strikes midnight.

The dollar store is almost perfect for other little items you might want if you’re hosting a New Year’s party, like simple decorations that can complement the holiday decorations you’re repurposing for the event.

Whatever you do, don’t overthink it and don’t overspend.

Is there food? Are there drinks? Is it reasonably clean when people start showing up? If you have those bases covered, people will have fun. Don’t worry too much about every little detail of the new year.

If you don’t feel like hosting anything big, just look for free things to do out and about or, if you’d rather stay at home, queue up some movies to watch, pop some popcorn, and curl up under a blanket.

And as midnight rolls around, enjoy the new year as it dawns.

The post 12 Ways to a Frugal New Year appeared first on The Simple Dollar.

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Think You Don’t Have Enough Money to Travel? Consider These Options

You need a break from it all. You want to relax on the beach or live it up in a new city. Your bank account, however, is telling you to keep dreaming.

If you struggle to put aside money for your much-needed getaway (or can’t quit dipping into your savings), there are still plenty of fun and freeing ways you can travel for less.

3 Ways to Fund Your Next Vacation

Instead of making money so you can travel, think about how your travels could make you money. 

1. Sign Up for a Work Exchange

Work exchanges are arrangements that allow you to travel to new places, doing work in exchange for room and board. You might tend to horses on a ranch, harvest produce on a farm or teach English in a foreign country.

Consider these work exchange opportunities to reduce your travel costs.

2. Sell Your Travel Photos

You’re going to be snapping and sharing photos of your vacation anyway. Instead of just posting them on social media for your friends to drop comments, why not get paid for them?

There are several websites that pay for photos. This travel photographer earned $2,000 a month by stacking up multiple sources to pay for his photos.

3. Watch Someone’s House, Pets or Kids

Scoring a house-sitting job means you can travel for less. You’ll have a free place to stay on vacation, and you don’t have to put in much effort beyond watering the plants, getting the mail and doing some light housework.

While taking care of someone’s pets involves a little more responsibility, there’ll be plenty of downtime to enjoy yourself too. You can become a pet sitter in cities all across the country, but bonus points if you can snag a pet-sitting job abroad, like this man did.

Babysitting children is even more work, but your vacation can resume when the parents come home and you’re off duty. Being an overseas nanny or au pair gives you the opportunity to visit a foreign country. However, if you want to stick to domestic travel, sites like Care.com list many opportunities for babysitting jobs and nannies.

3 Other Options to Travel for Less

If taking on extra work to afford travel doesn’t seem like the plan for you, here’s some more practical advice for traveling on the cheap.

1. Take a Road Trip

Eliminate the cost of airfare, luggage fees and airport meals by driving to your destination rather than flying.

Although you have to factor in the cost of gas when planning a road trip, you’ll likely spend less money overall. Choose a city that’s within a day’s drive, and make sure to pack snacks from home.

2. Plan Your Trip for October

When you travel really does matter. October falls in the shoulder season, the period between the peak season and the off-season. You can generally find more deals to make your vacation less expensive.

October is also a great month to travel because the weather is not too hot and not too cold. Plus, kids are in school, which makes for less-crowded attractions.

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3. Enjoy a Staycation

You don’t have to go far to enjoy a little vacation time. Be a tourist in your own city — or the next town over. Visit a museum you haven’t gone to, eat at your favorite restaurants and have fun exploring local attractions.

You don’t have to pay for airfare, hotels or a rental car, which makes planning a staycation a very economical choice.

Nicole Dow is a senior writer at The Penny Hoarder.

This was originally published on The Penny Hoarder, which helps millions of readers worldwide earn and save money by sharing unique job opportunities, personal stories, freebies and more. The Inc. 5000 ranked The Penny Hoarder as the fastest-growing private media company in the U.S. in 2017.

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