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Note: I mistakenly sent this week’s email with last week’s subject line. Sorry about that! If you want to read last week’s email about budgeting for vacations, check that out here.
Hey, it’s Jeffrey, back again!
Most of us know we should have an emergency fund. But saving consistently? That’s the hard part.
You get busy. Something always comes up. And it can feel like an impossible goal. Not to mention that many experts recommend saving 3-6 months of expenses (or more).
This week, I tested a few ways AI can help, from building a plan with ChatGPT to setting up smart reminders that actually keep you motivated to save.
📬 In this email:
In today’s Money Meets AI edition, we look at:
🤖 Use ChatGPT to Create Your Emergency Fund Plan
📲 Automate with AI-Powered Savings Apps
💡 Stay Motivated with Custom Encouragement
🛠️ Other Tools to Check Out
🔁 What to Do Next
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THIS WEEK’S TESTED TOOLS
1. 🤖 Use ChatGPT to Create Your Emergency Fund Goal
Best for: Getting clear on your number + timeline
Before you start saving, set a goal and figure out how long it’ll take to achieve. Here’s what some of my favorite sources recommend:
Ramit Sethi recommends 3–6 months of bare-bones expenses (just the essentials).
Tori Dunlap encourages building an emergency fund before aggressively paying off debt, aiming for 3-6 months of “essential expenses”
NerdWallet suggests a minimum of $500 to start, with a goal of 3–6 months of expenses.
We’ll assume someone is just getting started, so let’s ask ChatGPT for help with a 3-month fund.
You can ask ChatGPT:
Help me build an emergency fund. We earn $8,000/month after taxes. Our housing is $2,000, and I’d like to save 3 months of basic expenses. What should my savings goal be, and how much should I save monthly to get there in 6 months?
ChatGPT will walk you through:
Estimating your monthly essential expenses
Setting a realistic savings goal
Creating a timeline and monthly saving target
Adjusting your goal based on your timeline or budget
I used ChatGPT’s o4-mini model for this analysis, and here’s how it did:
ChatGPT estimated about $4,000 in essential savings based on my input. But if you know your actual monthly costs, it’ll be even more accurate.
Based on this, ChatGPT suggests having an emergency fund of $12,000 to cover 3 months of expenses.
So, you’d need to save $2,000 per month to reach your $12,000 goal in 6 months.
You can read the full ChatGPT analysis here.
Next up, the most important tip: Automation.
2. 📲 Automate with AI-Powered Savings Apps
Best for: Staying consistent without forgetting
Manual saving can be hard. Instead, use tools that think ahead for you.
Apps like Cleo, Digit, Qapital, and Oportun analyze your spending patterns and set aside small amounts of money when you can afford it.
Qapital is especially useful because it lets you set up “if this, then that” style rules like:
Save $5 every time you buy coffee
Round up purchases and save the change
Transfer $10 every Friday
Save $100 on every payday
Oportun uses AI to learn your income and spending habits, automatically transferring money to your savings when it detects you can spare it. It even adjusts based on upcoming bills or paydays.
It’s great for those who want a set-it-and-forget-it approach, as it’s fully automatic.
Next step: Choose a savings app (or use your existing bank accounts) to set up automatic transfers to meet your goal.
3. 💡 Stay Motivated with Custom Encouragement
Best for: Keeping your savings habit alive and not losing hope
ChatGPT can help create motivational messages tailored to your goals. Ask:
Write 5 encouraging messages to keep me motivated to save for my emergency fund. Some of my goals for having an emergency fund are:
- Not worry if I lose income
- Not worry if I need car repairs
- Freedom to take vacations
And here are the responses:
Sure, it’s a little cheesy, but surprisingly effective. I’d still tweak these, but the motivation works.
Use these in a reminders app (like Todoist), schedule them in your calendar, or set them with Apple Reminders or Google Keep.
Bonus tip: Rename your savings account something exciting (“Freedom Fund” or “F***-Off Fund”) for a mental boost.
What Didn’t Work So Well
Not much this week! For Step 1, I wish ChatGPT had automatically asked me a bit more about my actual spending. But this may have been due to the model I chose.
🛠️ Other Tools to Check Out
Other tools I came across but didn’t do a deep dive into for this newsletter:
Tiller – Budget tracking in Google Sheets (pair with ChatGPT for analysis)
YNAB – Great if you want full control over where your money goes
What to Do Now
🧠 Ask ChatGPT to build a savings plan with your numbers
📲 Try Qapital or Oportun for automated savings
🗓️ Schedule weekly AI-powered nudges to keep you motivated
💬 Rename your savings account to something that inspires you
PS—I’d love to hear your other feedback or suggestions. Just hit reply — I read every email!
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One quick note: This newsletter is for educational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. I’m not a financial advisor — just someone sharing ideas and tools I’ve found useful. Use what works for you, skip what doesn’t, and always do your own research before making financial decisions and using the tools shared in this newsletter.