3 Ways You're Missing Out on Free Money

Managing your personal finances can be difficult because it often feels like there's not enough money to do everything you're hoping to accomplish. But there is help out there that could give you just a little bit of extra cash to make certain tasks -- like retirement saving -- a little easier.

Unfortunately, many people end up passing up free money because they don't realize it's available to them or because they misunderstand the impact these free funds can have. In particular, here are three possible ways you may be passing up free money.

1. Not taking advantage of retirement tax breaks

There are tax breaks available for saving for retirement. This is true whether you have access to a workplace plan or not. If you have a 401(k) at work or you open an IRA with a brokerage firm of your choosing, you can deduct contributions in the year you make them. If you choose a Roth 401(k) or Roth IRA, contributions aren't deductible but withdrawals are tax free in retirement.

The tax savings can be very substantial. The annual maximum 401(k) contribution for 2024 is $23,000 ($30,500 if you're 50 or over and eligible for $7,500 in catch-up contributions). The maximum deductible IRA contribution limit is $7,000 for 2024 (plus an additional $1,000 catch-up contribution for those 50 and up).

If you are in the 22% tax bracket and you make a $7,000 IRA contribution, the government will allow you to avoid taxes on that $7,000 -- which means you'd save $1,540 on your taxes. You could put $7,000 away for retirement but only reduce your taxable income by $5,460. If you do not take advantage of this opportunity, you are passing up $1,540 that the government is essentially giving you for free to encourage you to invest for your future.

2. Passing up your employer 401(k) match

The government may not be the only one who will give you free money for retirement. If you have a company 401(k), your employer may provide matching contributions. This is free money they give you when you invest in your workplace plan.

You'll need to find out the rules for your employer match to see how much free money you can get. It's common for 50% or 100% of your contributions to be matched up to a set percentage of salary, like 4% or 6%. If you make $50,000 and you can have up to 4% of your salary matched, then you could get as much as $2,000 in free money from your employer.

Over time, this free money could really add up to a small fortune. If you invested $2,000 a year and earned a 10% average annual return on it, you'd end up with $361,886.85 over 30 years. Just from those matching funds -- not counting any contributions you personally made. That's a lot of free money to pass up. Especially because, as mentioned above, you'll also get the tax benefits of any 401(k) contributions you make.

3. Not using the right rewards card

Finally, if you don't use the right credit card rewards card -- or don't use one at all -- you could be passing up a free discount on everything you buy. If you charge $10,000 a year on your card and could earn 2% back on it but don't, you'd be passing up $200 every year for no reason.

Of course, you do need to be sure you won't carry a balance and owe interest -- but if you can do that, then there's no reason not to find a great rewards credit card to apply for. In fact, with many cards, you may be able to earn more -- as much as 5% back in certain bonus categories -- and get even more free cash.

You shouldn't be passing up this free money. Search today for the right credit card to maximize your rewards, make sure you are signed up for your 401(k) and contribute enough to earn the match, and aim to invest as much as possible in your 401(k) or IRA to claim the tax breaks available to you. You could end up a whole lot richer if you do.