Boston Saves
We empower families to save and plan for their children’s futures with the support of their City, schools, and community.
Boston Saves is a children’s savings account program. It helps families save and plan for their child's future college or career by giving each Boston Public Schools (BPS) K2 kindergartner an account with $50. Families can get even more money for their child, called Boston Saves Dollars, and track those savings in the Boston Saves Savings Center.
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Boston Public Schools families
If you are a parent of a Boston Saves student:
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Donate to Boston Saves
Want to help out the program? You can make donations online:
Eligibility
Every child entering K2 kindergarten, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, or 4th grade at BPS district schools will receive a Boston Saves account. At certain Boston Saves “pilot” schools, students in higher grades will also have accounts because their schools started the program earlier. Students who belonged to an eligible pilot school cohort, including Haynes EEC and West Zone ELC, and have since left that school, also keep their Boston Saves account. See this table to determine if your child belongs to an eligible pilot cohort.
Please note: Current K2 Families will be able to log into the system by mid-November 2023 once we get the names/contacts information into our system.
How to save for your child’s future
Welcome, Boston Saves families! We are so glad you have started planning now for your child’s future college or career training. Here are a few ways you can start planning and saving for your child’s future with Boston Saves.
Log in to the Savings Center. When you log in to the Savings Center, you can see the money in your child’s Boston Saves account. You can also link a financial account of your own. This way, you can see all of your savings for your child in one place online.
Open a financial account for your child’s future. Your child will have a Boston Saves account for their Boston Saves Dollars. But, to save your own money for your child, you will need to open a financial account for their future. This can be a savings, checking, or 529 account. Boston Saves and Metro Credit Union also offer a custodial account that does not need a social security number or identification card. Whichever kind of account you open, be sure to set up online banking so that you can log in to your account on the internet.
Get Boston Saves Dollars for your child. You can increase the $50 in your child’s Boston Saves account to as much as $115 in the first year by participating in incentives. There are three ways to get extra Boston Saves Dollars:
- Link a financial account to your child’s Boston Saves account online ($25)
- Save $25 for your child in a three-month period ($5/period, up to $20/year)
- Explore books with your child for 20 days per month in a three-month period ($5/period, up to $20/year)
Why use the program
Our vision is to create a citywide culture that supports the educational and career aspirations of Boston’s children and their families. We do this by empowering families to save and plan for their children’s futures with the support of their city, schools, and community.
- families with children’s savings accounts are more likely to see college as a goal for their children, and
- low-income children with $500 or less in a savings account for college are three times more likely to enroll in college. They are also four times more likely to graduate from college.
Frequently Asked Questions
FAQsEach new K2 kindergarten class in BPS gets Boston Saves accounts. These accounts stay with the students as they grow older. This means that in the first year of the program (2019-2020), only K2 kindergarten students had accounts. In the second year, it was students in K2 and 1st grade. In the third year, students in K2, 1st, and 2nd grade, etc.
At certain “pilot schools,” some students in higher grades are also able to get Boston Saves accounts because their schools started the program sooner. See the table on the homepage for details.
All BPS students and their families will be able to make use of the program’s tips and events.
No, not for being in the same family. A student’s ability to get a Boston Saves account is based on their grade and school. (See the table on the homepage to learn more.)
A family of a student who is able to get a Boston Saves account does not need to sign up. Their child will get a Boston Saves account without having to do anything else.
If a child leaves Boston Public Schools, their Boston Saves account will not be able to get any new Boston Saves Dollars, but any Boston Saves Dollars already in the account will stay. The student can still get this money when they start college or career training.
A child who joins a class that already has Boston Saves accounts will be able to get an account as well.
Any savings, 529, or checking account can be linked to a Boston Saves account. Families who do not wish to open a financial account of their own may link a custodial account instead.
A custodial account works just like a savings account, except that no social security number or identification card is needed. Also, the money in the account has no effect on a family’s public benefits. This is because the account is held for the child, not by a family, but by the Boston Educational Development Foundation. Contact bostonsaves@metrocu.org to open a custodial account.
A Boston Saves account:
- Is in the child’s name
- Is held by the Boston Educational Development Foundation
- Holds Boston Saves Dollars (money given to a child by Boston Saves)
- Cannot have money taken out until the child enters college or career training
A linked account:
- Is in the name of a family member or the child
- Is held by the bank or other financial institution where it was opened
- Holds a family’s own savings
- Can have money taken out by the family at any time
No. The money in a child’s Boston Saves account stays in the account until the student enters college or career training.
No. The money in a child’s Boston Saves account does not affect a family’s public assistance, because the account is not held by the family. All Boston Saves Dollars are held by the Boston Educational Development Foundation.
The money held in a family’s linked savings, checking, or 529 account, though, can affect their public assistance.
No, the money in a child’s Boston Saves account does not gain interest. A family’s own financial account, though, may gain interest, depending on the kind of account.
A student can use the Boston Saves Dollars in their account when they turn 18 and have finished high school or gotten their GED or HiSET.
Boston Saves Dollars can be used to pay for community college, four-year college, graduate school, career training, technical certificates, or any other form of accredited higher education.
For students with disabilities, the money can also be put into their ABLE (Attainable Savings Plan) account for future disability-related costs.
A student must use the money in their Boston Saves account before they turn 27. If a student does not use their money by this time, they will give up the Boston Saves Dollars in their account. This money will be used by the program to help new students with their savings goals.
Press
Press- "Boston Saves gives BPS students money for their future" (Boston.com, January 9, 2022)
- "Boston kids get extra $25 for 1st-time savings account login" (Associated Press, January 10, 2022)
