Banks offering plans that deposit money into a savings account every time you spend money are encouraging their customers to build up their savings account, which is a good thing. But when the Consumer Reports [1] Money Lab researched competing plans it found that most of them aren't the best solution for people serious about saving. Here is a summary breakdown from the November issue. Have you participated in programs like these?

• Bank of America's Keep the Change: The bank rounds up purchase amounts to the nearest dollar and transfers the difference to your savings account, so if a total purchase is $332.49, 51 cents will be transferred to your savings account. The interest paid on the basic savings account was recently .2 percent and 1.75 percent for the money market account, so even though the bank matches the transfer amount for the first three months and five percent after that, you'd be better off saving in accounts that pay more interest.
• Wachovia's Way2Save: Wachovia moves $1 into your savings account every time you make a debit purchase or pay a bill online. It pays 5 percent interest during year one and a 5 percent bonus, but only pays a 2 percent interest rate after that. After year one, the program isn't going to do much to boost your savings.
• American Express One: Because the card pays 1 percent cash back on purchases but charges a $35 annual fee, you'd need to charge $3,500 to break even. You'd be better off getting a card with greater rewards, minus the annual fee.

Source [2]