<prompt> Human: So I just moved all my money to Ally, where the savings account interest rate is .99. I was pretty excited about it, until I started looking at various stock performance over the past year. Amazon grew by 16; Apple by 80. In the long run, Apple outperforms the market: It makes me want to put most most of my savings into some safe tech stocks. But then theres Google, which went down 2. So I guess the safer thing to do is keep the money in savings or a CD but 1.3 sounds paltry in light of the stock returns...or if I want to be kinda risky, some index funds. Another thing I have to keep in mind is that the returns on the stock will be taxed, which discounts the return. But I cant imagine itll lead to a net growth of less than 1. Its tempting...wanted to know Reddits thoughts on it.  <response>: This sub generally advocates AGA buying individual stocks - its like gambling. You could get lucky with the next Apple, or you could lose 40 of your investment over night with a bad stock pick. Opening an account with Vanguard, Fidelity, or Schwab and investing in index funds is what is generally suggested here. Total stock market funds spread risk throughout the market, and while you could still lose money short term, its generally safe to assume your investment will grow over time. 