Close your eyes. Picture where you want to be a year from now. Five years from now. Forty years from now. What do you need to make that happen?

We want to help you make your money dreams a reality. That’s why Ellevest’s online investing platform is goal-based — you tell us what your financial goals are and when you want to hit them, and then we’ll suggest an investment plan designed to help you slay.

Of course, investing comes with risk, so nothing’s guaranteed. But investing has historically been more powerful than saving alone, and Ellevest’s projections show you the amount we estimate you’ll end up with in 70% (or more) of market scenarios going forward.

So let’s do some dreaming.

Your rainy-day fund

What your savings is now: Intentions? Good. Reality? Let’s go with “working on it.”

Maybe you have some savings in an account that you started one day when you were feeling inspired. And maybe you usually resist the urge to “borrow” from that savings when things get tight, but some moments have been more tempting than others. (Hi, tapas night.) After all, you can always pay yourself back later.

But maybe you read something recently about how a financial emergency can swoop in and cause utter chaos. And you’re determined to save more … tomorrow.

Enter: Ellevest’s Emergency Fund goal, which helps you to gradually save up three to six months’ worth of take-home pay in cash.

What your savings could be like in one year: You’ve got several months’ worth of your take-home pay stashed away in a designated emergency fund, waiting to back you up if (when) something goes wrong. It feels really good knowing that you have a security blanket — and you’re ready for whatever.

Your living situation

What your home is now: Maybe you have two roommates who are mostly great, but who also occasionally don’t clean up after themselves and / or invite unexpected overnight visitors. It’s annoying enough that you’ve started thinking you want to move when the lease is up — but coming up with the cash for a security deposit would not be fun.

Or maybe you and your partner are dreaming of owning your own place together someday. Or maybe you’re starting to plan for kids, and you’re definitely going to need more space. Or maybe it would just be nice to have a shorter commute … and a functional garbage disposal … or even just like ten more square feet of living space.

Enter: Ellevest’s A Place to Call Home goal, which helps you invest toward a home down payment with a default timeline of six years (although you can always change our plans’ timelines to fit your goals).

What your home could be like in six years: You walk through the front door of your home (which you own) and hang your stuff in the coat closet (which you own).

Hear that? That’s the sound of ~not having roommates.~ Or maybe it’s the sound of your fur baby running to greet you as you come in the door. Or maybe it’s your custom sound system playing that song you love so much. Or a kiddo. Whatever it is, it’s home.

Your kiddo’s future

Your family sitch now: Maybe you just welcomed a tiny human into your home (congrats!), or maybe you’re planning to someday. Kids are unbelievably cute, but you know that they’re probably also going to cost you a lot of money when they get old enough to start doing things that … you know … cost money.

You want to afford whatever they’ll need. But also, you're now ridiculously busy (and tired), so you’ll figure out how you’ll pay for them … someday.

Enter: Ellevest’s Kids Are Awesome goal, which helps you invest to build a fund for things like summer camp, extracurriculars, etc., with a default timeline of six years.

What your family sitch could be like in six years: That munchkin is very cute, especially when you’re taking copious videos of them on the soccer field. Or the ballet stage. Or the dojo. Or all of the above — you may have a prodigy on your hands, tbh.

Your career

Your job now: It’s … fine. You guess. It pays the bills. But you aren’t exactly passionate about what you’re doing, and you don’t wake up excited to go to work every day. You’ve got this itch that says you were always meant to work for yourself.

But you’re probably not quite ready to make the move yet. That genius business idea still needs some testing. Plus, if you quit your job now, you’d be quite broke.

Enter: Ellevest’s Start a Business goal, which helps you invest to pay yourself two years’ worth of salary so you can take that leap. It has a default timeline of five years.

What your job could be like in five years: HEY ENTREPRENEUR. You left that blah job and set off on your own. Your new company has a name and a prospective audience, and your fundraising process is underway. You’re on top of the world. You’re unstoppable. You’re the boss.

That one thing you’ve been dreaming of

Your birthday this year: Four words: “drinks with the girls.” (Another two: “frozen margaritas.” No use denying it.) You’re surrounded by people who love you and who you love back, and life is good.

But that upcoming milestone birthday? That one, you want it to be big. You and the girls will go all out … if you can swing it financially, that is.

Enter: Ellevest’s Big Splurge goal, which lets you invest toward … whatever it is you want. No default timeline; it’s however long you have left until you’ll need the money.

What your birthday could be like on your next milestone: The sound you hear? It’s the voices of your absolute favorite people as you chat away the afternoon sipping wine and eating cheese in a villa in the south of France. (Or trail hiking in Patagonia. Or on a private island anywhere.) You’ve been here for four days, and you have three more ahead of you. Life is goooooood.

Your future grandma self

Your retirement account now: It’s there. It has some money in it. Maybe you’re contributing enough to get your employer match, but you aren’t sure if that’s enough. You’re guessing that you should probably be doing more, but ... it’s not exactly the most urgent thing you have to think about, moneywise. And how are you even supposed to know how much you’ll need?

Enter: Ellevest’s Retirement on My Terms goal, which helps you plan and invest for retirement using a super special algorithm that takes your real-life info like your age, income, earning power, and gender into account.

What your actual retirement could look like: You are doing whatever your heart desires. Maybe that means you moved somewhere where you can read by the beach every day. Maybe you’re traveling the world. Maybe you’re pursuing lifelong passions and learning something new each day. Maybe you never retired at all — because you seriously love your job — but you’re doing it differently these days. Maybe you have lots of grandkids you spoil rotten. Maybe you’re on a couple of boards of directors. Maybe you’re doing some other really freaking cool stuff like this or like this. (Or maybe, in fact likely, more than one of the above.)

Your financial confidence

How you feel about money now: Maybe you have a love-hate relationship with your money. On the one hand, you’re already doing some good things for yourself. (Truly — why else would you be reading this?)

But maybe thinking and talking about money makes you feel a little squirmy. Because you’re sure that you could be doing more for your future self, but you just haven’t figured out what that is yet. And it’s easy to put it off. (Guess what: You’re not alone.)

Enter: Ellevest’s Build Wealth goal, which helps you invest to just bump up that net worth. It has a default timeline of 20 years. According to our research, the act of saving and investing is the #1 driver of women’s confidence in their future. Meaning just getting started can help you feel good about where you’re going.

How you could feel about money after you start investing: You started with just a few dollars a month, and then you gradually worked your way up (like a boss). Now, you’re doing Future You a favor by investing a good chunk of your paycheck every month. You feel great about your money choices, because you know that you’re making smart moves.

Spoiler alert: These life upgrades don’t have to be just dreams. You can get started right now. In fact, it just takes minutes. So what are you waiting for?

Disclosures