Saving money is one of those tasks that's so much easier said than done — everyone knows it's smart to save money in the long run, but many of us still have difficulty doing it. There's more to saving than simply spending less money, although this alone can be challenging. 

1. Record your expenses

The first step in saving money is to know how much you’re spending. For one month, keep a record of everything you spend. 

2. Make a budget

Now that you have a good idea of what you spend in a month, you can build a budget to plan your spending, limit over-spending and make sure that you put money away in an emergency savings fund. 

3. Plan on saving money

Taking into consideration your monthly expenses and earnings, create a savings category within your budget and try to make it at least 10-15 percent of your net income. If your expenses won't let you save that much, it might be time to cut back.

4. Set savings goals

Setting savings goals makes it much easier to get started. Begin by deciding how long it will take to reach each goal.

5. Decide on your priorities

Different people have different priorities when it comes to saving money, so it makes sense to decide which savings goals are most important to you.

Tips from www.bankofamerica.com