How Much Cash Should I Keep at Home, How to Store It & More

At a bare minimum, financial experts recommend you have at least a day’s worth of expenses on hand. How much a day’s worth of expenses is can vary from person to person — and household to household. For added security, many individuals prefer to have a week’s worth of expenses in cash.

In a disaster, like a bank closure or major event, having extra cash can help you and your loved ones.

Should you keep more cash than a week’s worth? That’s a personal choice. Many of our customers do keep more than a week’s worth of expenses in cash at home. The key is to be aware of the risks when storing cash at home.

What Are the Risks of Storing Cash at Home?

Cash in a mattress (or the walls of a home or buried in the backyard) was an attractive idea following the Great Depression. Unfortunately, there are certain drawbacks to storing money personally — even if you store it in a safe. These drawbacks can include, but are not limited to:

Stolen or Destroyed Cash Is Hard to Recover

According to the FBI’s 2019 Crime in the United States report, just 2.6% of the $1,432,559,757 in stolen currency was recovered. And what about recovering this stolen cash through insurance policies?

Unfortunately, even those who are properly insured may find themselves feeling more than slightly frustrated by how much of their stolen cash isn’t covered. A typical homeowner’s policy covers between $200 and $2,000 in cash lost in a fire, theft or other peril.

Generally speaking, bank accounts offer a higher level of protection against theft — especially those that are backed by the federal government. In the event that your money is stolen through unauthorized transactions, you will only be able to recoup part of the stolen funds (if any), assuming you report the fraudulent activity immediately.

Cash at Home Doesn’t Earn Interest

The interest rates on checking accounts aren’t going to turn pennies into a pot of gold, but they’re definitely better than a poke in the eye. Cash that’s stored in your home or wallet just sits there. And on a more practical level, it becomes less valuable as inflation continues to rise.

Cash at Home Isn’t Invested

We’re sure this comes as no surprise, but investing excess cash is one of the most surefire ways to grow personal wealth. While investing is not without its risks, letting cash sit at home is accepting that it will depreciate in value as inflation makes the dollar worth less and less.

Cash Can Be Damaged

While paper doesn’t break down as quickly as perishable items, it is susceptible to deterioration. Cash is stronger than printer paper, but bills can still mold, rot and rip. Those who live in an area prone to flooding or that has a high level of humidity are at a bigger risk of their cash being damaged.

What is the Best Way to Store Cash at Home?

The quick and dirty answer about the best way to store cash at home is that you want to:

• Keep it Secure

• Keep it Hidden

• Keep it Dry

That being said, the following detailed tips are worthwhile considerations for those who want to best protect their at-home cash stash:

1. Select a Secure Location

Security is one of the first things you want to consider when selecting a place to store your cash. The best place to store cash at home protects it against theft and fire. You’ll want to consider one of the following storage solutions:

• Gun safes

• Home safes

• Commercial safes 

• Vault rooms

Each of these options ranges in levels of security, with fire resistance and burglary resistance increasing as the price increases. We recommend considering the value of what you’re storing and always buying a safe that represents that value.

2. Use Tamper-Evident Bags

When storing your cash, it’s a good idea to use tamper-evident bags. Available in a variety of sizes, they allow you to see if someone has tampered with your cash. Place the money inside the bag, seal the bag, and then write the amount on the outside.

This has the added benefit of helping you keep track of how much cash you have on hand.

3. Be Discreet with Your Storage

Discretion is the better part of security. The likelihood of someone stealing your cash or valuables drops drastically if they don’t know you even have it. While there are a host of gun safes that may be a stunning addition to your home’s decor, installing a safe in a hidden location can help reduce the chance that a burglar will even attempt to access it.

Explore our helpful guide about how to hide a gun safe in plain sight.

Even individuals with a high-security vault room will often opt for putting a safe inside their vault. This allows them to comfortably invite guests into their vault room without worrying about what’s been put away.

4. Place Cash in a Liberty Cool Pocket

In addition to burglary, fire is one of the biggest threats to storing cash at home. Even with good homeowners insurance, only a small portion of currency is even covered in the event of a house fire — which means your hard-earned savings could go up in smoke (literally).

Liberty Cool Pockets can help reduce the air temperature around the contents stored within them by as much as 50 degrees. This additional layer of protection can give firefighters a better chance at extinguishing the burn before your cash is gone.

How effective is a Cool Pocket? One of our customers suffered a devastating house fire that destroyed their entire home, with the exception of $27K in their Liberty Cool Pocket.

5. Use a Dehumidifier

Next to fire, moisture is another concern for those storing large sums of cash. Exposure to moisture can cause paper currency to mold and rot over time, effectively ruining it. I

Our in-depth guide to reducing moisture within a gun safe covers:

• How to install a safe to promote airflow and reduce moisture

• The importance of dehumidifiers and which dehumidifiers to use

• How to check if your safe’s dew point (moisture level) is too high

6. Place Cash in a Waterproof Container

General moisture buildup in a safe is a concern, especially if you live in a humid environment. But exposure to a large amount of water, such as during a flood or burst pipe, can also damage paper currency.

Even within a gun safe, many individuals who store cash will opt to place it in a waterproof container. SureSeal boxes offer a completely sealed container that is both water-proof and smoke-proof. 

7. Store Cash at the Bottom of the Safe

Heat rises. In the event that there is a fire, the hottest part of your safe will be the top shelves. Always store cash (and other valuables) at the lowest possible location within your safe. Some of the Liberty door panels come equipped with Cool Pockets. You’ll notice they are always placed at the bottom of the door panel for this exact reason.

Best Safes for Storing Cash

If you’re shopping for a cash safe, we’re not going to recommend starting with an entry level safe. Because cash can’t be insured, we recommend taking extra precautions. Your safe is your insurance policy.

Mid-Grade

Best For: Those storing $15K or less in value

Top Mid-Grade Safes:

• Challenger Series

• Estate Series

• Franklin Series

Above Average

Best For: Those storing $30K or less in value

Top Above Average Safes:

• Master Series

• Presidential Series

• Lincoln Series

High End Fire Rated Safes

Best For: Those storing $50K - 75K in value.

Top High End Fire Rated Safes:

• BFX Series

• RFX Series

• Fort Knox Safes

Commercial Safes

Best For: Those storing large amounts of cash.

There are six different levels of commercial safes:

• TL-15 (tool rated on the door for 15 minutes)

• TL-30 (tool rated on the door for 30 minutes)

• TL-30x6 (tool rated on all six sides of the safe for 30 minutes)

• TRTL-30X6 (torch and tool rated on all six sides of the safe for 30 minutes)

• TRTL-60x6 (torch and tool rated on all six sides of the safe for 60 minutes)

The level of defense against burglary and fire increases with each rating. If you are storing valuables in addition to cash (such as jewelry), your insurance policy may also require a specific rating.