Should I invest a lump sum all at once or spread it out?
Investing a lump sum all at once risks buying right before a market crash or watching share prices drop after purchase, but keeping cash on the sidelines risks losing potential gains. To balance market uncertainty, people often debate splitting the money over several months while keeping enough liquid cash to feel safe.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
- 1Investing half the sum initially and spreading the remaining half over several months using dollar-cost averaging
- 2Keeping cash in a high-yield savings account or cash equivalents while waiting for a market crash
- 3trying to time the market
- 4waiting for the share price to drop
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
“I have some lump sum money I’m wishing to invest in the market, but am worried about a few things: 1. Market uncertainty and crash possibility in the near future (1-5 years) 2. On the flip side, Potential lost gains from leaving too much in cash 3. How much liquid cash to hold to stay safe”source ↗
“For 1/2 I’m considering investing half the sum initially, and spreading the other half over 6 months. I’m not really sure how to best balance the risk of 1/2.”source ↗
“You seem a little worried, given what your first question was, so go with 5-6 months expenses.”source ↗
“I roll over my 401k from my previous employer to new IRA account. I've about 185k to invest. I thought of investing in FXAIX, but when I roll over it was around 240 per share, now it is around 270. Should I wait or Should I invest now.”source ↗
Where this came up
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