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Learning how to invest the money you save is essential if you want to build wealth. The good news? It's easier than ever to get started investing with any amount of money.

Investing isn’t just for the uber-wealthy and Wall Street suits. In fact, investing in the stock market is one of the most common ways average Americans become millionaires.

Learning how to invest for the for the first time can feel intimidating, but it’s not nearly as scary as you might think. Here I’m going to show you the best ways to start investing and point out a few things that you should consider learning next.

Before you start investing, it’s important to have the rest of your financial house in order. You should:

Be comfortable with your budget – how much you earn, spend and save each month.

Be in control of your debt – free of high-interest credit card balances and working a plan to pay off student loans and other liabilities.

Have clear goals defining what you want your money to allow you to do in the future.

You don’t have to wait until you are debt-free to start investing (in fact, you shouldn’t wait this long!) But if you have any doubt about whether you’re ready to start investing, refer to my article on the 7 steps to financial stability before returning to this guide.

Personal finance is personal. The best way to invest money for you is going be different than the best way to invest money for me.

Some things, however, are universal. Everybody should invest money for retirement that you won’t touch for many decades. It can be difficult to feel the need to plan for retirement when you’re in your 20s or 30s. But we need to take care of our future self and squirreling away enough to live a comfortable retirement is no easy task. The sooner you start investing, the easier it will be.