Widows face multiple challenges when it comes to money: In general, they live longer, earn less, and take more breaks from the workforce to care for children, which contributes to lower lifetime earnings. They even pay higher interest rates on credit cards, and higher prices for personal-care items, such as haircuts. A widow’s lack of financial know how, does become a problem as she grows older. Among marriages that don’t end in divorce, three-quarters end in widowhood, and the average length of widowhood is nine years. That’s a long time to manage money on one’s own. Women who experience widowhood earlier than expected could suffer because they were not prepared to take over the family finances. Widows who don’t feel equipped to manage their money can ask for the support of an adult child or Financial planner, but some financial knowledge will protect them from scams or bad Financial planners. A widow with insufficient financial knowledge may find herself without a firm understanding of how much she can afford to spend, what her holdings are, or how quickly her money may go.  It’s a sad future when the money runs out before the end of the month.  Take control of your money and learn how to read your bank statements, investment statements and how to set up a budget so your money will last your lifetime. You never want to be in the situation where you find yourself saying, “I just don’t know where all the money goes”.