Are you considering using bonds as a savings tool but don’t feel you know enough about them? Are you looking to learn how bonds work and what returns you can get? Are you unsure whether to use bonds as part of a short- or long-term investment strategy? Are you perplexed by the terminology surrounding the names of different bonds?

Today, the nonprofit Alliance for Investor Education (AIE) outlined 12 of the best Web-based resources for investors to educate themselves about bonds. The Alliance’s new “Investing in Bonds” is available at http://www.investoreducation.org/bonds. AIE is the organization of the United States’ leading financial-related foundations, nonprofit organizations, associations and governmental agencies.

Alliance for Investor Education President Dallas Salisbury, who also serves as president and CEO of the Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI) and chairman of the American Savings Education Council (ASEC), said:

“Many investors hear that a sound investment strategy should include ‘stocks and bonds’ but don’t know exactly what a bond is, how it works and why it should be part of their portfolio. We want to make sure that Americans know where to find the best available information from the experts so that they can have the confidence to invest wisely in bonds as part of their larger saving and investing strategy.”

The new “Investing in Bonds" section of the AIE Web site features the following 12 top resources for consumers:

1. InvestinginBonds.com and InvestinginBondsEurope.org - SIFMA Foundation.
2. Municipal Bonds: Staying on the Safe Side of the Street in Rough Times - Financial Industry Regulatory Authority.
3. Bond Funds and Income Funds - U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
4. Bond Basics for Individuals: A Guide to Buying and Selling - American Association for Individual Investors.
5. Investing and Inflation: Time to Protect Your Future? - CFA Institute.
6. A Primer for Investing in Bonds - Investor Protection Trust.
7. Tax-Free vs. Taxable Yield Bond Calculator - SIFMA Foundation.
8. Benefits and Limitations of Inflation Indexed Treasury Bonds - Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System.
9. Investing in Bonds - The American Institute of Certified Public Accountants/360 Degrees of Financial Literacy.
10. The Political Economy of Government–Issued Longevity Bonds - Retirement Security Project.
11. Smart Bond Investing - Financial Industry Regulatory Authority.
12. Treasury Securities & Programs - United States Department of the Treasury.

For an overview of the rest of the best investor education resources on the Web from AIE members, go to http://www.investoreducation.org.