[avgDev]

You can place your emergency fund in I-Bonds over several years. You can buy $10k max a year, and withdraw with a 3 month interest penalty after a year. Right now the rate is 7.6% I believe for the first 6 months. It should protect that money from inflation.

[deanmoriarty]

You will pay taxes on the interest, so the purchasing power will still diminish.

Disclaimer: I still happily purchase 20k of I bonds and EE bonds a year for diversification purposes, in addition to my index funds.

[ryandrake]

They are at least exempt from state and local taxes, which is nice.