More than three-quarters of Americans say they're always looking for ways to save money, but they may not be looking hard enough: More than two-thirds of Americans, it turns out, also admit they're not saving enough, according to a Pew Research Center survey. And more than a third say they often spend more than they can afford.

Saving is difficult, even for those with the best intentions. But one method that's effective is to put your savings on autopilot. Millions of workers, for example, have a portion of their pay whisked into a 401(k) account. Now the IRS is offering a similar option for folks who can't resist the temptation to spend their refunds.

For the first time, taxpayers can arrange to have their refunds deposited in up to three accounts, including an individual retirement account. The IRS has offered direct deposit for years, but it was limited to one account.

Most taxpayers who opted for direct deposit had their refunds put into checking accounts. Taxpayers can choose to have their refunds deposited not only into IRAs but also into health savings accounts and education savings accounts.

If you're really serious about saving, you can have your entire refund deposited into an IRA. But if you need some of the money to pay bills, you can have part of the refund deposited in your checking account.

Or you could deposit enough of the money into your checking account to meet immediate needs, deposit another portion into a savings account and funnel the rest to an IRA. The deposits don't have to be the same amounts, the IRS says.

Unfortunately, millions of taxpayers who use tax software won't be able to take advantage of the split-refund option — at least not this year.

TurboTax and H&R Block, the two largest providers of tax software, don't offer the split-refund option in any of their programs. The change came too late for H&R Block to include it in its TaxCut programs, spokeswoman Denise Sposato says. But taxpayers who have returns prepared at any of H&R Block's branch offices will be able to split their refunds, she says.

TurboTax decided not to offer the split-refund option after determining that there wasn't much customer demand for it, spokeswoman Julie Miller says.

Taxpayers who file on paper will also be able to split their refunds, though that usually means waiting longer to get your money.

To split your refund deposit among more than one account, fill out Form 8888, available at www.irs.gov. Other steps you need to take: