If you’re in need of budgeting help, you can learn how to use budgeting apps in no time. Budgeting apps are designed to help you control what you spend, and save where you can, to ensure that your outgoings aren’t excessive. They can be downloaded to your smartphone or tablet to help you track your daily spending. An app helps you understand your spending and your finances easily, helping you adjust your habits and nurture a healthy financial life.
Key Points:
- Budgeting apps can categorize your spending, showing you how much you spend on food, travel, leisure, bills and more. This allows you to spot areas to save.
- Some apps, such as Mint, send reminders to pay your bills, or even pay them automatically.
- With some apps such as PocketGuard, you can set up automatic payments from your checking account to a savings account, meaning you can save without even thinking!
- In 2018, 17% of Americans were using at least one budgeting app.
- Many apps are free, while some cost. Many apps that cost, such as YouNeedABudget offer a free trial.
How Will A Budgeting App Benefit Me?
Budgeting apps are designed to help every individual who spends money – which is most likely you! They are often downloaded by users who have found themselves tight for cash and are trying to change their spending patterns. They are also used by those who are financially secure, but who like to know where they direct their money.
One of budgeting apps’ most useful features is categorization. When you spend, your budgeting app will note what category your transaction falls into. For instance, if you’ve bought a coffee, it may be labeled as ‘food and drink’ spending. If it’s a bill, it could fall under ‘utilities.’ This is helpful as it helps you spot where you overspend most. If it shows you that you’re spending excessively on take-out, for example, you may choose to cut down. This is a decision you maybe wouldn’t have made without the handy pointers from your app.
Some budgeting apps also actively help you save. Apps such as Honeydue allow you to set up regular, direct payments to your savings account from your checking account. This means that you save regularly without having to habitually remind yourself. Saving – therefore – becomes ingrained in your process of budgeting.
If you’re planning a wedding, using one of these budget apps would be a great tool. Also, read Should I Take Out A Wedding Loan to Pay For My Wedding?
Which Apps Are Available?
From basic to complex, and free to costly, there are many options to consider. Here are a few that we deem worthy of your attention:
Free Apps
Mint – An app that is easy to use but serves various purposes. Mint lets you create a personalized budget, track your spending on subscription services, track various credit cards and even offer customized reminders and alerts to remind you to pay your bills on time. Available to Android and iOS users, Mint is a great place to start!
Honeydue – Honeydue’s USP is that you can work collaboratively on Honeydue with those you share finances with. With an internal chat function, you can host financial conversations in a different forum from your regular conversations. Honeydue also offers joint bank accounts through them, which are fee-free and come with a free debit card.
PocketGuard – One of the easiest budgeting apps on the market to use. With PocketGuard, you can get to know the budgeting app for free, and then choose to pay for their advanced versions if you like. It shows how much money you have, how much your bills cost, and then the excess money you have once you have paid them. They make this easy to understand by showing you a personalized pie-chart, allowing you to digest your spending visually. PocketGuard allows you to automatically save and is a great starting point for those trying to change their financial habits.
Apps For A Price
The best way to enter the budgeting app world is to try an app for free, and then decide to pay if you’d like to benefit even more.
YouNeedABudget – A great place to start as they offer a free trial before requiring a payment. With support from their team and 34 days to trial it, YNAB is highly rated on the app store for being easy to use.
Stash – an app that costs, but is extremely affordable. Their subscriptions range from $1 to $9 per month depending on which package you select. With Stash, you have access to a debit card that allows you to earn stocks when you use it. Stash has no overdraft fees or minimum balances and is a great option.
You may also want to check out our post on 5 Things To Avoid When Saving Cash.
