Budgeting isn’t easy. Fortunately, in this age of technology, there are plenty of apps and tools available that can help you get your finances in shape. Let’s review some of the latest budgeting apps on the market so you can find the best one to fit your needs and lifestyle.
Mint (my personal favorite)
Mint is a budgeting app that has come out on top time and time again. It’s the one that I use for my personal accounts. It has a simple to use interface and it allows you to create your budget in a few simple steps.
The app sends alerts to let you know when bills need to be paid, when you’re reaching your budget limit and when you’re going over budget. It has a credit score checker and investment tracking tools as well.
Mint is free to use and it works on Androids and iPhones. It connects all your accounts so you can see them all in one place and it keeps track of transactions as they happen.
It also provides you with money saving tips on a daily basis.
The fact that Mint is so easy to use and provides useful tips to keep you on track makes it a favorite for students and those just becoming financially independent.
Home Budget
Home Budget is recommended because it allows you to create a budget for yourself as well as one for your household. Its flexible and versatile and the Family Sync feature lets both you and your significant other track your income and expenses together.
The app allows you to categorize expenses and bills and keep track of both individually. It also keeps track of automatic payments to allow for more accurate monitoring.
Home Budget provides you with visuals and bar graphs that give you a picture of exactly where your money is going, patterns in spending and more.
It is available for a fee of $4.99 – $5.99 for mobile versions. Desktop versions are $14.99 to $19.99. Its sharing features make it perfect for couples and families.
Spreadsheets
While some people prefer all the bells and whistles an app can provide, sometimes a good old spreadsheet is all it takes. Spreadsheets can be created in Excel and you can categorize your expenses any way you’d like. Its adding and subtraction features will help you keep track of totals.
Excel is relatively easy to use and it’s free to anyone who owns the Office software. It’s also suited to any type of lifestyle.
You can also use Google Sheets with G drive. Lately, I’ve been using Sheets more than Excel for tracking expenses relating to projects etc.
Personal Capital
This app is more of a personal investment advisor than a personal finance app. It’s recommended for financial pros, yet it still provides tools that make it suitable for household budgets. Its dashboard allows you to plug in all your accounts including checking, savings, loans investments and more so you can get a real sense of your bottom line.
Personal Capital also provides the following features:
- Shows your net worth
- Management of all bank accounts from its dashboard
- Analyzes investments and spots hidden fees
- Aids in retirement planning
Mvelopes
Mvelopes is a great app for people who prefer paper over plastic. It helps you divide your cash into different categories for spending and it makes the transition from cash to digital as seamless as possible.
With plans ranging from $6 to $59 a month, Mvelopes is not free but is can be linked up to all your bank accounts and it provides you with real time budgeting. The app also provides financial coaches that can help you get a handle on your debt.
Honeydue
Honeydue is another app that is great for couples and families. It lets the spouses co-share financially responsibility.
The app provides access to all your bank accounts and these can be tagged as individual and shared accounts. You can also categorize your transactions and expenses.
You can add notes that both you and your partner can view helping you to communicate about your finances. It sends out alerts about payments due and it helps you split expenses and keep tabs on who owes what.
Or, if you’d rather keep things private, it helps you hide select accounts from your significant other.
Good Budget
One old fashioned way to keep track of expenses is to put your money into different envelopes and mark each for what you want to spend the money on. Once the envelope is empty…well, you’ve reached your budget.
Of course, this is a bit old fashioned for some but there is an app that works on the same principle and that’s Good Budget.
Good Budget lets you create virtual envelopes that you can use to track expenses. It also lets you sync your budget with others across devices.
There are free and paid versions of the app allowing you to choose one that suits your financial needs.
Good Budget’s simplicity makes it great for beginners but its ability to sync with other budgets can also make it ideal for couples and families.
Pocket Guard
The pocket guard app is the ultimate budgeting app for those who tend to overspend. It seamlessly links to all your accounts to help you keep track of expenses and it has an easy to use interface that makes it ideal for beginners.
It automatically builds a budget based on your income, expenses and goals and helps you keep track of every penny. Then it crunches numbers and provides you with tips of how to save including recommending high interest savings accounts and ways to lower bills.
Final Thoughts
In this modern age, everyone wants to simplify with technology. These financial apps can provide ways for you to keep track of your income and expenses, pay your bills on time and more. Which do you think is right for you?
