It’s easier than ever to budget and save effectively thanks to technology that makes navigating your finances painless and simple. We’ve rounded up the five most helpful personal finance apps that will help you gain control of your money and work toward a more financially secure future.
Budgeting apps
PocketGuard
This app connects directly to your financial accounts and gives you a detailed overview of your spending and savings habits. PocketGuard will tell you how much money you have to spend safely and its features are focused on helping you reduce spending. Additionally, PocketGuard can help you lower your monthly bill costs by looking out for better deals on recurring charges like internet and phone service.
Mint
Mint is a classic budgeting app with a load of useful features. After linking the app to your accounts, Mint will automatically categorize your spending and create detailed reports that will help you view your spending habits in a new light. You’ll be able to create a budget within the app and set up notifications for bank and credit card fees, bill due dates, and when you’re getting close to your monthly allotment in each budget category. Mint also allows you to see your credit score for free.
You Need a Budget
This popular and powerful budgeting tool isn’t available for free outside of the trial period unless you’re a student, but it’s well worth the $6.99 a month investment. It’s recommended for people who are serious about tracking every dollar of their income and making sure that all the money they make is contributing toward their goals. Create a budget based off of your income and start getting serious about investing, debt payoff, reducing spending, and tracking financial goals all in one place. By having an action plan for every dollar in your budget, your spending habits will become more transparent and purposeful. You’ll start to see budgeting as a motivating indicator of the progress you’re making toward your goals.
Apps for investing
Acorns
Acorns is a low-cost app that will enable you to invest starting with as little as five dollars. Acorns will automatically invest change each time you make a purchase. Your Acorns portfolio will be made up of exchange-traded funds. These minuscule investments don’t feel like they’re taking away from your budget, because they’re hardly noticeable – under a dollar each time. They add up quickly. If you’ve found it difficult to get yourself to start investing, Acorns is a great start. Within a few months, you’ll set yourself up for long-term success. Acorns charges $1 a month for portfolios under $5,000 and 0.25% a year for all other users.
Personal Capital
This app includes typical saving and budgeting tools, but its strengths lie in its tools for investors. Personal Capital acts as a personal investment advisor at no charge. You’ll receive automated reports detailing your investment fees and recommendations for asset allocation.