Keeping track of your money can be a difficult proposition for people who either don’t take the time to make a budget, or just don’t understand how to create an effective one. This can create financial problems that you may not be able to solve simply.
Fortunately, in today’s ever-connected world, help is just a mobile device away. Application developers have created hundreds of different apps that can help you set a budget, track your investments and give you a general overall sense of your financial situation. Some of the apps are even free, so you don’t have to spend anything to get on the right financial track. Here are some of the better financial apps that are available on Android and iOS that can help you keep an eye on your money from anywhere.
Mint
The Mint Budgeting App is a great, all-in-one tool that can help anyone set a realistic, sound budget and stick to it month in and month out. It’s also a free app for all mobile devices, so there’s really no downside to giving it a try.
If you do try it, you won’t be disappointed. Mint is a very easy, hassle-free way to follow all of your saving and spending. The app syncs directly to your bank account, so many times you don’t even need to input any information yourself. The app will know when you make withdrawals or deposits and when you use your debit card for groceries, gas or other monthly expenses.
The app is very secure and will give you alerts when you approach your monthly spending limit or when there are unusual charges to your account. It can even give you your credit score, so you know where your overall financial health stands.
All of these features will help you save more and spend less, strengthening your financial position.
PocketGuard
PocketGuard is another budgeting app that tracks your financial situation from anywhere. It doesn’t have all of the bells and whistles that Mint does, but it is free as well and boasts a simplified outlook to your finances.
PocketGuard connects directly to your bank account and, once you input some information like your take-home pay, will keep honest track of your money. From the home screen, you can see your overall financial situation, from the total amount in your account to deposits and withdrawals. The app will also analyze your spending and recognize recurring payments, such as utilities and credit card bills, so it can give you alerts a few days before those payments are due. This will help keep you ahead of your debts and on track to saving money.
Wallaby
Wallaby is a financial tracking app that works a little differently than the previous two. Rather than just linking your bank account, Wallaby links to all of your credit cards as well, making even more financial information available to you in one place.
By linking to your cards, the app keeps track of all of your credit spending and can notify you when you are spending too much. It also analyzes your credit cards and gives suggestions as to which card to use in which store, maximizing points and rewards that each card offers and taking each card’s interest rate into account.
While the app uses top-notch security, linking your cards to the app may concern you, but you don’t have to worry. Wallaby allows you to just tell it what type of card you use and the app can still analyze the cards for the best opportunities to use them.
Digit
This app is for people who have trouble saving money. Like the other apps, you link your bank account to Digit so it can analyze your saving and spending habits.
Unlike the other apps though, Digit will use that analysis and take a small amount of money based on your overall account balance and deposit it into a personalized savings account. This makes saving money an automated procedure that you never have to think about. Of course, you can block the app from moving money and you can withdraw from the Digit savings account at anytime, so your money is never tied up and unavailable. If you use this app for several months, you will see savings results that may surprise you.
Joseph Birch could probably tell you to the dollar how much he has in his bank account. He’s a frugal guy helping people online to manage their finances better to become happier through his articles.