There are many money apps covering different aspects of your financial life. We took a look at the best out there and put together a list for your consideration, to help you accelerate what you’re already doing.
You Need a Budget (YNAB)
- 34 day free trial, then $98.99/year
- Strong customer service and comprehensive education
YNAB is grounded on the idea of zero-based budgeting, in which every dollar is assigned a purpose. The goal is to get one month ahead so you are allocating/spending money you earned at least 30 days ago.
YNAB states that new budgeters save as much as $600 in their first two months, and more than $6000 in their first year! Turns out, budgeting does help, and YNAB has an extensive library to get newbies up to speed.
EveryDollar
- Free, but extra features require joining Ramsey+
For those Dave Ramsey fans out there, his version of YNAB and zero-based budgeting exists on EveryDollar. While the basic option is free, an additional incentive is provided in the Ramsey+ membership, which offers off-app benefits, like audiobooks and courses.
The free version doesn’t offer account syncing: you manually enter incoming and outgoing money throughout the month and categorize line items in your budget and set reminders for bill payments. The Ramsey+ version offers syncing, debt tracking, reports on how you spent your money, etc.
Ramsey+ is free for 14 days, then $59.99/3 months, $99.99/6 months, or $129.99/year, making it the most expensive option on our list.
Mint by Intuit
- Free (with in-app product ads)
Mint offers monthly bill tracking to keep track of daily spending and users can further personalize the spending categories that Mint uses. It also offers credit score and net worth trackers.
Honeydue
- Free (with in-app product ads)
Like Mint and YNAB, Honeydue offers budgeting and bill tracking, but with a twist: it can combine your finances and goals with your spouse.
Both spouses can see a joint financial picture in one app, though either spouse can choose which accounts/assets to share within the app.
There’s even a no-fee/no-minimum joint banking account offered within the app that offers access to more than 55,000 surcharge-free ATMs.
Pocketguard
- $7.99/month or $34.99/year or $79.99 lifetime
Pocketguard is designed to prevent overspending. It has a proprietary “in my pocket” feature which uses an algorithm to identify how much money you can spend based on income, upcoming bills, goals, budget, etc.
Personal Capital
- Free (but paid advising available)
For those with a budget under control and money set aside, Personal Capital tracks and optimizes your investments. While it does still track spending for the budget-minded, Personal Capital also offers retirement planner, education planner, and fee analyzer tools to help you assess and evaluate different options for your investments.
As with other apps listed above, it also offers a net worth tracker.
Perhaps more than one of these apps will meet your current needs and you can always try the free/trial versions to see if they are good fits for you. At MaidThis we are always looking for ways to leverage technology to buy back more time to live your life.
This content originally appeared in our monthly Open Calendar Club newsletter.
