Do you have a budgeting app or an expenditure tracking app? Can you tell where your money goes every month? Do you have a budget? Are you sticking to your budget? If your answer to the questions is not a definite YES! then this article is for you.
We are in the middle of the year and probably the new year resolutions we had made in January are long forgotten. I hope that one of your new year’s resolutions was and still is to have better money management skills. We all need to know how to take care of our personal finances in terms of expenditure, saving and investing.
In my article on budgeting for the holidays, I talked about having a budget and sticking to it. As much as we try to stick to our budgets, sometimes things don’t go as planned. That’s why we need these budgeting/expenditure tracking apps. The apps are useful especially if you want to know where your money goes or if you want to save up some amount for that special project. Some of the apps can also help you do some micro-investing on the go.
Mint
This is the oldest and best known budgeting app. It suggests a monthly spending limit based on your history, while also tracking your money through a few months’ historical data. It offers a comprehensive free and fast service.
Mint app helps you create a budget with numerous spending categories, and warns you when you are almost exceeding your limit. Mint is a great option if you want to keep a very detailed budget.
YNAB
YNAB stands for “You Need A Budget”. It is built on the principle of “every dollar/shilling has a job”, either spend or save. The app builds a budget based on your actual income or last month’s income. If you go off budget, the app has an inbuilt “accountability partner” that tells you how you need to spend differently to balance your budget.
The best part about YNAB is the community that comes along with it. You can click the YNAB forum to receive support, listen to the YNAB Podcast or stay tuned for their weekly videos. The service claims that it saves new budgeters ksh 6,000 by month two on average.
Wally (Best For Millenials)
Wally supports nearly all foreign currencies. It helps you track your income, expenses and offers you a snapshot of your remaining budget to help you avoid overspending. Wally is a clean, streamlined app that is extremely convenient and easy to use. It’s a great choice if you like more insight into where your money is going.
The Wally app allows you to save pictures of receipts so you can keep track of important items related to taxes and business without dealing with paper. Each time you log in, Wally lets you know how much money you have and what’s left in the budget until the end of the month. It is considered the best for millenials.
Mvelopes
One of the most popular budgeting strategies is the “envelope” strategy. Instead of the actual placing of cash money in an envelope, you do it virtually. The app comes with ten envelopes for your different spending categories.
You divide up your cash, put it in envelopes, and spend in that category until the cash is gone. Once you clear money from one envelope, you can’t borrow from another envelope.
Clarity Money
If you’re staying on top of your budget but want to take your finances to the next level, Clarity Money can help you. It helps you stay under budget and build a personalized savings plan.
Clarity Money immediately creates a pie chart displaying your finances and showing when you overspend. It will then identify your recurring expenses, such as Netflix accounts or gym memberships, and track price increases or reductions.The biggest advantage is that it helps you cancel unwanted accounts that are a drain on your wallet.
The above apps are the most recommended but that doesn’t mean there are no other budgeting/expenditure tracking apps. You can also try some of the following apps.
- Everydollar
- Dollarbird
- Monny
- Spendee
- Goodbudget
- Wallet
- Moneylover
- Personal Capital
- Monefy
These budgeting and expenditure tracking apps are going to make sure you know where your money is going and how you can cut off some expenditures and save up cash. Have a wise money spending year!!!!!!!
Also have a look at the best free travelling apps.