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5 of the Best Budgeting Apps Ever

Updated: Apr 20


Try one of these best budgeting apps for automated budgeting

Budgeting can be overwhelming; trust me, as someone who’s struggled with finances, I know.


I prided myself on being a numbers girl, but honestly, I didn’t feel like budgeting.


I felt like I was so broke. What was there to budget?


But I quickly learned I was broke because I put off budgeting for so long. I realized people with money have it because of their budget.


And….., while I’m more of a paper-and-pencil kind of girl, I enjoyed trying out a few budgeting apps over the years.


Here are 5 of the best budgeting apps ever!


Related Stories: Give Yourself a "Raise," Even if You're Broke

Does a Budget Really Work?



Mint


Mint is one of the personal finance management apps that everyone is talking about.


Rightly so, because it offers so many amazing features with its user-friendly platform.


Did I mention it’s free?


You can link all your accounts from checking and savings, credit cards, and brokerage. Just to name a few.


Once all accounts are linked in you can categorize your spending and track them against a budget that you can adjust to fit your needs.


Mint has many awesome features for automated budgeting.

Pros

  • Offers free version

  • Account Sync

  • Track Investments

  • Payment Reminders

  • Set savings goals

  • Educational tools via Blog

  • Realtime Alerts, ATM fees, over budget, large purchases, etc.

  • Super powerful and secure platform


Cons

  • Advertisements

  • Some complaints about technical issues


Overall customer rating

  • Google: 4.5

  • Apple: 4.8



Pocket Guard


Pocket Guard does just what the title imply, guard your pocket.


You’re able to track your spending by linking your accounts, so you get to see your accounts all in one place.


You set savings goals to help you plan for life's small and big events.


It also allows you to track subscriptions and cancel what you don’t use.


Guard your pockets by tracking your expenses with Pocket Guard.

Pros

  • Offers free version

  • Easy to use

  • Cancel Subscriptions (for Premium)

  • Sync accounts

  • Set savings goals and track investments

  • See what you have for daily spending

  • Super powerful and secure platform




Cons

  • More features available on the Premium version

  • No Phone support

  • Some users complain of technical issues


Overall customer rating

  • Google: 4.2

  • Apple: 4.7




Rocket Money


Another great contender in the world of automated budgeting is Rocket Money, formerly known as Truebill.


You may remember this app for its promise to save you money by canceling unused subscriptions, but now with the power of Rocket, it’s become so much more.


Not only can you cancel subscriptions, but you can also negotiate bills, link your financial accounts, budget and track your expenses, set savings goals, and monitor your investments.


There is a free version that is limited, but the paid version is not bad if you need to upgrade.


Cancel subscriptions and negotiate bills with Rocket Money app

Pros

  • Offers free version

  • Cancel subscriptions

  • Negotiate bills

  • Sync accounts

  • Gives tips on ways to save money on utilities

  • Monitor outages and request a credit

  • Premium plans are affordable

  • Super powerful and secure


Cons

  • Ads

  • No retirement planning

  • Bill negotiation and Electric saver are on Premium Plan


Overall customer rating

  • Google: 4.3

  • Apple: 4.4



Fudget


Now if you want a very simpler user-friendly interface without all the bells and whistles, you may enjoy using Fudget.


They offer a free version or a one-time payment of $3.99 for its pro version.


You won’t have the ability to sync your accounts, so you’ll have to input your incoming and outgoing expenses using a calculator-type interface.


No bells and whistles with this app.


So if you prefer straightforward features and a do-it-yourself approach to things, you’ll love this app.


Budget super simple with Fudget

Pros

  • Free Version, One-time fee for Pro $3.99

  • Use friendly zero-based budget

  • Helps track bills

  • Make adjustments monthly

  • Export budget as a CSV

  • Super simple basics for budgeting



Cons

  • No categorizations of Expenses

  • No account sync

  • No tracking of savings and investments



Overall customer rating

  • Google: 4.6

  • Apple: 4.8



Good Budgets


If you love the envelope method, you’ll love GoodBudget, because it allows you to plan your spending by portioning out your income into categories.


It doesn’t add to your bank accounts, so you’ll have to add your income and cash manually, then assign them to the different envelopes you create.


It has a free version that allows you to have a limited number of envelopes, 1 account, and 2 devices.


For $8 per month, the paid version allows you to have unlimited envelopes, unlimited accounts, and 5 devices.


Best budgeting app for couples.

Pros

  • Free version

  • Great for couples budgeting together

  • Track debt payoff progress

  • Access the same account on multiple devices





Cons

  • No account sync

  • Limited envelopes in the free version

  • Manual transaction input



Overall customer rating

  • Google: 4.4

  • Apple: 4.7



Major Take Away


Budgeting is like exercising. You never want to do it until you have to. But once you start, you love it.


Not only will you love it, you immediately start to feel its positive effects.


So, stop putting off budgeting; whether you prefer paper or an app I’ve covered, start it today.


Subscribe to my site to get my free yearly budget book, or try one of these apps above.



Happy Budgeting!


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