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Overview
Best Budgeting Apps for 2021
Budgeting can get complicated quickly, especially if you have multiple accounts to keep track of-your credit cards and savings accounts, loans and investments and everything in between. While some people manage to do it in Excel spreadsheets, this approach would give you a headache.
Luckily, there’s no need for that. You can track your budget in dedicated budgeting apps which will do most of the work for you. You just need to find the right app for your needs. Whether you’re looking to pay down debt or save up for a down payment, however, it’s worth learning about these services’ pros and cons before you decide which money management app to install.
Mint: Best free budgeting app
Mint is often included in best personal finance app lists, and for a good reason. Its simple, easy-to-use interface helps people keep track of where their money is going and how much they have left to spend.
Mint, like many money management apps, connects directly to your bank accounts, as well as your credit card accounts, investment accounts and loan accounts. Once your accounts are connected, Mint automatically collects and categorizes new transactions in order to give you a clear picture of your spending. It also tracks your credit score, and you can even add upcoming bills and get reminders when they come due. That way, you won’t accidentally miss a credit card payment and see your credit score drop. Mint is an excellent and easy way to track your expenses and compare your monthly budget to your actual spending. You can set up a budget for each of your spending categories and set up multiple saving goals. The app also gives useful updates-for example, it can now track monthly subscriptions.
You Need a Budget (YNAB): Best for zero-based budgeting
YNAB is what you might call an advanced” money management app-but it delivers. According to YNAB, the average new user saves $600 in their first month of using the app and over $6,000 in the first year. That’s amazing! To achieve those results, you need to follow the YNAB system, which involves giving every dollar a job, saving for your immediate and your true expenses and balancing every penny you overspend. Such an approach is also called zero-based budgeting. When you set up your YNAB account, you create budget categories for your day-to-day bills and expenses and any expenses you may likely have in the future.
If you think you might need to replace your laptop in the next three years, for example, YNAB wants you to set aside $42 each month for “new laptop.” When the three years are up, you’ll have the $1,500 you need for that new MacBook. YNAB also wants you to set budgeting categories for clothing, gifts, car repairs and other variable or occasional expenses-which YNAB calls your “true expenses”-and start saving for them right now.
Once you have your budget set up, you need to give every dollar a job. Yes, even the dollars in your savings accounts. Like Mint, YNAB lets you automatically connect your bank and brokerage accounts. Unlike Mint, YNAB wants you to assign every dollar to a potential expense, either now or in the future.
The last part of the process involves reconciling your actual spending with your budget. Unlike other money management apps, YNAB forces you to cover overspending in one category with available dollars in another category. In other words: if you spend $5 extra on dining out, you have to decide whether to take that $5 out of your clothing budget, your vacation budget or the budget for that laptop you think you’ll need in three years.
YNAB is also the only tool on this list that isn’t free. A subscription runs at $84 per year or $11.99 per month, so you’ll need to budget for that to cover the cost.
Honeydue: Best for couples
Transparency and communication are key in a healthy relationship, including transparency and communication about personal finances.
Honeydue allows couples to gain visibility into each other’s and shared finances. You and your partner can connect all your accounts and categorize transactions as a shared or individual expense. You’ll also see a shared calendar with upcoming bills and get reminders when it’s time to pay. There’s a chat function you can use to discuss any issues or simply send emojis. You can also choose to keep certain transactions private, for example, when you want that gift to be a surprise. You can set up monthly limits for each spending category in the app, and the app will notify you when you’re reaching the limit. However, Honeydue doesn’t offer functionality for creating financial goals or tracking investments, so if those are important features for you, you might want to look into other apps.
Bottom line
These aren’t the only budgeting apps out there, of course, but this list is a good way to help you start thinking about what you want out of a money management app. You can even download a few different apps to your phone, test them out and choose the one you like best. Once you find an app you love, remember to keep checking in with it and using what you learn to improve your finances.
Source: https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/personalfinance/best-budgeting-apps-for-2021/ar-AAL6umy