No matter what financial goals you set for yourself, the right tool has the potential to help you reach them faster. Money-saving apps can help you manage your finances and save money more effectively.
Yet, with so many money-saving apps to choose from, it can sometimes be difficult to figure out the right solution for your needs.
Keep in mind that the best money-saving apps for you might not be the right fit for everyone. So, when you consider different financial technologies, it’s wise to evaluate costs, features, and how different apps align with your goals before you make any final selections.
Here are four money-saving apps you may want to consider.
Acorns
Acorns is an app designed to help put saving and investing on autopilot. Once you set up your account, you can link credit cards and debit cards to the app and have Acorns round up your purchases to the next dollar. From there, Acorns can save or invest your spare change on your behalf.
The Acorns app offers users several different options to simplify the money-saving process. You can automate savings goals for an emergency fund (in a Mighty Oak Bank high-yield savings account), investment accounts, and retirement accounts based on your personal preferences or according to the advice of a robo-adviser.
Cost
Monthly fees for Acorns vary depending on the membership level you choose:
- Acorns Personal: $3 per month
- Acorns Personal Plus: $5 per month
- Acorns Premium: $9 per month
All three plans include the spare change Round-Ups® feature. However, the lowest-price plan — Acorns Personal plan — doesn’t include a high-yield savings account option to help you grow your emergency fund. Also, if you’re interested in investment or bank account options for kids, you’ll want to consider the Acorns Premium option.
Best for…
Acorns may be best for new investors and savers who appreciate an automated savings process and access to a robo-adviser.
Qapital
Qapital is another personal finance app that can help users save small amounts of money and automate the process. Plus, with Qaptial, you can set the rules when it comes to saving money toward your automatic saving and investing goals — and there are 15 available options.
For example, you could direct the app to round up transactions and deposit money into a specific savings or investment account whenever you use your debit or credit card. There’s also a “Guilty Pleasure” rule; every time you splurge on carryout, for instance, you could direct the app to set aside a certain amount of savings in response.
Qapital also offers users several other useful personal finance tools. The app includes budgeting features, a debt tracker, and the option to manage money with a partner.
Cost
Qapital offers three different membership tiers:
- Basic: $3 per month
- Complete: $6 per month
- Premier: $12 per month
All three membership options include unlimited savings goals and the option to share goals with a partner. Complete and Premier members have access to a Visa® debit card and an automated investment account as well. Qapital Premier offers access to all features, including personalized challenges (called Money Missions) to help users save more.
Best for…
Qapital may be best for people who respond well to visual goals and an automated savings process. The personal finance app could also work well for those who need a budgeting tool or tracker to help pay down debt — individually or with a partner.
Rocket Money
Rocket Money is another money-saving app you may want to consider. It offers a wide range of features, including budgeting tools, net worth tracking, subscription management, bill negotiation, smart savings accounts, and credit monitoring (among others). You can also link your bank and investment accounts to automate savings goals.
Unlike some other money-saving apps, Rocket Money offers users a free version and a premium version to choose between. Of course, the premium version of the app offers more features. But the fact that a free version is available at all is more than what many competitors have to offer.
Cost
Rocket Money offers users two different membership options.
- Free: $0 per month
- Premium: $6-$12 per month (Member choosing price during the sign-up process)
If you choose to become a Rocket Money Premium member, the service starts with a 7-day free trial. Afterward, membership is $6-$12 per month, based on the price you choose at the time of sign-up.
Rocket Money also offers a bill negotiation service. The fees for this service are 35%-60% of the amount Rocket Money saves you (first-year savings only). Again, you choose the percentage to pay the company within this range.
Best for…
You may want to consider Rocket Money if you’re looking for a subscription management tool or a bill negotiation service to save money on your monthly budget. People who could benefit from the free version of the app may also want to consider this service.
Goodbudget
Goodbudget is a money-saving app that puts a digital spin on the traditional envelope budgeting strategy. You can use this personal finance app to create a budget and set savings goals, dividing your income into different categories or “envelopes” each month according to how you’d like to spend and save the money you earn. This type of strategy is called a zero-based budget, and Goodbudget gives you the digital tools to make it easier to stick to it.
It’s important to keep in mind that Goodbudget doesn’t include automatic savings features like some other money-saving apps. But if you upgrade to the premium version of the app, you can take advantage of unlimited budget categories and share your budget with multiple users.
Cost
If you’re interested in using GoodBudget to manage your money, there are two membership options available:
- Free: $0 per month
- Premium: $10 per month or $80 per year (billed annually)
Free accounts come with up to 20 budget categories (aka digital envelopes). Meanwhile, premium users can set up unlimited envelopes and can share the budget with a partner or a group.
Best for…
Goodbudget may be a good fit for fans of envelope budgeting and people who want a digital tool to track a zero-based budget. Partners and families who want a tool to help them budget together may also want to consider the app.
Tips for choosing the best money-saving app for you
With so many available options, it might be difficult to choose a money-saving app to help manage your finances. Below are some tips to help you sort through the available options and select the best money-saving app for your situation.
- Identify your financial goals. Before you start to review apps, it’s a good idea to understand the financial goals you’re trying to achieve. If your priority is to pay down debt, for example, you should start by searching for digital tools to help you accomplish that task. However, if you’re already debt-free and have a well-established emergency fund, you might be ready for more advanced money-saving tools that automate investment and retirement savings instead.
- Review features and fees. Next, you can start to review the features and costs that different apps have to offer. Keep in mind that you might want to sign up for more than one money-saving app to accomplish different financial goals. Just be sure not to put a strain on your budget by committing to more monthly fees than you can afford.
Bottom line
Money-saving apps have the ability to simplify difficult or tedious financial tasks. And if they help you save money or stay on track with important financial goals, they could be well worth the cost of any associated membership fees.
However, before you sign up for this type of service, it’s important to do your research. You should make sure to compare options and choose a digital tool that you believe will benefit you — especially if there’s a fee involved. It’s also important to frequently assess the value of any service that charges a recurring monthly fee to make sure it continues to be worth the cost.
