5 Best Personal Finance Apps to Manage, Save and Invest Your Money

Are you looking for personal finance apps to manage your money on the go? It seems like every day there’s a new app to improve your life.

There are apps to help you shop, find love, book a holiday or find cheap petrol. There’s even an app where you can compete with your friends to see who will run out of toilet paper first (no joke, it’s called Paper Racing).

The same goes for money and budgeting – there are hundreds of personal finance apps out there. So it can be hard to choose the best one that fits your needs, particularly if you’re a technophobe or simply overwhelmed by the choice.

Why Use A Personal Finance App?

We’re not saying you must use personal finance apps, after all paper and pen work just fine. However, and forgive us for straying into cyber-speak here but Fintech (financial technology) is a convenient and proven way to help you manage your money even on the go.

One of the best effects of these apps is they help you to become aware of your money. You can’t manage money if you don’t know how much you have. Being conscious of your money leads to smarter money management and apps can improve your financial focus.

Which Money App?

Most people now have a smartphone so accessing your money and budget can be done at the touch of a button. But which one suits your needs?

From budgeting and debt management to playing the stock market, there’s an app out there for you. Here are five (or so) of the best money apps.

5 Personal Finance Apps to Suit You

1. To Create a Spending Plan or Budget

For those new to budgeting in general, it’s hard to beat You Need a Budget (YNAB). Based on ‘the envelope method,’ the money app allows you to separate your income into separate ‘pots’ (such as rent or bills). When you get paid, it divides your income among the pots so you can see where your money goes.

With YNAB, every pound is accounted for and you can move money between pots. It also encourages you to save for bigger items, such as Christmas or a new car. The app costs around £3.50 per month but you get a decent bang for your buck.

The updated version even gives users recommendations on how to manage their money in a no-fuss parental way. But as with advice from parents, you can easily ignore it if you want. Other handy apps which follow a similar format are Goodbudget and Money Dashboard.

2. For Saving Money Effortlessly

The Chip personal finance app tracks your spending habits, works out how much you can afford to save and moves it into a Chip savings account.

Chip’s algorithm calculates what you can afford from your bank accounts (with your permission) puts it to one side almost like a direct debit. It’s free and regulated by the FCA so if Chip were to go bust, you won’t lose your money.

Another simple, stress-free money saving app which follows a similar format is Plum. For those with something big to save for (such as a wedding) Savings Goal is also a great money app as it calculates a schedule for you to save until you reach the goal.

3. To Help You Pay Down Debt Faster

If you’re in debt there are loads of money apps out there to help you get it all organised and paid off. One of the best is Debt Manager, which uses ‘the snowball method.’ When your first debt is paid off, the money used to pay it off is allocated to the next debt and so on until, hopefully, you achieve financial freedom.

After entering your debts and interest rates, the app calculates the cheapest and quickest way for you to pay them off, and in what order.

It also helps you organise and track your debts and provides a repayment plan. You may need to liaise with your creditors about a repayment plan but the app helps you to stick to it.

4. Investing Made Easy

Moneybox automatically invests that ‘spare change’ you don’t think about. It’s designed to ease you into investing in small amounts. Moneybox rounds up small purchases to an amount set by you and puts the excess into a stocks and shares ISA. And believe us, the odd 20p here and there can really add up.

For people who really want to get into investing, Money Farm is a great app. You answer a few questions about your investment goals and the app will do the rest, matching you to a portfolio that suits you. The only thing you have to do is provide the cash to invest!

5. Making Your Money Go Further

Your pay cheque comes in and you go out and spend it all, not thinking about the other 29/30 days in the month. If this is you, the Squirrel app will help you manage your income by drip-feeding it to you.

You will need to direct your income into a Barclays Squirrel account and once done, the money app separates your money into three groups (rent/mortgage and bills; savings; spending money). The app then pays money back into your current account when these things are due to be paid.

This makes sure you will always have enough money to cover the bills with the added bonus of encouraging you to save (in a separate savings pot).

There are loads more personal finance apps out there, these will help you get started. If none of these suits your fancy or financial goals get googling and take control of your finances today.

Over to You!

Do you use any personal finance apps? Has technology helped you manage your finances and debts better? Share with us here – we’d love our readers to add to our list.

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