Personal finance apps can help you to create budgets, set financial targets, and save significant amounts of money over time. Some of the best personal finance apps can also help you to manage your pension and advise you on any investments you may have.
With the advancement of digital banking and smartphone payments, personal finance apps have developed over the years to incorporate multiple different financial domains that people engage with in everyday life. You can now track daily payments such as your shopping expenditure with longer-term outgoings like mortgage repayments, all the while making sure you put enough aside for a holiday next year and checking for deals as you go.
But with so many different options to choose from, how do you know which personal finance apps are the best? Is there really that much difference between them all? And are there some that would suit your circumstances more than others?
We are going to clear these questions up for you as we take a look at the top 10 personal finance apps.
What is a personal finance app?
Personal finance apps are apps that allow you to manage different aspects of your personal finances from your smartphone, tablet, or computer. Personal finance apps can help you to track your spending, your progress towards saving goals, investments, and pension pots, and they can also help you budget and remind you when you need to pay bills.
A personal finance app is there to make managing your finances simpler, easier, and more effective. Most personal finance apps come with features such as a digital wallet, bill reminders, automatic payments, and subscription management.
The top 10 personal finance apps
When it comes to personal finance apps there are hundreds of options out there for you to choose from. Many of them offer the same basic tools and features, though some are more advanced or are targeted at a specific area such as investments. There are also apps that are designed for multiple users or for specific purposes such as holidays.
Our list of the top 10 is not exhaustive, but it suggests a good range of options that all offer variations of a personal finance app. Some are free and some are priced.
So let’s jump in and take a look at the top 10 personal finance apps.
Mint
Mint is one of the highest-rated and most-reviewed personal finance apps on both Google Play and the App Store. It is entirely free and offers a range of different account types including current and savings accounts, credit cards, investment portfolio trackers, loans, and bills.
Mint puts your spending into budget categories, which can be personalised to your own limits. You can also set wider saving goals and have the app keep a constant track of your progress. Mint also shows you your current net worth, personal capital, and your credit rating.
Mint’s popularity stems from its simplicity and its range of accounting options and spending categories. It covers most of the areas that personal finance apps are able to cover and it is entirely free.
You Need a Budget (YNAB)
YNAB is specifically designed for budgeting and planning ahead for financial transactions. YNAB uses a zero-based budgeting system, which means that all expenses must be justified for each new financial period.
When you get paid, you put in how much of your money should be spent on certain categories such as food, rent, holidays, and how much of your money should be saved. YNAB then helps you to become more aware of how you are using your money and where you are spending it.
YNAB also allows you to connect the app to your current account (or checking account) and savings account, as well as any credit cards or loans you may also have.
YNAB costs £67.87 per year, although you can try it out on a free 34-day trial.
Every Dollar
Every Dollar is another zero-based budgeting app. It is simple to use and has a free basic version, though there are premium packages that come with extra features. As its name suggests, the app deals in dollars, though it is possible to use other currencies and convert your money into dollars.
Every month, you manually enter your incoming money and your outgoing money to help you to track spending. You can also set reminders for bill payments and categorise items within your budget.
The premium versions allow you to connect your bank account to simplify transaction tracking. They also allow you to track debts and follow updates and reports on how you spent your money.
As we saw before, the basic version of Every Dollar is free and you can try the premium version free for 14 days. After the trial period, Every Dollar costs $59.99 for three months, $99.99 for six months, or $129.99 for 12 months.
Snoop
Snoop is a free finance management app that stores all your bank accounts in one place. You are able to categorise your spending and receive spending alerts on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis.
One of the best perks of Snoop is that they have a discount code finder that finds and shares money-saving vouchers for the places you frequent. Snoop also has energy switching, insurance checking, and card checking features that find the best deals for you.
Snoop is always on the lookout and making sure that you are saving the most amount of money you can. Snoop states that its aim is to save the average user £1,500 per year, so they really mean business!
The standard Snoop app is free to use, but there is a premium version with extra features that allow you to tailor the app even further to your own needs. The premium version costs £3.99 per month or £31.99 per year.
Honeydue
Honeydue is a finance app for couples. Many couples choose to have a shared account whilst also keeping their own personal accounts, and Honeydue makes it possible for you and your partner to view both of your accounts in one app.
You can both sync your bank accounts, credit cards, loans, and investments, whilst also choosing exactly how much financial information you want to share on the app with your partner. Honeydue also sends reminders and even has a chatroom in which you can message your partner.
Honeydue categorises your expenses and allows you to set up your own custom categories. If you put spending limits on your categories, then the app will tell you when you are nearing the limit.
Honeydue is free to use.
Spendee
Spendee is another finance app that is built for sharing. It allows you to create shared accounts with your friends, partner, housemates, or family members so that you can collectively manage a household budget.
Each member can import their bank transactions which are then categorised by the app so you can see just how much you are all spending each month. You can also manually add any cash expenses that aren’t picked up in your account transactions.
Spendee allows you to create budgets within each of the spending categories and issues bill reminders to the group. You can also create your own categories and create splinter groups for things like holidays.
Spendee is free, though there is a premium option available that has a free trial period. The premium version costs $2.99 per month or $22.99 per year.
Koody
Koody is a personal finance app that is personalised and simple to use. It is ideal for anyone who wants a free budgeting app but does not want to connect their bank accounts for privacy or security reasons.
Koody allows you to set budgets, monitor your spending habits, keep track of your current and savings account and investments, all without connecting the app to your personal accounts. It also sets reminders for bill payments and updates you on your performance in relation to your goals.
Koody is specifically designed for a younger market in their 20s and 30s. It offers advice on investments, pensions schemes, and mortgage options for people who may have never dealt with the world of finance before.
Koody is free, you can subscribe to Koody Pro for £1 per month or £10 per year.
Emma
Emma is a finance management app that categorises all of your expenses to help you create budgets, do away with wasteful expenses and subscriptions, and save you money.
Emma allows you to track all of your bank accounts, savings and investments, credit cards, cryptocurrencies, and pensions on one easy to use platform. Emma analyses all of your finances in one place and has a range of tools to help you make decisions about how to budget your money. The app will also send you regular reports to update you on saving goals and how you can budget to make sure you stick to them.
Emma is free to use but you can upgrade to Emma Pro for £9.99 a month (or £59.99 a year) to access more advanced features.
Mobills
Mobills is a personal finance app that uses interactive charts and graphs to analyse your spending. Your expenses are categorised and tracked in relation to budgeting goals within each category. You can also custom design your own categories and the app will then create charts based on them.
You can then also add your credit card, current account, and savings account to keep all your financial accounts in one place. Mobills also has a ‘Dreams Tool’ that allows you to dream big and save for big payments in the future. Got your eye on a dream car? Maybe you want to save for a deposit on the perfect house? Or perhaps you are just looking to put some money away for the holiday of a lifetime next year? Whatever your dream, Mobills helps you break down your savings into small achievable goals you can work towards over longer periods of time.
There is a free version of the app as well as a premium option that costs either $49.99 for a year or $14.99 for three months.
Revolut
Revolut is a personal finance app that keeps all of your spending information in one place. It is perhaps one of the best-known apps on our list and is very popular. You can set your limits within a range of categories or have the app calculate limits for you and recommend spending limits based on your saving goals and average expenditure.
Revolut sends you regular notifications to ensure you stay within your limits and it incorporates your subscriptions and bills with your regular daily spending to give you a complete overview of your outgoings.
Revolut can also be linked to other Revolut products including savings accounts, investments, currency exchange, money transfers, and cryptocurrency wallets.
Revolut standard is free to use, but has three levels of premium membership that cost £2.99 per month, £6.99 per month, and £12.99 per month.
Summary
Everyone will use their personal finance app for their own unique purposes. Whether you are looking to save money or choose wise investments, a personal finance app can help you make good spending decisions.
Each personal finance app offers something a little bit different. Before making a decision on which app to choose, consider what you will use it for and whether you are getting it solely for yourself or for yourself and others to use. Also, consider your budget and whether you want to buy a premium app or just use a free one. Before committing to a premium app try it on a free trial period first if you can.
There is no shortage of choices when it comes to personal finance apps and we hope our list narrows your options. With so many personal finance apps out there, you are sure to find the perfect one for you.