For many people budgeting can feel like a real chore. One of the nice benefits of using ATM, debit, or credit cards for daily living expenses and purchases is the ability to integrate those transactions with apps that can make the budgeting process much easier. Some of these apps can even help manage your cash spending.
Here are a few options:
Do you know where all your money goes each month? You probably have at least a rough idea of where you spend your money. There are routine expenses like gas for your car, lunch at the office, utility bills, and mortgage payments.
But what about all the other ways you spend your money? You may be surprised by what you find if you start tracking it closely.
Apps like Mint or Quicken have been around for a while, but many banks and credit unions also offer free budgeting tools that integrate with your checking and savings transactions. MX Money Management is free for Credit Union members and you can add all of your financial accounts from other financial institutions so you can get one unified view for free!
You may find some spending habits you didn’t even know you had or identify some easy ways to cut mindless spending from your budget.
Does it sometimes feel like everything requires a subscription? Digital magazines, news sites, TV, computer software, and even groceries and household items all bought through a subscription service.
With that many subscriptions, it can be challenging to keep up with everyone you have. That means there could be some you have forgotten about yet are still making payments. According to Truebill, a whopping 84% of people have subscriptions they have forgotten about!
With an app like Truebill, you can automate finding lost subscriptions and even cancel them right from the app. As an added benefit, Truebill uses the same encryption that many banks use so your information stays protected.
Do you always allow room in your budget for regular savings? If so, how often does your budget get off track? When that happens, do you always follow through with your savings goals?
Regular savings is one of the easiest things to cut from your budget. Unfortunately, it may also be one of the most important items in your budget. Instead of cutting your savings altogether when your budget doesn’t go as planned, consider a flexible savings target instead.
Of course, that very idea sounds like yet another tedious thing to track but it presents another opportunity to automate your budget with a helpful app called Digit.
Digit monitors your budget very closely, and over time identifies patterns in your spending. It then uses machine learning to identify small sums of money that you could save every day without feeling the pinch in your budget. It then automatically moves that sum to a savings account.
The cool part about this is your savings amount will adjust based on changes in your spending habits.
Taking control of your financial health by using budgeting apps is a great way to reduce your stress. Luckily the days of balancing your checkbook and paper statements have been made much easier through these easy-to-use apps. Knowing where you stand financially is a great first step.
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