8 Apps That Can Help You with Your Finances

Managing your money can feel super overwhelming. Many of us are trying to keep track of a lot at once: spending, savings, bills, investments, and a bunch of other categories. Fortunately, there are plenty of apps specifically designed to make the process easier. If you want to finally stick to a budget, save more money, or just get a better idea of where you stand financially, these apps can help.

1. Rocket Money

Rocket Money is a great option if you feel like money is disappearing from your account and you’re not really too sure where it’s going. The app tracks your spending and organizes transactions into categories so you can easily see where your money goes each month. It can also identify recurring subscriptions that you may have forgotten about, which makes it easier to spot services you’re still paying for but either no longer use or didn’t even know you still had. You can use the app to create budgets and keep an eye on upcoming bills. This one is useful for anyone who wants a clearer picture of their everyday spending.

2. YNAB

YNAB, short for You Need a Budget, takes a hands-on approach to budgeting. Instead of simply showing you what you already spent, the app encourages you to think ahead. It asks you to decide what to do with every dollar before you spend it. This can be helpful if you’re trying to break the paycheck-to-paycheck cycle or save for specific goals. Users report that there is a little bit of a learning curve when you first start using it. However, once you get the hang of how the system works, it can make you much more intentional about your money.

3. Credit Karma

Keeping track of your credit is a major part of being smart financially. Credit Karma allows you to monitor your credit information and scores from your phone. Just remember that the scores you see in the app may not be the same scores a lender uses. It provides VantageScore credit scores based on Equifax and TransUnion data, whereas many lenders use versions of FICO scores.

The app gives you access to credit information and alerts you to changes in your credit profile. If you’re at a loss for how to raise your score, it can help you understand the factors that might be negatively affecting your credit. There are financial product recommendations throughout the app, but you don’t need to do everything it suggests. The free credit-monitoring features are what can be useful, especially if you’re trying to build your credit back up.

4. Empower

Many of us have more than just one account to think about. If you have money across checking accounts, savings accounts, retirement accounts, and investments, Empower can help you see the big picture. Its dashboard lets you connect multiple accounts so you can see your financial life in one place. You can track your spending, investments, and overall net worth, and see how you make headway over time. It also has tools for looking at retirement savings and investment fees. Empower is great for people who have already nailed basic budgeting and want to focus on building long-term wealth.

5. Goodbudget

Goodbudget is the digital version of the old-fashioned and highly effective envelope budgeting method. You divide your income across different spending categories, or “envelopes,” such as groceries, fun money, auto, and household expenses. As you spend money, you can see how much is left in each category. This makes overspending in a particular area much easier to spot before it causes problems. It’s a fairly straightforward idea but can be really effective for those who want to go old school but don’t want to carry actual cash around.

6. Acorns

Acorns is designed to make investing feel less intimidating, mainly for beginners. One of its best-known features, Round-Ups, rounds purchases to the next dollar and invests the difference once those small amounts add up. Those seemingly insignificant amounts gradually stack up over time. The app also has other investing and savings features, which are accessible depending on the plan you pick. There are fees involved with this one, so it’s important to compare the cost with how much the app actually helps you save.

7. EveryDollar

EveryDollar is another budgeting app built around the idea of being super intentional about where your money goes before you spend it. You create a monthly budget and decide how much you want to spend or save in different categories. The simple layout is nice; it’s not packed with as many distracting or complicated features as some other apps. With this one, it is also easy to adjust your budget when expenses change throughout the month. For someone who mostly wants help making and sticking to a budget, EveryDollar can be a great answer.

8. Fidelity

Fidelity reminds us that you don’t need some fancy finance app to start investing. This app gives customers access to brokerage accounts, retirement accounts, investing tools, research, and other financial resources. This is good for anyone who is just starting to think past the monthly budget and more about longer-term goals. Once you have investments and retirement savings in place, the app lets you keep tabs on them and monitor your progress in one place. Just remember that an easy-to-use app for investing is still investing. It involves risk, so do your research before deciding where to put your money.

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