6 Free Budgeting-Made-Easy Apps That Connect to Your Bank Accounts

Each of these budgeting apps bring a unique strategy to the table and allow you to accomplish different financial goals with their help. Some allow you to pay for a premium/professional tier service for more features, but they are free otherwise. Here is my review of each of these six powerful budgeting apps from Apple or Android.

Mint
Mint allows users to create budget categories and keep track of their spending. It connects with your bank accounts if you let it and allows you to see where you are spending your money, as well. You can re-categorize the what you spent, too. It also provides free access to your credit score. Mint comes from the people who made TurboTax and Quicken, and it puts high priority on securing your information.

Level Money
Level Money creates a digital version of looking into your wallet. It helps organize your income and expenses so that you can see what is left over for you to spend each day, week, and month. It’ll send you consistent reminders about your spending habits and tell you how much you have left in each category. This app helps you to figure out how to reduce debt and save for larger expenses.

Mvelopes
Mvelopes is a digital version of budgeting your money in envelopes. You can pay bills from this app, see information about where you spend money and ratings, and get updates in real-time. It helps you to know which envelopes you use more often and how much you spend from each of them. It helps you to know how much money you have left before spending too much.

Personal Capital
Personal Capital is a budgeting tool, but it helps you plan for larger, significant life events, such as college and retirement. It allows you to see your net worth, work on your investment portfolio, and strategize for large, future expenses. You can come up with a retirement plan or even meet with someone in person to work on your investment strategy.

Penny
Penny has a comical kick to it. It sends you gregarious text messages with graphs and charts about your spending habits. Penny is a “she” who tells you about your income and expenses, informs you when a bill needs to be paid, and forecasts for next month. You can even cancel some of your services through this app. Penny puts fun back into finances so that it is not as stressful, while also providing powerful, organized, and simple information about your spending habits.

LearnVest
LearnVest allows you to categorize expenses and make goals for yourself. It gives you a financial planner, who can be accessed via email any day of the week, a financial plan, and blogs and classes about how to manage your finances better. It also has a calculator on it to determine your net worth.

Whether you choose Mint or LearnVest, Penny or Personal Capital, Mvelopes or Level Money, or some combination of the six, you are sure to be well on your way to a successful, organized, secure, and safe financial future.