Whatever financial goals you set, the right tools can help you reach them faster. Savings apps can help you manage your finances more efficiently.
But with so many savings app options to choose from, it can be hard to find the right solution for your needs.
Remember, the best savings app for you may not be right for everyone, so when considering different financial technologies, it's wise to evaluate the cost, features, and whether different apps align with your goals before making your final choice.
Here are four money saving apps you might want to consider.
Acorns
Acorns is an app designed to help you put money on autopilot: Once you set up your account, you link your credit card to the app and Acorns will round up your purchases to the next dollar. From there, Acorns will save or invest the change on your behalf.
The Acorns app offers users a variety of options to simplify the process of saving money: you can automate savings goals for your (Mighty Oak Bank high-yield savings account), investment accounts, and retirement accounts based on your personal preferences and the advice of a robo-advisor.
Fee
Acorns monthly fees vary depending on the membership level you choose.
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Acorns Personal: $3/month
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Acorns Personal Plus: $5/month
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Acorn Premium: $9/month
All three plans include the coins Round-Ups® feature. However, the lowest-priced plan, the Acorns Personal plan, does not include a high-yield savings account option to help you grow your emergency fund. And if you're interested in investing and , you may want to consider the Acorns Premium option.
Ideal for…
Acorns may be a great choice for new investors and savers who prefer an automated savings process and access to .
Capital
Qapital is another personal finance app that helps users save small amounts of money and automate the process. Additionally, Qaptial allows you to set rules for saving money towards your automatic savings and investment goals. There are 15 different options available.
For example, every time you use your debit or credit card, you can tell the app to round up the transaction and deposit it into a specific savings or investment account. There are also “guilty pleasure” rules: every time you splurge on a takeaway, for example, you can tell the app to save a certain amount accordingly.
Qapital also offers its users several other useful personal finance tools. The app includes options for , debt tracking, and .
Fee
Qapital offers three different membership levels.
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Basics: $3/month
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completion: $6/month
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Premier: $12/month
The three membership options include unlimited savings goals and the option to share goals with a partner. Complete and Premier members also have access to a Visa® debit card and an automatic investment account. Qapital Premier provides access to all features, including personalized challenges (called Money Missions) that encourage users to save more.
Ideal for…
Qapital may be best for people who respond well to visual goals and an automated savings process. This personal finance app may also be a good fit for people who need to record and track their debt repayments individually or with a partner.
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Rocket Money
Rocket Money is another money-saving app worth considering. It offers a wide range of features, including budgeting tools, net worth tracking, subscription management, bill negotiation, smart savings accounts, and credit monitoring. You can also link your bank and investment accounts to automate your savings goals.
Unlike other money saving apps, Rocket Money gives users the choice between a free and premium version. Of course, the premium version of the app has more features, but the fact that it offers a free version makes it better than what many of its competitors offer.
Fee
Rocket Money offers users two different membership options.
If you choose to become a Rocket Money Premium Member, the service starts with a 7-day free trial, after which membership costs between $6 and $12 per month based on the price you choose when signing up.
Rocket Money also offers an invoice negotiation service, which charges between 35% and 60% of the amount Rocket Money saves you (first year savings only), and again, you choose the percentage within this range that you want to pay the company.
Ideal for…
If you're looking for a subscription management tool or bill negotiation service to help you save money on your monthly budget, consider Rocket Money. Those who would benefit from the free version of the app should also consider the service.
Good Budget
Goodbudget is a traditional savings app with a digital twist. This personal finance app allows you to create a budget, set savings goals, and divide your monthly income into different categories or “envelopes” depending on how you want to spend and save the money you earn. This type of strategy is called zero-based budgeting, and Goodbudget gives you the digital tools to make it easy to stick to it.
It's important to note that Goodbudget doesn't include an auto-savings feature like other money-saving apps, but if you upgrade to the premium version of the app, you can take advantage of unlimited budget categories and share your budget with multiple users.
Fee
If you're interested in using GoodBudget to manage your money, there are two membership options:
Free accounts come with up to 20 budget categories (also known as digital envelopes), while premium users can set up unlimited envelopes and share budgets with partners and groups.
Ideal for…
Goodbudget might be a good choice for fans of envelope budgeting, or for those who want a digital tool for zero-based budgeting. It's also worth considering if you're looking for a tool to help you budget together with your partner or family.
Tips for choosing the best money saving app for you
With so many options available, it can be difficult to choose a money-saving app to help you manage your finances. Below are some tips to help you sort through the options available and choose the best money-saving app for your situation.
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Identify your financial goals. Before you start reviewing apps, it's a good idea to understand the financial goals you're trying to achieve. For example, if you're prioritizing paying off debt, you should start by looking for digital tools that can help you accomplish that task. However, if you're already debt-free and have a deep emergency fund, you might instead want a more advanced savings tool that automates your investments and retirement savings.
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Check out the features and pricing. Next, start considering the features and costs of different apps. Keep in mind that you may want to sign up for multiple savings apps to help you reach different financial goals, but make sure you don't strain your budget by paying more per month than you can afford.
Conclusion
Money saving apps have the ability to simplify difficult or tedious financial tasks, and if they help you save money or reach important financial goals, they may well be worth the associated membership fees.
However, it's important to do your research before signing up for this type of service. Compare your options and choose the digital tools you think will benefit you, especially if they involve a fee. It's also important to frequently evaluate the value of services that have recurring monthly fees to make sure they're worth the cost.
