Save your money with these apps! (2024)

Beware of little expenses; a small leak will sink a great ship.

— Benjamin Franklin

Do you know that you can contribute $80 a month to your emergency fund or retirement plan after you give up your indulgence for a Starbucks Frappuccino once every day or weekend party hosting?

Yes! With these small savings, you can save a lot of money in your bank account and spend them on creating assets that pay you in time of need.

Saving money and cutting costs is a cardinal rule for start-ups that are involved in businesses that need high capital to operate such as providing data center services, operating a manufacturing unit, or investing in a pistachio plantation.

The habit of saving can make you less vulnerable to becoming a shopaholic! You all might have seen Confessions of a Shopaholic, just wanted to make a point that not everyone will end up having an affair with a millionaire entrepreneur.

So, we have curated a list of applications that can help you in saving money.

Qapital

Initially released in Sweden in 2013 by Daniel and Andreas Källbom of Studio Källbom, the application had a user interface similar to Mint. It provided finance management advice to its users. Later, it was redesigned for the US market and changed its operation to help people save money rather than manage it only.

The best thing about it is that the Qapital account lets the users earn a small amount of interest on their savings as a motivating factor. The applications don’t share any profits made from the app. It works on the IFTTT algorithm that translates to ‘if this then that’.

It can be calibrated with other apps to set a rule or goal. If that goal is reached, Qapital transfers an amount from the spending account to the Qapital account certified with Lincoln Savings Bank or another FDIC insured account.

Feex

In the United States, section 401(k) in the Internal Revenue Code defines maintenance of pension account. It allows people to contribute some of their earnings to a retirement plan every month. Roth 401(k) is a popular option where the person can withdraw money later with no taxes. However, employees do not pay much heed in managing their 401(k) accounts.

Feex help people do that. According to its website, investors can grow their funds by 76% over 20 years if they can manage them regularly. Feex helps retirement savings account generate 3.3% more returns for free.

However, the app charges a referral fee after you adopt a change suggested by the app.

Acorns

Acorns is an app for people who wants to have their investment, banking and savings on a single dashboard. Acorns core options permit users to manage their day-to-day transactions. For every expenditure made, the app rounds off the value to the nearest dollar and invests it in pre-defined portfolios, but this is subject to the user reaching a threshold limit of $5 roundup savings.

Acorns Later feature of the app helps users to manage their retirement plans. The app can make recurring investments in Retirement Accounts along with 401(k) plans or SEP IRA. The deduction is made from an account that is linked to the application.

The deductions and investments made may vary according to the time lapsed since investments and time left for the user to retire for a holistic plan. The applications also let you plan educational requirements for your children and make investments that will help the user in paying their tuition fees later. The basic Acorns later costs $1, Acorns later costs $2 while $5 per month is charged for a whole family package.

Trim

It is your virtual personal financial advisor. The users can link all their accounts into the application and keep track of every transaction made. The app suggests changes in your expenditure habit. It may advise you to start investing in some investment portfolio or just suggests you carry your homemade food along to curb on additional expenditure on having lunch at a restaurant every now ad then.

The app will analyze your subscription plans and give suggestions for cheap alternatives, discounts, or rewards. It can cancel subscriptions and send updates on the condition of your finances. Automated text updates help subconsciously in keeping a check on instinctual shopping. It is good for people who need constant reminders of their nickels.

Mint

CNBC reported Mint to be the most effective budgeting app which is available for free. It sends subscription alerts, bill reminders, and customised alerts if you cross a threshold limit set by you. It also serves as a credit monitoring service helping you to keep your debts in check.

The application can be synchronised with all your bank accounts, credit cards and details of all investment portfolios. It identifies a pattern in your spending habits and creates a budget goal for you. The app is secured by VeriSign and multiple authentication processes for the secure transmission of data.