The best budgeting apps

Now I don’t know about you, but sometimes budgeting and saving money isn’t easy. I mean sure, we all have good intentions right of moving money into savings after payday. And then sticking to a budget throughout the month. But in reality that’s easier said than done. Well it is for me anyway. Which is why a little help is always appreciated and usually needed. That’s where these come in. The best budgeting apps to help you save money and actually stick to a budget. 

First up is one of the apps I’ve used the longest and that’s Emma. Emma is a money management app that can sync your current account, savings accounts and credit card accounts together so you can access your balance in real time. Which is incredibly useful when trying to stay on top of your finances. The app also lets you set a budget and sends a notification ahead of an upcoming financial commitment so you know how much money you need in your account to cover the bill. Every week and every month, the apps shares a report with you to let you know where you’ve been spending your money. Which is great for working out where to plug any gaps in your budgets. 

Next up is MoneyBox, which I mainly use for saving and investments. This app is perfect for keeping all your savings and investments in one place. Personally, I have my lifetime investment ISA here (LISA), my Stocks & Shares ISA, and two older pensions that I’ve combined into one on the app. What I love is that you can contribute to each pot weekly, rather than in one lump sum at the start of the month. Plus there is an option to connect a current account and put any round ups into your pots too. 

And finally we have Plum. Now I’ve only been using this app for the past few months but I’m hooked. Like Emma, Plum connects to all your current accounts and works out how much you can afford to save each week. You can also choose specific amounts to save each week and take part in different savings challenges. So for me, I’m doing the 52 week saving challenge, where every week the app automatically takes a set amount. As well as a rainy days challenge, where every time it rains, £2 goes into my savings. 

So there you have it, my thoughts on the best budgeting apps to help you save money. Do you use any of these apps? What are your favourite apps to use to track your spending?