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Article written by Jackie Porter
Are you recently divorced? Trying to get a handle on your finances on your own? This task may feel a bit daunting. You may have started the year with the best of intentions around your finances. Unfortunately, that did not stop you from racking up credit card debt. You may have struggled to create cheer for your children as they grappled with the divorce over the holidays. Now it’s 2021 and the holiday bills are all coming due. How will you dig yourself out of the financial hole?One that threatens to grow exponentially if you don’t rein in your spending? Don’t worry we got you. Read on for my list of the top 5 budget apps to help you get back on track.
Mint
Keep track of your saving and spending in one place.
A great feature of the Mint App is a pie chart that provides an at a glance view of your weekly expenditures. You can pay your bills, credit cards and make deposits to your investment accounts all while using the App. Mint will also send you notifications when your bills are due. This app is known for helping to keep track of all your spending and saving in one place. It will even build a budget for you! The best part: mint is totally free. This is a popular app for people who are new to managing their expenses and want a free app to work with to start their budgeting journey.
Drawbacks:
Lots of advertising, customer service is lacking and syncing with smaller banks and credit unions means you may need to do more manual reconciliation of transactions.
PocketGuard
A great alternative to Mint, Pocket Guard provides links to your bank, credit card and investment accounts without a lot of heavy lifting on your part. The interface is also clean and user friendly. All while providing you with the latest information on your incoming and outgoing cash in one convenient location. PocketGuard zeroes in on what you can afford to spend before going into debt. If you’re a new divorcee who doesn’t know where to start this app may be the right one for you!
How does PocketGuard do this? Pocket Guard will create a budget for you automatically based on your income, your current bills and personal savings goals. You can get the basic version of PocketGuard for free or invest in the paid version for $3.99 US per month.
Drawbacks:
There are few hiccups with initial setup and online support is limited. The Help section on their website does offer allot of useful information.
YNAB
The ultimate budget app to keep you on track.
Ok, so not the most elegant looking of the budget apps. But if you are looking for help sticking to your spending plans this app is for you! Built on the principle of having a use for every dollar this nifty little app will help you to live within your means, get out of debt and provide you with strategies to get your finances back on track if you start to drift. All for a low monthly fee. If you struggle with adjusting your budget as your expenses ebb and flow and want motivation and strategies to help you this app will be a gamechanger.
Drawbacks:
The app charges a monthly fee of 11.99 with a free trial period, also not as clean and streamlined as Mint and may take a few weeks for the user to learn the principles and navigate the software.
Expensify
Manage business receipts and track expenses.
If you are a recently divorced business owner who is needs assistance in keeping your receipts in order, Expensify is for you. Users love how easy the software is to use. The smart scan feature allows you to scan receipts with your phone that will automatically match the expense to a credit card or other account so you can keep track of expenses on the run even when you travel. Expenses can be also be matched and converted to the currency of your choice. This information can be uploaded and saved to a web account.
Use Expensify to create an expense report and keep a closer eye on the financial health of your business!
Drawbacks:
Not a lot of cons. Some users have complained that Quickbooks integration is still lacking. The on-boarding user experience has had some hiccups. Overall, users still give this software top marks.
KOHO
Stay within your budget and get rewarded for it.
With KOHO, you can budget, spend and save money toward your financial goals while earning rewards with their prepaid payment card. Think of KOHO of having all of the benefits of the previous budget apps: similar to Mint and PocketGuard, wrapped into the ease and convenience of prepaid card with no monthly fees. If you are a divorcee who prefers to use cash when you spend this card offers a tangible way to manage your expenses. Get paid to save!
The beauty of this app is it allows you to zero in on the categories where you are overspending. It provides you with cash rewards and incentives of up to .05 percent cash back when you set saving goals, reach them, and reduce what you are spending. Premium versions of the app will also allow you to earn up to 2 percent cash back on your purchases. They also have a live chat available on their site and you can real reps between 9 and 5 seven days a week,
Drawbacks:
Koho won’t help you build your credit score but it is known for being one of the best budget and app combos on the market.
Budget apps can be a big help in giving you a clearer picture of your financial situation. This is all the more important after a divorce. Check out the apps above for yourself and choose to slay the financial habits that are holding you back as you rebuild your financial fortress in 2021.
If you need any help with your divorce, feel free to reach out to one of our lawyers here.