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Budgeting is hardly exciting, but it’s key to getting finances under control. However, making a budget and sticking to one isn’t always easy. That’s why we could all use some help now and then.
Consider using budgeting and financial planning apps to maintain disciplinary action. Here are the best budgeting apps on the market.
YNAB earns a spot on this list because of its proactive budgeting approach. It offers the ability to sync bank accounts, import data, and manually enter transactions.
Once users sign up, they can create a budget and assign each transaction to a purpose. For instance, they might like to use the app for car payments or mortgages.
The app’s goal is to get users one month ahead. That way, they spend money they earned over a month ago. Essentially, the app gives customers a complete budget overhaul. It also provides users with top security to protect their information and gives them additional resources for staying on track.
This app costs US$98.99 per year or $14.99 per month and offers a 34-day free trial. [All figures below are in US$]
Goodbudget has a free version with ads. Or, users can pay for an ad-free version that costs $7 per month or $60 annually.
Goodbudget is a useful budgeting app that allows users to create and stick to budgets – and keep track of their debt to pay it down faster.
In addition, it helps with money management. That way, users know where their funds are and how they perform.
Users also have easy access to their accounts, as they can use them on the web and on multiple phones. In turn, people can easily share their accounts with others and stay financially connected. This is valuable for some, as it prevents miscommunication and mishaps.
The app also syncs each transaction to the cloud. And some reports show the finances in greater detail – as well as pie charts and other updates to track spending.
Mint is another great budgeting app, as it has high ratings in the App Store and Google Play. It’s also free and syncs with various bank accounts, including checking and savings, loans, credit cards, and more.
Mint works by tracking users’ expenses and placing them within budgeting categories. You might have categories of your own ready to go in a spreadsheet. Mint lets users more fully personalize their categories and set limits to maintain their budgets. Once users approach those limits, Mint will notify them within the app. Continue Reading…
To help you create a budget and stick to it for achieving your financial goals, we’ve gathered advice from 18 professionals, including CEOs, founders, and VPs. From leveraging public accountability to reviewing and adjusting your budget regularly, these experts share their top steps to take for effective budgeting and saving.
Leverage Public Accountability
Negotiate Lower Fees
Celebrate Budgeting Successes
Automate Your Savings
Identify Cost-Cutting Opportunities
Track Expenses and Income
Eliminate Unnecessary Expenses
Create a Realistic Budget
Prioritize Necessary Expenses
Monitor Financial Metrics
Automate Savings Consistently
Use the 50/30/20 Rule
Utilize a Monthly Bill Calendar
Limit Online Shopping Access
Establish a Purpose and Set Goals
Use Cash Stuffing With Discipline
Create Organized Sub-Budgets
Review and Adjust the Budget Regularly
Leverage Public Accountability
In my personal journey toward financial wellness, one of the most effective strategies I’ve employed is leveraging public accountability to create a budget and stick to it. I started by sharing my financial goals with my circle of trusted friends and family, which made the goals feel more real and tangible.
Whenever I felt tempted to stray from my budget, the thought of explaining my overspending to them motivated me to resist. In fact, one time I was really close to buying an expensive gadget on a whim, but the idea of having to admit this unnecessary expense to my accountability partners made me rethink, and I decided against it.
Using public accountability in this way can be a powerful tool to reinforce your commitment to your financial goals, and I encourage you to try it. — Antreas Koutis, Administrative Manager, Financer
Negotiate Lower Fees
One example of a strategy not commonly undertaken when creating a budget is to negotiate lower fees on existing bills such as cable, internet, or cell phone plans.
As the market becomes increasingly competitive, companies are more likely than ever before to reduce customer bills if they know they may otherwise lose that customer’s business.
This can lead to significant savings without having to decrease spending on existing items. With the resulting saved money, you can then allocate it towards your financial goals, more easily allowing for what was once considered unattainable! — Carly Hill, Operations Manager, Virtual Holiday Party
Celebrate Budgeting Successes
Creating a budget and sticking to it, in my opinion, is difficult work. Celebrate your accomplishments along the way. In the long run, I believe that this will make it easier for you to stay on your budget and will help keep you motivated.
Treat yourself to a small reward if you reach a savings goal or pay off a debt, for example. Just make sure the prize is within your financial constraints! — Bruce Mohr, Vice-President, Fair Credit
Automate your Savings
A lot of people tell you to pay yourself first. I think a better approach is to save for yourself first. Set up automatic transfers to your various retirement and savings accounts. That way, the money isn’t just sitting in your checking account and tempting you.
This works even better when you have high-yield savings accounts and retirement funds that aren’t linked to your main bank account. Spending habits are hard to break, but it can be easier to form new ones if you automate your savings. — Temmo Kinoshita, Co-founder, Lindenwood Marketing
Identify Cost-Cutting Opportunities
Of course, the goal of budgeting is to save money, but one step you need to take in order to be successful and reach your financial goals is to look for ways to save. You can do this by reviewing your budget and pinpointing areas where you can cut costs to save money.
For example, if you find that you spend a lot of money on going out to eat, you can cut down spending here and instead cook your meals, which ultimately will be the cheaper alternative.
You may also cancel subscriptions you don’t use or negotiate your bills with your service providers to see if you can get a discount. Overall, there are multiple ways to cut down your spending and save money—you just need to figure out which areas you can negotiate or compromise! — Bill Lyons, CEO, Griffin Funding
Track Expenses and Income
You can find areas where you might be overspending or where you can reduce expenditures by keeping track of your expenses and income. Additionally, you may utilize this data to make wise decisions on future purchases and investments, ensuring that you are deploying your resources as effectively and efficiently as you can.
You may keep yourself motivated and on track to accomplish your goals by routinely evaluating your financial accounts and your progress toward them. Additionally, it can assist you in seeing future difficulties or obstacles, enabling you to modify your plan and change the route as necessary. — Michael Lees, Chief Marketing Officer, EZLease
Eliminate Unnecessary Expenses
A major problem people have when sticking to a budget is the little purchases they make along the way. Many of us are guilty of ordering takeout after a long day of work, picking up a daily Starbucks order, or wasting groceries.
While these small purchases may seem innocent enough, they quickly add up and get you off track toward reaching your financial goals. Before making a purchase, ask yourself, do I need this? Or if you need extra motivation, consider how many hours of work it takes you to purchase these daily items.
By cutting out or at least reducing some of these mundane purchases, you’ll notice your bank account feeling a little healthier and lower stress knowing you have enough money to put towards your financial goals and still pay your bills. — Brandon Brown, CEO, GRIN
Create a Realistic Budget
Often, I see people attempting to budget just for the sake of budgeting without considering its implications on their overall lifestyle. If you want to religiously follow your budget, make it realistic. Realistic financial goals will provide you with a head start in creating an achievable and sustainable budget.
Create a budget that takes into account not only your financial goals but also your lifestyle behavior and the situation you are in right now. If you regularly eat out, set aside money for that based on how much you anticipate spending and how much you are willing to spend.
Moreover, don’t make your spending plan too strict. What’s the purpose of working if you can’t occasionally treat yourself to a sumptuous meal or a new pair of boots? After all, you deserve to feel human.
If you don’t make room for the things you want, you’ll eventually give in and ruin your spending plan. Just make sure to plan ahead and remember that the ultimate goal is financial security and independence. — Jonathan Merry, Founder, Moneyzine
Prioritize Necessary Expenses
Pay all your bills before buying anything discretionary. When you’re trying to save money, it’s essential to cover all necessary expenses before you try setting money aside. This way, you have a better idea of how much money you have left for casual spending and savings.
Paying any obligations first allows you to avoid surprise expenses after you’ve already started spending, which in turn helps you avoid having to pull money out of your savings. The best way to stick to your budget is to pay what you need to first. — Max Ade, CEO, Pickleheads
Monitor Financial Metrics
Entrepreneurs should track financial metrics to monitor their success. A metric for entrepreneurs to measure is customer lifetime value, which is the total amount of revenue that one customer generates during their entire interactions with the business.
Monitoring this metric helps entrepreneurs understand how much revenue can be expected from a single customer and what marketing strategies are most effective at keeping them engaged.
Additionally, tracking customer lifetime value allows entrepreneurs to maximize their returns on investment as they can target customers who spend more money and reward existing customers who have already demonstrated loyalty and commitment. — Julia Kelly, Managing Partner, Rigits
Automate Savings Consistently
Automating savings is a surefire way to help you stick to saving money and reaching your financial goals. Too many situations can thwart your best intentions to regularly add to your savings yourself: mainly forgetfulness since an additional task is the last thing anyone needs.
If you don’t automate, you may rationalize not regularly adding to your savings account because of an extra purchase you think you need or deserve. That could snowball into a pattern of doing it less than you initially wanted or not at all.
“Out of sight, out of mind” is an advantage of automating your savings: If you don’t see that money sitting in your checking account, you won’t spend it.
Disabuse yourself of the notion that you need a large amount of money for an automatic savings plan. Start with $5, $10, or $20 at a time. You can increase that by looking for ways to decrease your expenses, such as comparison shopping for your car and home insurance or requesting lower interest rates on credit cards. — Michelle Robbins, Licensed Insurance Agent, Clearsurance.com
Use the 50/30/20 Rule
To create a budget and stick to it, prioritize your expenses and allocate your income with the 50/30/20 rule. This rule suggests that 50% of your income should go towards necessities like rent, utilities, and groceries, 30% should go towards discretionary spending such as dining out and entertainment, and 20% should go towards saving and paying off debt. Continue Reading…
They say that money doesn’t buy happiness. But when funds are tight it sure can feel as though life is a little constrained. You may constantly feel as though you’re missing out on opportunities or fun events.
Learning to live within your means is a hard lesson, but many people who achieve it never feel as though they are going without. In fact, most have found ways to live their lives to the absolute fullest. Sometimes all that is required is a change of perspective or a minor reorientation of values.
It may come as somewhat of a surprise, but having a great and fulfilling life often isn’t tied to how much money you make or the fancy things you’re able to spend it on. Some of the most important things that really make life worth living don’t cost much and many come for free.
Improve Life, Save Money
Entertainment can be one of the draining items on your budget. A couple drinks with co-workers after work one night, going to a show with a gal pal another, maybe paying for tickets to the big game the next. It seems like everything fun costs money and over the course of a week or a month that really adds up.
But not all hobbies have to cost a lot of money, or really any money at all. Rather than grabbing drinks after work, you can invite people over to your house to hang out around the fire pit and have a potluck-style barbeque. Or instead of going to a show with a friend, you strive to attend free local events like music in the park, farmers’ markets, or explore new neighborhoods. Maybe instead of paying for a ticket to the big game, you can invite your friends to a tailgate in the parking lot. Continue Reading…
As a mother, I know the importance of raising my daughter to be independent and confident. One of the most significant ways I can do this is by instilling in her the value of financial literacy. By teaching her to be financially independent, I am setting her up for a future where she can make sound decisions with money and have the freedom to achieve her dreams. I feel every mother should share this responsibility and nurture the financial skills of their children, especially when we consider the uncertainties of the current global economic climate.
Growing up and learning to manage money through lived experiences, I discovered that some of those life lessons can be painful. My immigrant parents were so focused on working hard to provide the basics for the family, financial literacy lessons weren’t really a priority for my sister and me. All we were taught was to save and keep on saving. In fact, my sister and I would sometimes skip lunch at school just to save the allowance our parents gave us. I learned the hard way that while saving is part of being financially literate, it can’t just stop there; a significant next step is to find safe, reliable methods to growing your wealth.
Not knowing better, when I was 18, one of the earliest financial mistakes I made was getting multiple credit cards, which eventually resulted in a lot of debt (because which teenage girl doesn’t like shopping?). I had to work hard to pay it off and it was a tough lesson to learn, but it was valuable because it made me realize the importance of being smart about money from a young age.
After that, I started seeking support to become more financially literate from any source I could get my hands on. The internet was my best friend and I got into the habit of listening to podcasts about investing and best financial practices. When I started working, I was lucky enough to find a trusted mentor who taught me that putting 75 per cent of my paycheque toward smart investments was smarter than spending the money on any big-ticket item immediately.
As I became better with money, I went from only knowing how to save money to growing my wealth through investing in stocks (ETFs) and real estate and having a diverse portfolio. When it comes to investments, I now know it’s important to maintain both passive and aggressive investments. Having said that, choosing between good investments and bad ones can be daunting and that’s where financial advisors come in. Engaging a trusted advisor who is experienced in investing in different asset classes can make all the difference in the world because they often have access to wealth management tools and data that make investment proposals more reliable and easier to understand.
Teaching children about saving and investing — and the mindset behind both
Although I eventually found my financial footing, others are not so lucky and many have never been able to recover once they get into debt, which can be crippling. Now that I have a family of my own, one of my top priorities is to make sure my daughter has a strong foundation in financial literacy, with all the tools she needs to make better decisions when managing money.
One of the things that we’ve started working on together is to get her to save regularly, like I did as a child. But more than teaching my daughter good saving habits, I believe what’s important is to show her the difference between the money-going-out and money-going-in concept. Very often, children are no strangers to the former because they see us making purchases daily and this makes it easy for them to learn spending (or worse, impulse spending). The latter, however, is more difficult to emulate because they rarely witness the act of saving. This is especially true now that we live in a world where most financial transactions are digital. Though this speaks to the convenience of innovation, how do we curb impulse spending in our children beyond merely saying “no” (and parents, I’m sure you’ll agree that saying “no” doesn’t always elicit the best response from children)? Continue Reading…
May marks the arrival of Mother’s Day, a time to recognize the influence and sacrifice that comes in tandem with motherhood. While the old adage of “parenting isn’t easy” rings true, the financial planning component doesn’t have to be hard. Childhood is a series of stages woven together: each brings a new opportunity for parents to maximize key fiscal benefits and underpin good financial habits for the next generation.
Pre-Baby
Before your baby is born, there are pre-emptive financial strategies that you can implement to get your affairs in order. Firstly, you want to arm yourself with knowledge. Get informed about the benefits provided by the government and your employer to determine what your expected income will be while on parental leave. Take time to research childcare costs and calculate whether you have adequate life and critical insurance.
Most importantly, make sure you have a will in place that designates a guardian to care for your minor child, a trustee to manage the money for your child and an executor who will run the administration of your estate. Finally, review your financial plan with your advisor to account for the addition of a new family member.
Infants and Toddlers (0-5 years)
There are a series of government benefits available for parents with young children. In most provinces, you can automatically apply for a Social Insurance Number and the Canada Child Benefit (CCB) when you register your child’s birth. The CCB is a tax-free monthly payment made to eligible families to help with the cost of raising children under 18 years of age.
You should also consider opening a Registered Education Savings Plan (RESP) to help save for your child’s education. To this same point, you may be eligible for a Canada Education Savings Grant, which provides a 20 per cent grant to be paid on yearly contributions up to an annual limit of $500 and a lifetime limit of $7,200. Your family may qualify to receive the Canada Learning Bond based on your family income and other benefits under a provincial education savings program. You may also be able to claim childcare expenses if you (or your spouse or partner) paid someone to look after an eligible child so that one or both of you could work or attend school. Talk to your financial advisor about the options available to you.
Middle Childhood (6-11 years)
While they may not have a wealth of knowledge yet, children at this age can understand basic money concepts and can start developing good habits. Consider opening a savings account for your child and encourage them to make deposits from allowance, holiday or birthday present money.
Teenagers and Adolescents (12-19 years)
At this stage, the Mirror-Window Effect is at its peak. Mirrors offer reflections, while windows open up new views. By practicing wise money management, you can be the mirror your child needs to develop early but strong financial habits. Continue Reading…
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