HOW TO MANAGE YOUR FINANCES WITH SOFTWARE

There is always room for improvement when it comes to managing our money. In order to become a money boss, you need to be aware of how you spend your money. The best personal finance software provides that "second set of eyes." These programs are often designed to assist you in tracking your spending. In addition, they can assist you with making a financial plan, paying bills, and even evaluating your investment portfolio. It is possible to reduce your worries about money by taking all of these actions. Paying the bills becomes less of a concern for us.
The use of these programs will only require a few minutes of your time. Personal finance software is available in a variety of options. There are some that are free and others that require a small monthly fee. Paying for a program may be well worth the expense if you are serious about gaining control over your finances. It is important to note, however, that not everyone needs to use a paid option. Free applications are also a good option. Therefore, you may wish to try them first to determine whether or not they meet your needs.

YNAB (You Need A Budget)

A budgeting program such as You Need a Budget (YNAB) offers the best combination of flexibility and features, making it more than worth its monthly fee. The program guides you through the process of developing an intentional and forward-looking spending plan. Furthermore, it has a goal tracking and reporting feature that assists you in monitoring your progress. Budgeting with YNAB is more time-consuming and more expensive than with its free counterparts. This budgeting software despite its drawbacks is the best choice for controlling your money because it provides you with the necessary tools to create a value-driven budget. Every dollar has a job according to the app's four rules. Through the program, you will learn how to allocate every dollar so that you may spend it with intention. Reports and goal-tracking features that are customizable, including attractive and informative charts and graphs, help you keep on track. Aside from providing comprehensive education, YNAB also offers a range of free online workshops as well as real-time updates so that you are always aware of where your money is going and can adjust it as necessary.

Intuit QuickBooks

Cloud accounting allows you to track sales, create and send invoices, and keep track of your business at any time. The QuickBooks Accounting Software is simple to use, and you do not need to be an accounting expert. Accounting, inventory, payroll, tax filing, invoicing, tracking and reconciliation of bank accounts, expense management, budgeting, payment processing, and accounts receivable and payable management are all included in QuickBooks. It's not an exhaustive list of what QuickBooks can do. The software can also be integrated with many additional tools. In essence, QuickBooks functions like the Swiss Army Knife of business financial tools – it can handle almost anything you might need. Nevertheless, some features in QuickBooks Professional may not be needed by many businesses, and the price tag may be prohibitive. Small-to-medium-sized businesses should consider QuickBooks if they want to track financial information and create reports summarizing any aspect of their operations. The first time you use the program, you may find that not all features are intuitive. There is also an online version of QuickBooks accessible via your web browser, tablet, or smartphone for a monthly or yearly fee. Depending on the version, some features, such as payroll management and payment processing, incur an additional fee.

HomeBank

If you work on multiple platforms or do not use Windows by default, HomeBank will be of interest to you. The HomeBank app is available for Windows, MacOS, and Linux (and an Android app is in development), and it is easy to use and makes personal finance simple to understand. In the event that you have been managing your finances with another program, such as Quicken or Microsoft Money, you can import your data to save you the time and effort of having to start from scratch. There is no limit to the number of accounts that can be added to the program, and these accounts can be linked to one another to facilitate easy money transfers, but manual editing is required. A sufficient amount of data can be entered to generate all sorts of useful reports, including those for predicting car ownership, for example. It is a personal finance app designed with the average person in mind, but it is designed for those who hate personal finance apps.

GnuCash

With GnuCash, you are able to use it for your personal finances as well as for your business finances, as it is flexible enough to be used by small businesses as well. Despite the fact that the software is extremely easy to use, the fact that it is suitable for small business accounting is due to the inclusion of a number of features that you would not necessarily expect to find - like payroll management and double-entry accounting, for example - that you would not expect to find in a product like this. There is little doubt that this free personal finance software will be quite easy for you to use, however, it will require some familiarity with accounting software before you can use it. It is also very easy to migrate from another program since you can import data in QIF and dOFX formats. Having the ability to track expenses makes this a great option for anyone preparing for tax season. In addition, there are a substantial number of reporting options available to help you keep track of your cash flow. There is a variety of platforms available for this great tool, including macOS, Windows, Linux, and Android, and it is highly recommended you try it out before you consider any of the paid-for alternatives.

Mint

All of your accounts are consolidated in Mint, and you can track your net worth as well as access your credit score. Budgeting is made easy with Mint since you can link your accounts and see how you compare to the national average. A budget tracking tool like this can help you determine whether your budget is on track when you are just beginning the budgeting process. By providing a wide variety of categories and comparing your spending with the average, Mint makes it easy for you to make your first budget. The linkage of your financial accounts is also possible. Moreover, transactions are automatically classified to help you keep track of your spending.  The program includes budgeting tools as well as tools for tracking your net worth and monitoring your progress towards achieving your goals. The choices you can make for goals are somewhat limited, however. There is a choice of preset options, and you can specify a customized savings goal, but you are unable to set a mortgage payoff goal.

Personal Capital

It provides users with robust budgeting software and an investment tracker that allows them to keep track of their investments. This tool allows you to track your net worth, monitor your cash flow, and obtain an investment checkup, all in one convenient location. Budgeting software is integrated with other financial tools in Personal Capital's financial dashboard. In one convenient location, you will be able to track your spending, track your investment performance in real-time, establish retirement goals, as well as track your net worth. The site also offers special features such as an investment checkup that compares your portfolio asset allocation to the target allocation for your age and circumstances. It should be noted, however, that the investment checkup feature is only available on the desktop version of the software. Nevertheless, the iOS and Android apps provide a number of features, including interactive tools for tracking your investments and cash flow. Personal Capital's wealth management services can be upsold to you if you take advantage of this feature. Personal Capital's advisors are happy to discuss your plans with you.

 Quicken

A long-established tool for managing personal finances, Quicken is now available as an app for mobile devices. Financial reporting tools are available in Quicken. The categories include budgeting, bills, accounts, and investments. Budgeting is easier with this program since you can input your purchases and income so you can compare them together to see how much you spend versus what you earn. The bill section also reveals which utilities you constantly pay, as well as how much you have left over after paying them. To make accounting easier, you can even combine your bank and credit card bills in one place so that you know exactly how much you're spending. Especially useful since people often underestimate how much small purchases add up to. The app offers the ability to track investments, whether they are savings, investment portfolios, or 401k plans. Having a clear understanding of the value of your savings and investments is important, while short-term fluctuations in the stock market shouldn't worry you.  Quicken combines your budgeting, banking, and investment reporting into one dashboard, which you can access from your desktop or mobile device. 

Prism

Keeping track of your money, bills, and pay is easy with Prism. Remembering due dates is no longer a problem. Expenses and income are collected. With Prism, you can access all your bills and email statements at any time, with no paper or emails required. Checking your account status or paying doesn't require logging into separate websites. Prism creates lists and calendars. Bills can be paid directly there. It syncs the account every morning. Manually refreshing a biller is also possible. Choose a payment method. Paying your bills can be done by bank transfer, debit card, or credit card. The payment can be made immediately or at a later date. In order to avoid late fees and other penalties, they strongly recommend scheduling payments within biller cutoff dates. Payment canceled. Payments via Prism can be canceled within ten minutes of being sent. Refunds, cancellations, corrections, and reversals cannot be processed through the service. The system lists billers. Using the app, you can automatically see your balance and due date. Billers include banks and credit unions, phone companies, cable companies, electric utilities, insurance companies, mortgage lenders, water and waste utilities, student loan lenders, and media subscriptions. Even health insurance companies work with them.

OnTrajectory

Using technology, OnTrajectory helps you track your financial goals. There is nothing directly managing your finances in this program; instead, it is just a series of tools and simulations. By analyzing your overall financial situation, you are able to identify things you need to do to achieve your financial goals. Track your finances wherever you are. Whether you're starting out or planning to retire, financial planning is essential. Information about your finances must be manually entered. Expenses, interest rates, and account balances are included. Private information isn't connected to a bank account. Based on your financial information, the tools give you financial information. Take a lower-paying job or buy a home to see how your finances grow and shrink. OnTrajectory's tools are meant to help you better understand your finances. Calculate how you will reach your financial goals with hypothetical scenarios and goals.

Buddi

Buddi proves that free personal finance software does not need to be complex, keeping things as simple as possible. Your incomings and outgoings can be tracked within minutes after you set up all the accounts you need. With Buddi, managing your money is easy, and you can generate a variety of reports regarding your spending and earnings. The Buddi program will assist you in staying within your budget. For those who are new to the concept of accounting, the Buddi website has a number of helpful guides. There are a few downsides to Buddi, including the need to install Java, which may not appeal to everyone, and the software itself has not been updated in some time. These two factors, however, do not dissuade us from recommending that you take a closer look at the program - it may well be the solution you have been searching for.

AceMoney Lite

While AceMoney Lite bills itself as an alternative to Quicken, this is a goal it manages to meet, even in its free, simplified version. There are only two accounts supported by AceMoney Lite, but this should suffice for most users. The program can even be used to maintain a record of your PayPal account. It is possible to manage accounts in different currencies with this free personal finance software, but you will need to enter your transactions rather than have your bank account automatically pull them in. In spite of this, you may be able to save time by importing statements from your online bank account if you download them. As a financial tool, AceMoney Lite makes it easy to track your spending and investments, making it an effective solution for anyone who wishes to take control of their financial affairs.

PocketSmith

With PocketSmith, you can consolidate and analyze all your financial accounts, transaction histories, and budgets in one place. In comparison to other budgeting applications, PocketSmith is unique. In contrast to Mint and Personal Capital, one of the most obvious differences is that it is not free unless you wish to use a very basic version with limited functionality. There are a number of competitors who are supported by advertising. The majority of PocketSmith's useful features can be accessed for a fee, although PocketSmith is free of advertisements. Nonetheless, PocketSmith provides the advantage of allowing you to create a budget at any time, for any period. As opposed to the traditional monthly budget that begins on the first, this budget is flexible. PocketSmith allows you to create daily, weekly, and monthly budgets that can be created at any time of the day. Furthermore, you can track one-time expenses and income such as quarterly taxes or freelance income in addition to recurring expenses. In PocketSmith, you are able to track all of your expenditures based on standard budget categories, but you can also create your own. A comparison of your budgeted and actual expenses is provided to help you identify where you are off track in your spending habits.

Maximize My Social Security

Exactly as its name suggests, Maximize My Social Security helps you maximize your Social Security benefits. The Social Security system has been saving with Americans' paychecks since 1935, so it is important to understand how it all works. To help people nearing retirement determine their ideal benefits strategy, Kotlikoff and his team created Maximize My Social Security. Economic Security Planning Inc. offers multiple financial tools, each with its own unique features and benefits, including Maximize My Social Security. M Maximize My Social Security is an economist-designed application that analyzes Social Security rules and regulations and your contributions over time to help you withdraw and take your maximum benefits. To ensure you withdraw at the best time, the app looks at all possible scenarios. Social Security can easily cost you tens of thousands of dollars if you start taking it at the wrong time. It is also available in an advisor edition, which is very affordable for most advisors to add to their arsenal of financial planning tools ($250 per year).

Mvelopes

Mvelopes is an app that helps you save money by utilizing the cash envelope method of budgeting. Financial services company Finicity, owned by Mastercard, offers an app called Mvelopes for budgeting purposes. A personal budgeting plan can be created in just a few minutes using this app and should result in a reduction in spending, the elimination of debt, as well as the ability to save money. There is an iOS version of Mvelopes as well as an Android version, including the Apple iPhone. Many individuals struggle with keeping a budget, which is why Mvelopes is designed to make it easier. According to all reports, Mvelopes users are experiencing success. The app has helped users pay off more than $17,000 in debt per year, according to Mvelopes. According to Mvelopes, users save on average more than $6,000 compared to those without budgets because they have a solid money management plan to base their budgets upon.

FutureAdvisor

As part of the BlackRock investment firm family, FutureAdvisor is a "Robo-advisor" launched in 2012. FutureAdvisor manages your investment portfolio for you and manages your taxable, retirement, and 529 college savings plans. In this way, you do not have to make any decisions regarding the investment. In contrast, FutureAdvisor does not provide access to a live financial advisorg costs low, FutureAdvisor recommends index funds. Low fund fees are associated with these funds, and they provide diversification across a variety of asset classes. It is possible to hold BlackRock's iShares index funds and other funds without having to pay trade commissions on your recommended portfolio. In order to use FutureAdvisor, you must have a minimum balance of $5,000 in your investment account with Fidelity or TD Ameritrade. Fidelity and TD Ameritrade both accept new cash deposits for opening accounts. In the event that you already have an account with Fidelity or TD Ameritrade, you do not even need to transfer your account. These accounts can be managed by adding a "management layer". Fidelity or TD Ameritrade will be able to handle the transfer of your accounts if they are currently held somewhere else.

Blooom

IRAs and workplace retirement plans can be managed with Bloom, a Robo-advisor.  In accordance with the fiduciary standard, the platform recommends assets that are most suitable for your investment strategy. The service charges a fixed annual fee and does not receive commissions from specific investments it recommends. Blooom links to most online brokerages to optimize your retirement strategy in contrast to most automated investing platforms. Starting the process involves linking your retirement accounts and estimating your retirement expenses. A yearly fee is then charged for one of three plans. When rebalancing is necessary, the service will either automatically place trades or you can manually rebalance your portfolio. A variety of brokerage firms offer full management of workplace 401k accounts through the service. Fidelity is the only brokerage that Blooom can fully manage IRAs at, but it can recommend funds for many brokerages.  At the present time, Blooom does not manage taxable brokerage accounts. 

Banktivity 7

The Banktivity software allows you to be in complete control of your finances for the first time. All types of investments, from the immediate to the long-term! It will be easy for you to get an accurate and complete picture of your finances with our easy setup process. Banktivity takes away all the guesswork and keeps you on track. Personal finance software from Apple is often inferior to that available from PC manufacturers. The Banktivity 7 software was designed to alleviate your frustration if you use a program such as Quicken. The program offers a PC-like experience with premium money management features. The only difference is that your iOS device will still be able to be used. In order to utilize Banktivity 7, you must connect your bank accounts or transfer your information from another budgeting application. The tracking of your spending is complemented by the ability to track your savings rate, net worth, and investments. The premium version of this application provides access to more charts than the free version. A Banktivity expert can create a personal financial plan for an additional $59 fee. The cost of hiring a local financial planner can be as much as $150 to $300 per hour on average.

Buxfer

It is a good idea to use a service that does not oversaturate your finances with effects and colors. Buxfer does a good job of presenting your finances in a clean and professional manner. It boasts that it currently assists its users in managing more than four trillion dollars in assets, so it has a loyal user base. It is not necessary for you to give Buxfer your exact banking details unless you are comfortable doing so - you can opt instead to sync manually with your bank account - but if you do trust it, there is a layer of high-level encryption protecting your data, as well as regular audits from the company. Buxfer's budgeting tools are among the best - the visual reporting is excellent, and you can tag expenditures however you choose, so it should fit well into most people's banking routine. You will be able to create five budgets, accounts, and bill reminders when you download the free version. The Pilot version includes automatic tagging and bank syncing, while the Plus version includes unlimited budgets. The Pro version also includes an online payment option, advanced forecasts, and more. 

MaxiFi

It’s the only personal financial and retirement software powerful and accurate enough to calculate your highest sustainable living standard — starting today — with a plan to maintain and raise that amount — for life. Other money management programs excel in helping you create a budget or track spending. Not as many offer a full long-term picture. MaxiFi tries to be a complete financial planning tool. This isn’t the best option if you need help making a budget from scratch. If you only need to make small adjustments to your spending habits, you’ll be fine. This app helps you estimate your retirement income and taxes, and track your money goals. MaxiFi will also make suggestions to help improve your money plan. These changes are intended to lower your tax bill, optimize your income and help correct your current spending habits.

Money Dashboard

It is perhaps one of the most useful money management tools available for iOS and Android, although Money Dashboard does not attempt to reinvent the banking world. This tool will track your spending and provide you with an overall pie chart depicting your expenditures on loans, consumables, transportation, etc. It provides a quick view of your overall balance, showing how much money you have available across all of your accounts, which can be compared to the previous month's figure to demonstrate your financial management skills. It is a great motivator to have that in place. Moreover, Money Dashboard is extremely secure: Your login is secured with the same level of security as your bank, and it's completely read-only - no one will see what you do with your money. It is possible to download apps for Android and iOS, and both are free to use.

Albert

It facilitates the budgeting process and automates savings through its banking app. The app analyzes your spending habits, identifies spare dollars, and transfers them to your digital wallet. Aside from earning cash back on purchases with your Albert debit card, you will also be able to withdraw your savings at any time and will be eligible to receive annual cash bonuses. With Albert, you can create an automatic budget that will allow you to identify where your money is being spent at any given time. Instantly, you will be able to see your income, bills, and remaining funds. Furthermore, you will be able to view a pie chart of your transactions as well as review past months' budgets.  The purpose of Albert is not only to facilitate easy budgeting but also to facilitate effortless savings by identifying surplus funds and moving them to a digital wallet when they are available. A bonus will be awarded for your savings each year, and you will be able to track your savings progress easily. The Albert Genius add-on, which boosts your savings bonus and provides financial guidance over text messages, will cost you a minimum of $4 a month. With the Albert debit card, you can earn cash back on your purchases. The amount of cashback varies from 10% to 20% and covers purchases such as gas, food delivery, groceries, and other items common to most merchants.

Every Dollar

Creates a family budget in less than ten minutes that can be fully customized to meet the needs of your family. This program allocates every dollar but makes it easier for families to go through the process together than other programs. Furthermore, it syncs instantly across all devices so that everyone is aware of what has been spent. Families who want to budget together but do not wish to pay a costly monthly fee will find EveryDollar to be a good choice. With it, you are able to allocate every dollar that you spend, and it provides a customizable template to simplify the process of budgeting. The paid version is required for those who want additional features, including the ability to link bank accounts. It is more expensive than other programs, but it offers more features including Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace course and Baby Steps tracking to assist in building wealth according to Ramsey's principles.

Pocket Guard

For college students, this is the best option because it allows them to see how much money they have available at a glance. Even beginning budgeters can use its goal tracking feature and intuitive pie chart to keep track of their spending. Many of its features are also free, which makes it an ideal choice for students on a tight budget. PocketGuard's simple user interface and intuitive pie charts make budgeting and tracking spending easily for college students who are unfamiliar with managing money. PocketGuard's In My Pocket feature also reduces the risk of overdraft accounts by monitoring available funds at all times. Students will find that although the free version does not include as many features as the paid version, the program is robust enough for most college students without having to commit to a monthly subscription. It is also possible for college students to discover opportunities to keep more money in their pockets by using algorithms in the program that assist them in identifying and canceling unwanted subscriptions.

Honeydue

A special focus has been placed on helping you manage your money with a partner. Through the app, you will be able to link accounts, customize what information you share with your partner, and communicate about money issues directly with your partner. Moreover, notifications alert you to upcoming bills or when you or your partner exceed budget categories' spending limits. Honeydue is a financial management app that helps couples manage their finances jointly and focuses on joint communication. By allowing you to respond to your partner's transactions with a note, a thumbs-up, or other emojis, Honeydue simplifies the process of exchanging money information. As well as aggregating your linked accounts, you can view all of your individual and joint transactions from one location. Honeydue provides an automated categorization of transactions as well as the option to create custom categories. The program offers fewer reporting options than some other programs, but customizable alerts help ensure that no important information is missed.

Moneydance

Moneydance is a desktop money management program designed primarily for Mac OS X (though it is also available for Windows and Linux). It features a very neat single-window interface. When you launch it, you will have a real-time view of your finances, upcoming bills, recent expenditures, and more. When you click on one of the items in the left-hand sidebar, the main content is modified accordingly. As for its reporting capabilities, Moneydance's account register is one of its most useful features, even if its presentation isn't spectacular. The principle of this system is very similar to that of a chequebook, if you are old-school. The software is also supported by an iOS app for logging transactions on the go, which is later synced with your desktop software. Rather than being licensed per computer, the plan offered is licensed per household, which means that it may be used on multiple desktop computers at home. It is not advertised that there is a free trial, but there is a 90-day money-back guarantee.

Good Budget

The Goodbudget software allows you to take the envelope budgeting concept virtual without having to pay a subscription fee. To visualize how your spending is allocated, you can manually import bank transactions and use Goodbudget's intuitive pie charts. Considering the fact that it is free, this is a highly feature-rich option. The envelope budgeting method involves dividing your available cash into envelopes corresponding to each category of expenditure. A digital version of envelope budgeting is available through Goodbudget, with your home screen displaying the amount remaining in each envelope. There is a free and a paid version of Goodbudget, but the free version offers a number of useful features, including the ability to create up to 10 envelopes and to transfer money quickly and easily between them. While uploading and logging bank account transactions manually can be tedious, some users prefer not to give access to their bank accounts.

BankTree

BankTree supports a wide range of currencies and actually does a good job if you're simultaneously working with more than one. It offers balances in different currencies rather than rounding them down to a single value. The app also permits you to scan receipts and import them later using its mobile app for keeping track of everything. Despite being somewhat of an awkward program to use, BankTree does produce very useful reports that can be arranged by time or by payee. Before making a decision as to whether to invest in this product, it may be worthwhile to try the free trial. There is a fee for each additional PC that you intend to use the desktop software on, though the software comes with one year of updates and support. The program is also available in a browser-based version. Regardless of which version you choose, BankTree offers a 30-day free trial, so you can evaluate it before you purchase to determine whether it is right for you.

Conclusion

There are many benefits to knowing how you spend and save your money. There is no need to worry about money if you do not want to worry about it. It can be very helpful to plan for long-term goals and stay on track with your finances if you use the best personal finance software.

By Rashmi Goel