With the busyness of our lives, it is important to take advantage of the extra minutes you can find. There are several mobile phone and tablet apps available to help with your budgeting.
One of the important parts of budgeting is knowing how much money you have coming in and how much is going out each month. Another part is knowing how much should be allocated to each budget category. When you are able to enter the money as you spend it, you are also able to see how much you have spent and how much you have left in each budget category.
Tracking your expenses is important so you know where you stand in each category, and which expenses can be cut down on or cut out completely. It may be more convenient to track your spending if you have an app on your phone that you can enter the expense when it occurs. The longer you wait, the more likely it is that you will lose the receipt or forget about spending the money. Some examples of budgeting software are Mint and mvelopes.
Many of these budgeting apps can be synched with your banking information and can also be accessed through your computer and personal finance software, such as Quicken and others.
Many banks and other financial institutions have apps that allow you to deposit money, transfer money and withdraw funds by using your mobile phone. Many apps are also used to pay bills online. By using these apps you can pay your bills when it is convenient for you and it saves you the expense of purchasing postage stamps to mail your bills. Also, by paying your bills online you can schedule the time when amounts will be withdrawn from your bank account. This way you don’t need to worry about it being delayed in the mail. You risk the potential of incurring penalties if the amount is received by the company after the due date.
There are also apps available that show you what stores have the best prices on items you are looking for and some also have mobile coupons that you have the employee scan on your phone instead of a paper coupon. Some stores offer their own coupons when you download their apps. It may be more convenient to keep track of coupons and store reward cards when the information is saved on your phone instead of needing to keep track of paper coupons and store cards.
Mobile phone and tablet apps can be useful tools in maintaining your budget.