Feeling totally in charge of your finances is truly empowering, but it means different things for different people. For some of us just being able to look at our bank balance without wincing is close enough, whilst for others, we want to know every single incoming and outgoing payment and be able to keep up with our investments on a minute-by-minute basis. Wherever you fit on the scale, we’ve pulled together some helpful mobile applications that will help you to take charge of your finances in whichever way will best help you.
Monzo
Almost all of us have realized the benefits of using a mobile wallet by now. It’s been a long time since our smartphones started being used to pay for goods and services, and the technology has come on leaps and bounds. However, there are still some banks that provide a better service than others. All high-street banks offer the option of mobile banking to their customers, but sometimes choosing an account that was designed with mobile use in mind can be the smartest way to go. Monzo was only founded in 2015 but has grown to be a genuine competitor to well-established banks already. This could be because its key features were designed for a smartphone-using, globe-trotting consumer. Sending payments to friends can be done via mobile numbers or by connecting with them on the Monzo app. This means that splitting the bill at mealtimes is a lot quicker than with some of the more traditional banking apps. Traveling abroad is made more affordable as well through reduced, or even removed, transaction fees in various countries. Taking a leaf out of money management app Plum’s book, being able to split your money into different ‘pots’ is another benefit that many find useful for saving money. Little perks like this make a new generation of internet banks appealing to those who have grown up in the age of the internet. If that’s you, then it might be something to consider.
PayPal
If switching to a bank with no physical presence sounds like a leap too far for you, but you’re still interested in paying for online goods easily, then PayPal can be a nice midpoint. This company has a much longer history and so might feel safer to use. You’ll need a registered bank account to sign up for a PayPal account, but once that is out of the way you can start enjoying the benefits. PayPal allows you to pay for things quickly online using the app to check your identity. They take the security of their customers seriously, launching investigations into sellers who don’t dispatch items promptly or misrepresent the goods they are selling. Sending money to family and friends is also completely free, so if you often need to transfer across a couple of dollars here and there, this is a useful feature.
Honey
Caption: Honey have realised just how sweet getting a great deal is For those who are big fans of online clothes shopping, anything to help you save money is a massive incentive. Honey is a simple mobile app and browser extension that checks each and every site you purchase with for coupons. As it stands, not every single website is compatible, but there are a huge number that are. When you’re about to click through to checkout, make sure to tap the Honey icon in order to see if it can find a coupon for you. If it can then you save money and if it can’t, well, you were going to buy it anyway, right? Honey isn’t the only app that does this, so if you don’t like the way it works you can search around for some different coupon finders to help you on your quest for timeless style.
