Expense Tracking App

[Katiek]

I'm looking for an app that will help me track my spending, but nothing too elaborate. I read the recent thread about budgeting that talked about excel spreadsheets and software that downloaded directly from banks and credit cards and my head was spinning. I'll confess I'm not very technical and most spreadsheets are beyond my ability.


I'm looking for something very simple - i allocate an amount for monthly spending and assign it to various categories. As I spend over the month it decreases the amounts and shows me where I'm overspending and where I allocated too much. I've been doing this for some time with just a little notebook I carry with me and a larger notebook at home where I add up the categories. That could continue to work, but I thought a phone app where I could enter things in real time would be easier.


I looked around and You Need a Budget seemed relatively straightforward, but does anyone have any experience with that or a different app that would suit this very simple purpose? (Kind of a like a My Fitness Pal for spending. )

 

[PaunchyPirate]

My best friend uses an app on his Android phone named "Spending Tracker". He loves it. It lets him create his own categories. I don't know if there is a version of the iPhone, but I would guess there must be.

 

[Katiek]

thank you for the suggestion. There does appear to be an iphone version!

 

[SecondCor521]

I know Dave Ramsey can be a polarizing figure, but I do know that his org has a phone app called "Every Dollar" which sounds like it could meet your needs. You can use his app and not do anything else DR.

It's free for basic use. If you want transaction download from your bank capability I think it's a few bucks a month subscription fee.

 

[Sunset]

My best friend uses an app on his Android phone named "Spending Tracker". He loves it. It lets him create his own categories. I don't know if there is a version of the iPhone, but I would guess there must be.

I have used this for years. Very easy and handy as on my phone.

 

[justakrusen]

I'm looking for an app that will help me track my spending, but nothing too elaborate. I read the recent thread about budgeting that talked about excel spreadsheets and software that downloaded directly from banks and credit cards and my head was spinning. I'll confess I'm not very technical and most spreadsheets are beyond my ability.


I'm looking for something very simple - i allocate an amount for monthly spending and assign it to various categories. As I spend over the month it decreases the amounts and shows me where I'm overspending and where I allocated too much. I've been doing this for some time with just a little notebook I carry with me and a larger notebook at home where I add up the categories. That could continue to work, but I thought a phone app where I could enter things in real time would be easier.


I looked around and You Need a Budget seemed relatively straightforward, but does anyone have any experience with that or a different app that would suit this very simple purpose? (Kind of a like a My Fitness Pal for spending. )

Ynab. I've been using it for years, and it works great once you've set it up.

 

[explanade]

I haven't looked in awhile but I simply use a spreadsheet which lets me define different categories, like how much for a particular trip vs. general categories that apply throughout the year such as groceries.

There are some templates out there for people who use Excel or Google Sheets which will let you calculate a ballpark figure for annual spending.

But if you want any minutiae, like listing just about every transaction, spreadsheet is the way to go.

I think there might have been apps which will scan receipts and than do OCR but I don't think the OCR is reliable and you probably pay some subscription.


For tracking my checking and savings account, I have an app called Accounts 2 for iPhone. Not sure if available for Android. You have to manually enter each debit and credit into your bank accounts but you can set up recurring charges like your mortgage. Then you go log into your bank account and just tap in the transactions.

I also have Quicken and I do import the transactions from my bank accounts but not my credit cards, which is how I pay for like 95% of my spending. I don't use Quicken for budgeting but more for tracking my assets.

 

[steady saver]

I use You Need A Budget (YNAB) and I have used it for years. I started using it when it wasn't a yearly renewal but a one time purchase, ha! But now I gladly pay my yearly fee. I thought about trying to find something else but I just like YNAB. I use it exclusively for tracking expenses (not budgeting) and spitting out reports of different types. I use it to easily go back and compare expenses. Or to help me remember what year it was that we replaced the A/C unit. There are likely less expensive things to use, especially if you aren't wanting to use the budget feature, but I love YNAB and won't use anything else.

 

[steady saver]

One more thing about YNAB. I love it that wherever I am, that I can just input my expense on my phone. I do my reconciling on my laptop, but the phone app is the best. And their customer service is top notch.