Cultivating good money habits typically involves creating a budget and keeping track of your expenses so that you know where your money is going. There are many ways to do this. Some may opt for the time-tested method of manually keeping a budget-tracking book, while others prefer Excel sheets. Those with major expenditures may even resort to hiring a financial advisor to help them with this.

With the recent rise of mobile technology, it is no surprise that some would turn to phone apps to help them with the budgeting and management of their finances. It is efficient as it allows you to record your expenses and adjust your budget anytime, anywhere you want. Such apps can also be convenient for those of you who are always on the move as you can access it immediately from your phone. Additionally, there is less room for calculation errors when you use phone apps as everything is already automated.

Here are five apps that can make your financial management journey a less tedious and time-consuming one – maybe even enjoyable!

Goodbudget

This money management app is what you would call an “envelope budget” app, which is based on a traditional budgeting method where people store cash for different expenses in different envelopes. This app allows you to create separate budgets for each “envelope”, which you can then monitor and see how it affects your overall budget.

The free version limits you to only 10 regular envelopes (for your day-to-day expenses) and 10 annual envelopes (for long-term financial goals) in one account. The paid version, on the other hand, gives you unlimited envelopes and accounts, as well as additional features such as transaction history and multiple-device syncing.

Goodbudget is available on Google Play, App Store, and the web.

Spendee

Spendee makes use of graphs and charts to help you monitor your spending habits. One of its unique features is that it lets you merge or add to your categories of expenses and income, thereby making your financial management a more personalised process. You will start off with 14 general categories of expenses and 8 types of income, but these numbers will change as you adapt the list to your needs.

Spendee has three paid subscription plans if you find yourself in need of more features: Plus, Premium, and Lifetime. Some additional features that are being offered through these plans include being able to link to unlimited wallets and budgets, as well as syncing your Spendee account to your bank account.

Spendee is available on Google Play, App Store, and the web.

Wallet

Aside from essential functions that let you track your spending, manage your finances, and set your monetary goals, another key feature that makes Wallet unique is its provision of personal finance reports. These reports break down your spending pattern over a specified time frame, making it possible for you to evaluate your cash flow.

Wallet also supports multiple currencies and lets you upload your loyalty or reward cards to track the reward points that you have earned. The Premium version unlocks your access to unlimited accounts, bank account syncs, multi-user collaborations, advanced charts and reports, and additional tools and widgets.

Wallet is available on Google Play and App Store.

Fast Budget

Fast Budget is best suited for those of you who frequently pay for your expenses via credit or debit cards. You can input credit limits and interest rates, schedule multiple transactions, include different incomes as well as due dates in the app to help you keep track of expenses. You can also set up hidden accounts to track other smaller expenses and normal accounts to track regular expenses.

You can unlock the Pro version through two subscription plans: the Advanced and Premium plans. The Pro version lets you unlock functions such as creating PDF reports and multiple-device syncing. Alternatively, you can make single purchases if you only want to get specific functions.

Fast Budget is available on Google Play and App Store.

Splitwise

Unlike the other apps in this list that focus mostly on budgeting, Splitwise is aimed at helping you to manage your debts and shared expenses. Examples of these could be group bills, rental fees, fees for group trips, loans, and IOUs. You can also set up email reminders to prompt you about your payments.

Splitwise has a relatively simple user interface that lets you create groups with your relevant friends and to key in the amount that is shared among everyone in that particular group. From there, you will be able to keep track of the balance that has been paid or that still remains, friends who have paid, and so on.

If you upgrade to Splitwise Pro, you will be entitled to additional features such as receipt scanning, currency conversion, and charts and graphs.

Splitwise is available on Google Play and App Store.

At the end of the day, it is important to recognise that there is no one-size-fits-all solution when it comes to finding a method. It is important that you choose one that suits you best in managing your money. Take the time to explore, and there is certainly no harm in giving these apps a try!