Recommend a FREE app to track my spending
January 12, 2018 11:56 AM   Subscribe

I need an app where I can record my spending.

It needs to be free and work on an iPhone 5.

I specifically want something that is ready to go, instead of, say, just keeping track in my phone notes.

Ideally, I could enter in the amount of money I have to spend per month (bank account plus cash), then have that number count down as I spend, showing me what I have.

Also, I want to make a note of what I spent the money on, not just where I spent it.

Any recs?
posted by Archipelago to Work & Money (15 answers total) 7 users marked this as a favorite
 
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission has the free TrackMySPEND, which might suit you despite its putrid lack of ing.
posted by flabdablet at 12:01 PM on January 12, 2018 [5 favorites]


I set up a google spreadsheet to do this and then I access it through the sheets app. Not fancy, it works really well for me.
posted by lucy.jakobs at 12:02 PM on January 12, 2018


Daily Budget might work for you! You enter in your income and fixed expenses, and it spits out how much you can spend per day. You can also plan for future purchases. The basic version is free.

I wound up deleting after a week because it was not good for my anxiety, but I know plenty of people who use and love it.
posted by Tamanna at 12:05 PM on January 12, 2018


Mint?
posted by chesty_a_arthur at 12:07 PM on January 12, 2018


I've used one called Fudget for quick expense tracking when on holiday. It works very well.

However I use You Need A Budget day-to-day, which you may wish to consider if you catch the budgeting bug. I can't recommend it enough (it is not free, but I routinely save its annual cost every month in effective budgeting.
posted by Happy Dave at 12:11 PM on January 12, 2018


Response by poster: I set up a google spreadsheet to do this and then I access it through the sheets app. Not fancy, it works really well for me.

Sounds like a great idea, but I really don't want to have to create my own right now. I find that it's just one more barrier to getting started.

I'll keep it in mind for later, when I inevitably want to customize my record keeping.
posted by Archipelago at 12:35 PM on January 12, 2018


I use an ancient lightweight app called Budget. Enter the budgeted amount and then enter each expenses. There's a notes field in the expense entry. It's very simple but for that reason I think it might be suitable for your purposes.
posted by praemunire at 12:52 PM on January 12, 2018


P.S. I bought it so long ago I'm no longer sure what it cost but it couldn't have been more than $2-3. It's that old and lightweight.
posted by praemunire at 1:01 PM on January 12, 2018


I asked a similar question last year and I wound up going with Toshl.
posted by jessamyn at 1:01 PM on January 12, 2018


Here's a copy of a monthly budget I found for use on Google Drive. You can make a copy and use it on your own Drive account. I've used it briefly in the past and it's pretty good.

If you're willing to spend a small amount of money per month (like two to three coffees worth), I would HIGHLY recommend You Need a Budget. We've been using it for years and it has made such an enormous difference in our finances even to this day. Looking at the reports today, our net worth has increased by 688.1% within the past year. It's phenomenal, truly. We think so differently about money and financial planning.
posted by ancient star at 1:01 PM on January 12, 2018 [1 favorite]


I use Mint. It will do exactly what you’re talking about. You have to do the work of setting up spending for each spending category at the beginning but after that it’s really easy. The only thing you have to log is how you spend cash. (Occasionally I’ll make sure that something is auto coded correctly it sometimes mixes up gas and snacks bought at gas stations).
posted by raccoon409 at 2:11 PM on January 12, 2018


I just started using Spendee in this exact way. Sections for notes/tags. Plus the icons are pretty cute!
posted by thebots at 3:53 PM on January 12, 2018


Oh, but you do have to pay to connect your bank account. I just use it manually with the budget feature.
posted by thebots at 3:54 PM on January 12, 2018


You could also look for a simple travel expense tracker. I used Trabee pocket on a recent trip and it did the job. You can set a budget and it'll tell you how much you have left when you enter your spending.

There are a few categories of expenses that you can assign your spending to which are all travel related, but might be ok if your squint (eg put housing related expenses under "lodgings"). Or I think you can pay to get custom categories.
posted by pianissimo at 7:49 AM on January 13, 2018 [1 favorite]


In the US at least Mint does automatically for you if you’re willing to give them your checking account and credit card information. I’ve used them for years with no problem. But I understand some people might not be comfortable with that.
posted by greermahoney at 11:04 AM on January 13, 2018


« Older Metal roofing snafu   |   Excellent narrative/documentary nonfiction... Newer »
This thread is closed to new comments.