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January 15, 2025
Whether you’re repairing a bike or preparing a budget, it’s important to have the right tools for the job. As modern consumers, we are lucky to have a wealth of financial tools at our disposal that our parents could only dream of. These days, savvy consumers rely on apps to track and control their monthly spending habits.
Moreover, you don’t need to break the bank to find the right tools for tracking expenses and monitoring income. That being said, some people find it easier to stick to tried-and-true pen and paper budgeting, or other physical methods, which is perfectly fine if it works for you!
Here are some simple, free (or cheap) budgeting tools you should consider adding to your toolbelt to help you achieve financial wellness.
We start off with an old system that many find dependable both as a means of budgeting as well as restricting your ability to overspend your income. The envelope system is exactly what it sounds like: you take a stack of envelopes labeled with major budget categories, such as groceries, clothing, bills, and loan payments. As your paychecks come in, you put a set amount of cash into each envelope and only take the money out of each one to pay for the specific budgeting category indicated on the envelope. At the end of the month, any cash remaining in these envelopes can be put into long-term savings.
This method is perfect for visual learners. You see the piles of money slowly diminishing over time and get a feel for which budget categories you may be spending too much on. Just be careful how much cash you take out of your bank account at any one time and make sure not to lose your envelopes. Remember: your money will always be safer kept with the bank.
Goodbudget is an app that allows you to practice the envelope system without needing physical cash or envelopes. The app doesn’t connect to your bank accounts, so there’s no need to worry about additional security risks. Instead, you manually add your account balances, cash amounts, debts, and income to your digital “envelopes,” and update the app whenever you spend money.
SpreadsheetsIn terms of customization, nothing beats an old-fashioned spreadsheet. Most computers come with Microsoft Excel or a similar spreadsheet program installed, though there is a bit of a learning curve to effectively using these programs. Thankfully, Microsoft provides free online training on its support website for Office products.
You can also find free budget templates online both from Microsoft Excel and Google, as well as websites like Moneyzine and Vertex42. These templates come with built-in formulas that automate calculations, streamlining your budgeting process and reducing the likelihood of errors.
Modern financial institutions offer their customers a plethora of tools through their mobile banking apps. With New Tripoli Bank’s mobile banking app, you can easily track your monthly spending and income and export that data for use with other budgeting tools.
One of the best budgeting tools offered by mobile banking apps is automated bill payments. A busy schedule can make it difficult to stay on top of your monthly bills; by automating this process, you can plan your other spending around your payment schedule and also set up alerts in the app to let you know when scheduled payments are about to be sent.
There are plenty of free apps you can download to assist in your budgeting process.
Money Left Over, or Achieve MoLO, is a new ad-free app from Achieve that connects all of your financial accounts to automatically track spending and organize it into categories. The app analyzes your monthly budget and uses it to predict how much money you will have left at the end of each month. You can use these numbers to set savings targets for yourself for each month.
Another app I would like to shout out is Honeydue, which is a budgeting app designed for couples. Both partners can sync their bank accounts, credit cards, loans, and investments and the free version of the app automatically categorizes expenses while allowing users to create custom categories as well. You and your partner can set up monthly limits on each of these categories and Honeydue will send alerts when you or your partner are nearing them.
These are just some of the tools you can use to help get a handle on your budget. If you’re not sure where to start, you should reach out to New Tripoli Bank and speak with one of our friendly community bankers who can help point you in the right direction.
Disclaimer: The apps mentioned in this piece are only suggestions and have not been endorsed by New Tripoli Bank. Please use discretion when deciding which apps to download.
Patricia Metzger has been working for New Tripoli Bank since 2010 and has worked many roles including Teller, Assistant Branch Manager and her current role of Branch Manager of our New Tripoli Office. She has over a decade of experience helping our customers with their financial concerns and budgeting.
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