Building long-term wealth starts with knowing where your dollars are going on a daily basis and how they’re helping you move closer toward your long-term goals. One way to do that is creating and maintaining a budget. The best budgeting apps help you understand your income and spending so you have maximum control over your money.
Budgeting apps or best financial planning apps may connect to your bank account and credit cards to automatically download transactions and categorize your spending to match the budget you choose.
Managing where your money is going and how you can comfortably spend your income can be difficult. Creating a budget can help you organize your finances, which can improve your finances. Using a budgeting app is one way to create and stick to a budget.
The 10 best budgeting apps of 2023
There are several types of budgeting strategies and tools you can use to help get your financial house in order. Creating a budget and using an app to keep you accountable to your spending and saving goals is key to hitting all of your long-term financial goals.
Zeta
Zeta is one of the best free budgeting apps that caters specifically to couples and families hoping to track their expenses together.
Annual cost: $0
Average app rating: 4.4
Account syncing capabilities: Yes
It is good for couples and families who want to merge their finances. Zeta offers a number of features that make it an ideal app for budgeting with others in your household.
Rocket Money
Formerly known as Truebill, Rocket Money is a budgeting app that serves more than 3.4 million members worldwide and offers budgeting tools, bill negotiation services, and more.
Cost: $0; or $3–$12 per month for premium version
Average app rating: 4.4
Account syncing capabilities: Yes
This is one of the best financial planning apps as it is good for those who are looking to cut down on their monthly costs. Rocket Money allows users to create a budget that automatically monitors spending, separates transactions into spending categories, sends notifications about upcoming charges or a low balance, and more.
PocketGuard
This is a budgeting app that offers bill organizing and budget planning services to over 500,000 users. This also starts as a free budgeting app.
Cost: $0 for free version or $7.99 monthly, $34.99 annually, or $79.99 lifetime fee
Average app rating: 4.2
Account syncing capabilities: Yes
Good for users who are working on paying off debt. With PocketGuard, users can set bill reminders, set fee alerts, create savings goals, and more.
EveryDollar
EveryDollar is a budgeting app founded by Ramsey Solutions that helps users create a fully customizable budget and set financial goals, with additional perks for premium users.
Cost: $12.99 monthly or $79.99 annually
Average app rating: 4.0
Account syncing capabilities: Yes
Good for those who are creating a budget for the first time. EveryDollar is a straightforward, easy-to-use budgeting app that allows users to create a customizable budget and set savings goals.
Honeydue
Honeydue is a free budgeting app that allows couples to manage their personal and shared budgets all in one app.
Cost: $0
Average app rating: 4.0
Account syncing capabilities: Yes
Good for those who want to manage their personal finances and joint finances in one place.
Wally
Wally is a budgeting app available to IOS users only that offers customizable budgets, progress trackers, spending insights, financial calendars, and more.
Cost: $0 or $8.99 monthly, $39.99 annually for Wally Gold membership
Average app rating: 3.9
Account syncing capabilities: Yes
Its for those who like to keep an eye on their progress.
Buddy
About: Buddy is a simple, mobile-only budgeting app that lets you track your spending, income, and savings as well as shared budgets with loved ones or friends.
Cost: $4.99 monthly or $34.99 yearly renewing subscription to unlock Premium functionality
Average app rating: 4.7
Account syncing capabilities: Yes
Good for those who often split the bill with friends. Buddy made our list for making it easier to manage budgets and shared costs among loved ones or friends.
Simplifi
Simplifi is also one of the best budgeting apps offered by money management platform Quicken. The app is ad-free and offers budgeting services to over 20 million members.
Cost: $35.88 annually or $71.88 per year if you sign up for a monthly membership
Average app rating: 3.3
Account syncing capabilities: Yes
Perfect for those who want a comprehensive overview of their finances, not just their monthly spending.
Goodbudget
This budgeting app was originally started as a virtual envelope budgeting method, but has expanded to become a comprehensive budgeting app, offering shared budgets, debt trackers and even educational courses and podcasts.
Cost: $0–$70 for annual membership, or $8 monthly
Average app rating: 4.5
Account syncing capabilities: No
t is best financial planning apps for those who want to learn more about budgeting and how to better manage their money.
Oportun
Formerly known as Digit, Oportun, a fintech company, acquired the budgeting app in 2021. Oportun offers other products like personal loans and a credit card.
Cost: the first 30 days are free, then $5 monthly
Average app rating: 4.7
Account syncing capabilities: Yes
Its for users who want a hands-off approach to saving. With Oportun, you link an external bank account to the app, and then it uses an algorithm to automatically set aside small amounts of money for your personalized savings goals.
How to choose a budgeting app
When choosing a best budgeting app one has to think about the features that are most important and will serve long-term. The best budgeting app and strategy will be the ones you can stick to and use consistently to keep yourself accountable to your goals. To help narrow down your options, consider the following:
- Costs
- Syncing
- App/desktop experience
- Personalization and sharing
