Apps that help you save money during the pandemic
Share
Following the COVID-19 outbreak, which has confined most of us to our homes, saving money has been an unforeseen byproduct brought on by less trips outside of the home. After all, if the money that was usually spent on gas for getting from point A to point B is not needed, then it should stay in our bank accounts where it belongs. However, this is not true for some as quarantine has led to unnecessary spending and not enough saving. But, with the help of technology, it is still possible to make the money not spent on bars, restaurants, and gas grow exponentially. Here are some ways that can make it happen.
It is hard to know where you can improve, when it comes to spending, without a way to keep track and see what is keeping you from conserving. It’s the same with keeping track of your savings goals. Truebill is an app that can help keep track of both in addition to helping the user find and shut down any unneeded subscriptions.
Another app that helps you save is Digit. Like Truebill, it helps to track your spending and your progression as you save toward your goals. The aspect that sets Digit apart, however, is the investing feature. For $5 a month, you can open an investment or retirement account. From there, you can choose your goal, determine your “risk tolerance” (because not everyone can be Gordon Gekko from “Wall Street”) and Digit will set up a portfolio for you. Digit will invest the money and you will be able to see some growth on your investments.
If investing is something that interests you, but you aren’t interested in spending $5, Acorns is a different option. Rather than throwing your $0.35 from a purchase into a jar or leaving it lying around in your car or at the bottom of your purse, you can invest that change and see it grow. Instead of spending $4.37 you can “round up” your purchase to $5 and use the remaining $0.63 and buy ETFs or “exchange-traded funds”. Acorns will set up a portfolio for you for $1.00 a month. But if you want a boost, you can also invest more money in the account on a recurring schedule. It works for both credit and debit cards.
But investing is not for everyone. For some, it’s just about keeping track of bills and making sure that they get paid on time to avoid late fees. For that, there is Prism. Once you put all of your accounts and charges into the app, you will be able to track and pay them all through one app. This makes bill paying a much more stream lined endeavor. Much better than having to remember several logins for several sites just to do something that you didn’t want to do in the first place.
Saving money is not just about bills, though. More money can be found in grocery purchases as well. Checkout 51 is an app that can help. You check the site for deals and choose which ones work for you. From there, you buy groceries and keep the receipt. Once you save the receipt to the app you’ll be eligible to earn cash back that can go into your pocket. It’s way easier than toting coupons.
Saving in a pandemic may sound easy but, as we have all learned, it can often prove more difficult than expected. These are some apps that provide ways to bolster your savings with little extra effort. Happy saving!
###
There is no professional relationship between SPOTLIGHT and any of these Apps. This is for informational purposes and does not constitute an endorsement, recommendation, or favoring.
