The Best Financial Budget Software
A budget should accurately reflect your financial situation, which can be difficult to do when calculating the figures by hand. Rather than paying as much as $400 per hour for an accountant, use budgeting software to do the work for less. There's software to let you manage your money online or on your home computer.
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Mint
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Mint is a free personal-finance tool that allows you to see all your checking, savings, investing and loan accounts in a single online account. Enter your banking information and within five minutes you'll have access to charts and graphs detailing your transactions. Transactions appear in plain language --- "Sonic Drive-In for $8.34," for example. Your account also helps you track debt repayment by displaying your progress as a graph. To check your Mint account away from your computer, simply access it through Mint's free applications for the Android and iPhone.
Mvelope
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Before debit cards became popular, people commonly managed their money using the envelope system. When they received money, they divided it among envelopes devoted to specific purposes, such as rent, groceries and vacation. If the money in an envelope ran out, there were two options: borrow from another envelope or forgo an expense until the next payday. The system helped prevent overspending by ensuring that money was already set aside for a given purpose (for example, rent). Mvelopes software continues the envelope system in today's world of cashless transactions. The software monitors your bank accounts for income and divides it among virtual envelopes, which you configure. As you make purchases, Mvelopes updates your account balances to reflect the withdrawal from the appropriate envelope. You can access your Mvelope account wherever you have Internet access. Plans start at $7.90 per month as of 2011; prices vary depending on whether you pay quarterly, yearly or every two years.
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MySpendingPlan
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MySpendingPlan is free software that handles aspects of budgeting that other software tends to overlook. It allows you to monitor your transactions and goals through a single online account, and like Mvelopes, it lets you divide your money into virtual envelopes. MySpendingPlan also emails you to remind you of important events, such as a bill due dates, and provides access to coupons and free items for your household needs. The website includes articles to help you make wise financial decisions.
Quicken
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If you prefer to keep your financial software on your computer rather than a website account, download Quicken from Intuit. The software costs $69.99 as of 2011 --- less than one-quarter of what it can cost to hire an accountant for a single hour. Quicken gathers all your bank account information in one place and categorizes your transactions to show you a visual representation of your spending habits. Use it to remind yourself of bill due dates, to compose a debt-reduction plan and to plan for retirement.
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