9 Best Money Saving Apps to Get in 2019
Some people are really good at saving, while others might just need a little help.
Over the past few years, a number of apps have popped up that help people save money. Each has its own bent, but at their core they offer the same service: collecting small amounts of money that add up over time. They are digital piggy banks, essentially.
Here are Nine smartphone-friendly saving apps to help you easily set aside your spare change.
- Disclaimer; I believe in transparency and want to disclose that I’ve included certain products and links to those products that I will earn an affiliate commission for purchases you make. The reader pays nothing.
1. Cash Back App Ibotta:
What is Ibotta?
Ibotta is a cash-back app that grants you rewards (in real-life dollars — not points or gift cards) on your everyday purchases. It turns couponing into a bit of a game, and you can do it all from your phone. No newspaper coupons required.
It also features rewards across retailers: from Amazon to Forever 21 to Walmart.
Here’s how to use Ibotta:
1. Download the free app and sign up.
2. Explore cash-back offers.
What’s great about it:
“Ibotta is more portable than coupons, and it introduces me to brands I’d otherwise not try.”
Ibotta is a great way to find cash back not only on grocery staples but also at online retailers and through travel sites. People use it to discover new brands. For example, one user only bought Viva paper towels before downloading the app. But if she can get $3 back on a pack of Bounty, why not?
3. If you’re shopping in store, add offers to your account before heading out. Do this by tapping the little plus sign next to the offer.
4. Once you hit $20, you can cash out through PayPal or Venmo. You can also opt to receive your rewards as a gift card.
Alternatively, you can link any of your store loyalty cards to get automatic cash back after you add offers to your account and check out. No scanning barcodes or taking photos of receipts required.
2. Cash Back at from Shoptracker by The Harris Poll
Shoptracker is operated by The Harris Poll, a well known survey company that measures U.S. public opinion.
In this case, it wants to see what products Amazon users purchase. When you sign up for ShopTracker, it tracks your Amazon purchases from your computer.
All it wants to see is your order information, including the order date, product title, category, ISBN number, release date, condition, seller, list price per unit, quantity and other details.
Shoptracker will send you a $3 Visa Gift card every month but only if you download their software, which takes about 5 minutes. Here is more info about ShopTracker
3. Get paid for shopping:
It’s easy to join and I get cash back from nearly All of my purchases.
Every quarter they send me cash back from my purchases!
How it works:
Before you make a purchase, simply visit the Ebates site, find the store, and use their link to make a purchase.
You’ll see discount codes (usually between 3%-10%)
You will receive cashback for your purchase.
They have a browser extension that makes it so easy to save.
Start earning cash back this month at Ebates here:
4. Acorns
Launched in 2014, Acorns was the first of the apps to invest your spare change in a basic investment portfolio. It reportedly has 3 million customers.
If you make a debit card purchase for $3.35, Acorns withdraws $0.65.
It invests the money in $5 increments in one of five portfolio options ranging from aggressive to conservative, all with varying mixes of equity and bond exchange-traded funds.
The app charges a $1 monthly service fee for accounts with less than $5,000. ETFs also have their own expenses ranging from 0.05 percent to 0.20 percent, which are deducted from dividends.
You also can set up automatic deposits on a daily, weekly or monthly basis.
The company also partners with various retailers, like Apple, Jet and Dollar Shave Club on its Found Money feature. When you buy something from those retailers with the same account you have linked to your Acorns account, the retailer adds a percentage of the total back into your Acorns account.
Your Acorns account is an investment account, therefore it is not insured by the FDIC, so market forces could chip away at your principal.
Survey Junkie: (Great Surveys, Little Time, Great Payout)
You can earn anywhere from $12 – $18 per hour from Survey Junkie!
Survey Junkie has one of the strongest reputations on the web, and they have always paid on-time and the right amount. Not only that, but they have excellent customer service if you ever have an issue.
Taking surveys in your spare time can be a great way to earn some extra dough fast. Check out Survey Junkie which will pay you instantly with cash via Paypal.
They have over 6M members and they have an 8.9/10 rating on Trust Pilot.
5. Digit
Digit uses algorithms to analyze what goes into and out of your bank account, then makes small withdrawals in a way it says you “won’t notice.”
Digit can save more than the other apps because it’s not based on transactions but on your balance and spending habits. So, while Acorns can’t save more than $1 per transaction,
Digit could potentially save up to $50 at a time.
Digit used to be free, but in April 2017 announced it would start charging $2.99 a month. The company said at the time that it would rather charge its customers a fee rather than sell their data or serve as a lead generator. You can still try Digit for free for 100 days.
With the introduction of the fee, the company boosted how much it pays customers for their deposits from a 0.2 percent “annualized savings bonus” to 1 percent when you save with Digit for three consecutive months. The funds are FDIC-insured up to a balance of $250,000.
If Digit determines you can’t spare any money, it won’t withdraw anything and backs it up with a “no overdraft guarantee.”
Within the app you can set goals to help you save for day-to-day expenses, such as rent and bills, as well as major purchases.
You can also text Digit “withdraw” with the amount and the set amount will be transferred back into your checking account in one business day.
6. Chime
Acorns and Digit are stand-alone apps intended to help you save outside of your checking account. Chime wants to give you a better banking experience overall.
Chime offers customers checking accounts, savings accounts and a debit card. Chime works with The Bancorp Bank, so your money is insured by the FDIC up to $250,000 per person per account.
The Chime savings account has two basic levers — it helps you save when you spend by rounding up your purchases and when you get paid by automatically moving 10 percent of your check into savings.
One of the advantages of apps like Acorns is that your money is tucked away elsewhere. Chime CEO Chris Britt says some customers have asked for ways to make it harder to dip into savings. The company is looking into it.
The Chime savings account carries a nominal interest rate, but Britt says the point is more about getting people — particularly millennials — into the rhythm of saving. Once they figure that out, then they can chase rate.
Chime doesn’t charge a fee. It makes its money from debit card transactions.
7. Qapital
Qapital is a rules-based account that does round-ups like the others, but also lets you do things like move money into your savings every time your favorite football team wins.
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8. Clarity Money
Clarity Money, which is primarily a budgeting tool that identifies where you might be wasting money on things like forgotten subscriptions, partners with Acorns and offers its own savings app.
9. Long Game
Long Game is trying to redirect some of the money people spend on lottery tickets into savings by giving you a chance to win money by saving. It’s called prize-linked savings, and the more you save, the more chances you have to win. Don’t worry — the account is FDIC-insured, and you’re not playing with your principal.
These apps are just a start for the ways you can save money. Check out my other posts for more ideas.
Relevant Articles:
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9 Best Ways to Save $7K This Year