Only 16 percent of Americans are saving the recommended amount of their income for retirement — 15%. The overwhelming majority of Americans won’t have the necessary savings to comfortably stop working and retire.
Why? The number one reason behind not saving for retirement was the respondent’s amount of expenses.
Having sufficient savings for retirement doesn’t mean you need to go out and land a six-figure job. Instead, work on cutting back on your current expenses and saving money where you can.
Do you always struggle to save money? Worry not, there’s an app for that! Here are nine of the best apps for saving money.
1. EveryDollar
The first step of saving money is understanding where your money goes. Once you know where you’re money is going, it’s easier to budget and save money. EveryDollar is a budgeting app that helps you see exactly what you spend your money on each paycheck.
EveryDollar was created by the financial guru Dave Ramsey. Ramsey believes that everyone has the power to be a millionaire and that all starts with a solid budget.
The app works by first entering your total income. Then, you enter all your monthly expenses, such as debt obligations and household bills. The app tracks your available money for you — letting you know how much money is left after your expenses.
With the paid version of the app, it connects to your bank account and tracks every transaction. There is a free version that allows you to manually enter every transaction on your own.
According to Ramsey, the goal is to get every month’s budget down to $0, hence the name. This means, throwing all your extra money each month to pay off debts or into savings accounts.
2. Acorns
If you’re terrible at remembering to transfer money into savings, Acorns is the money-saving app for you.
Acorns works by connecting to your debit or credit cards. The main way this app saves your money is by turning on round-ups. With round-ups, each transaction is rounded up to the next whole dollar and the extra change is accounted for your savings.
Once your round-ups reach a certain dollar amount, Acorn transfers that money from your account into a savings account through their company. You then have the freedom to invest that money in a diversified portfolio with help from Acorns.
Through the app, you can also set reoccurring investments of specific dollar amounts monthly or weekly to increase your savings. They also recently launched a retirement savings plan for the serious savers.
Even by just turning on the round-ups and spending your money like usual, you’ll generate a decent amount of savings with no extra effort. And because it’s just a few cents per transaction, odds are you won’t even notice the money leaving your account.
3. Honey
The days of the huge coupon binder are long-gone. If you’re looking for apps that help you save money through couponing, look no further than Honey.
The Honey Smart Shopping Assistant works by compiling multiple coupon codes, promotions, and deals all in one place. The app works hard to make sure you are getting the very best deal possible on thousands of different items.
To shop with Honey, open the app and search for the item you want to purchase. Honey then presents you with the best prices from brand-name stores around the nation. Never again will you have to cut out coupons or scrounge the weekly sale ads for the best deal.
Honey even comes with a browser extension if you enjoy online shopping from your computer. This extension works in a similar way by alerting you to possible coupons and savings and automatically applying them.
4. Digit
If you like the idea of being totally hands-off with your finances, Digit is a great automatic saving app.
Digit works by studying your finance transactions. An algorithm learns your patterns and studies your financial habits. With this, it can predict when your bills are due and how much you spend on expenses in an average week.
Once the algorithm has captured your information, it starts making automatic withdrawals from your account. These withdrawals generally range from $8 to $30 based on your monthly expenses.
The idea is that since Digit knows your financial history, it withdrawals money only when you have sufficient funds for your expenses. This way, you won’t notice the withdrawals but they are still in a larger amount than using other apps on this list.
The first 100-days of the app are free so you have a chance to see if you like how it works. After that, you’re charged a $2.99 monthly fee, which is nothing compared to what the app will save you.
5. Poshmark
Poshmark is a great app for both saving and making money.
This app allows people from all around the world to sell their own name-brand items. This app is most popular for selling clothing and fashion accessories.
Buying your wardrobe second-hand is a great way to save money. But through Poshmark, you won’t’ spend hours sifting through a thrift store just to find one item in your size. Instead, you can search an extensive inventory of items in all sizes and brands.
And while you’re at it, list a few of your old items for sale too! You’ll save money on your clothing expenses and be able to earn a little bit of cash back at the same time. It’s a win-win.
Still unsure about using Poshmark to save money? Read this article about the truths and fiction about selling on Poshmark.
6. Qapital
Qapital works like many other apps to help save money through transaction round-ups. This app connects to your bank account and rounds-up purchases to the nearest dollar for your savings account.
But what makes Qapital different is the way it stores your savings.
With Qapital, you’re able to make savings accounts for different financial goals. The app deposits your round-ups directly into the savings account you are currently working on. You can have different accounts for things like a car down-payment, vacation fund, or even home repairs.
Log into the app often to see how much progress you’ve made on your goals. And the whole process if effortless!
7. Swagbucks
Swagbucks is different than the other apps discussed above. Instead of effortlessly saving money you already have, this app allows you to make money with simple tasks. Which in turn, produces more money for you to deposit into your savings account!
This app allows you to take surveys, watch videos, and even shop at your favorite stores. In exchange for each action, you earn a certain amount of “Swagbucks.” You can then trade in your Swagbucks for gift cards to your favorite retailers, like Amazon.
With a little bit of hustle, you can earn some serious cash. In fact, Swagbucks has paid out over $350,000,000!
8. Shopkick
Shopkick is a money-saving app similar to Swagbucks that allows you to earn gift cards to certain stores. But, instead of doing surveys or watching videos, you earn “kicks” by performing actions at different stores.
The easiest way to ear kicks is by merely walking into certain stores. Once inside the store, the app sends you on a scavenger hunt to scan certain items for even more kicks. You can also earn even more kicks by purchasing specific items — but no purchase is necessary to earn the majority of kicks.
Then, trade in your kicks for gift cards. Instead of digging into your savings account to purchase groceries, next time just pull out the gift card you earned through Shopkick!
9. iBotta
iBotta is a great app to save money for those who miss the coupon days. But instead of using the app to find coupons, you use it to receive rebates on items you purchase.
When shopping, first scan different items with the iBotta app. The app will show you which brands or sizes are currently offering a rebate. When you find an item offering a rebate, purchase it and scan the receipt!
Once you reach a total of $20 in rebates, you can cash out your rewards. The key to saving money with iBotta is buying items that were already on your shopping list — just buy the brand that helps make you money!
Look Beyond the Best Apps for Saving Money
Using these best apps for saving money, you’ll have a head start on your retirement savings.
We recommend trying out one or two of these apps at a time. Test them for a few weeks to see if they work with your lifestyle. Then, move on and try the other apps on this list.
If you find a couple of these apps that work for you, make using them a habit and watch your savings build up.
But remember that saving apps aren’t the only way to prepare for your future. You can also try to increase your income through a side-hustle. There are plenty of opportunities to make money from home — you just have to find one that works for you!
Visit our library for a large collection of posts about various ways to save money. Start saving now and stop stressing about money.