It’s the beginning of a new year, and you know what that means…
Time to inevitably make some New Year’s resolutions that you hope will make ‘2016 you’ better than ‘2015 you’.
You’ll exercise more, eat less, and budget better. All of which can feel like difficult challenges to tackle in amongst the January blues. Unless, of course, you let technology do the hard work for you.
To make sure you stay motivated this year, here are five of our favourite free money saving apps to help you budget better in 2016:
For sticking to your budgets…
This app helps you monitor your expenses, stick to budgets, and see exactly where your money is going. Basically, it’ll make sure you don’t blow your entire month’s budget without even realising it. We’re looking at you, impromptu after-work drinks.
Add weekly, monthly, or annual budgets and enter your transactions as you go, and Spendee will track where you spend your money, notifying you when you’re about to reach the limit. You can also add (and share) different wallets and categories to make sure your finances are organised and calculated in a way that suits you.
With a simple layout (and pie charts – everybody likes pie charts), the expense analysis and infographics are clear and easy to understand, allowing you to finally start putting your spending into perspective.
Cost: Free
Perfect for: The serial spender.
For getting your favourite food at the best price…
If you feel like your food is costing you too much, mySupermarket could help.
This app allows you to create a shopping list and compare live prices for over 10 different retailers, making sure you to find the cheapest deals for all of your favourite products. Once you’ve switched to the shop that’ll give you the best price for your basket, you can simply check out and wait for your groceries to arrive.
And, as it is an entirely independent service, it’s pretty much guaranteed that you’re getting an honest and fair deal.
Best of all, this simple food shopping switch could end up saving you up to 30% on every supermarket shop – without compromising on quality. You might be able to afford that packet of luxury biscuits after all…
Cost: Free
Perfect for: The convenience shopper who could definitely be thriftier.
For making the most out of your food cupboard…
Do you often end up throwing half your food (AKA half your money) away, all because you can’t think of a good meal to make with it?
Big Oven is here to make sure that doesn’t happen. Not only does it supply you with a portable grocery list, as well as over 350,000 recipe ideas, it can also tell you exactly how to use up those last few things in the fridge to make something you’ll actually want to eat.
And it turns out you’d be surprised at the amount of nutritious (and tasty) meals you can make out of an egg, broccoli, and some noodles. Be prepared to spice up and recreate your leftovers too.
Added bonus: you won’t have to empty the bin quite so often.
Cost: Free
Perfect for: The aspiring chef.
For managing your energy bills on the go…
Finding a good way to manage your energy usage is vital to ensuring you don’t dread your monthly bill. Remember that time you went away for a weekend and forgot to turn your heating off? Yeah, your bank account does too. *Shudder*.
The good news is, Hive can help. All you have to do is download the app, enter your boiler details, and use it to control your heating – wherever you are. You can even set a holiday mode so your heating automatically switches off for the time you’re away.
As well as enabling remote usage, it also means you can avoid tackling awkward boiler controls. No more attempting to climb into that hard to reach airing cupboard armed with a torch.
Want to save up to £150 on your energy bills? Download Hive now.
Cost: Free (not including installation).
Perfect for: The thermostat fiddler.
For guilt-free spending…
OK, we know this isn’t technically an app. But you can still use it on-the-go with their easy to use mobile site – so it’s basically the same thing. Right?
Love the Sales allows you to browse all of the current sales from a range of brands and retailers, helping you to find all the best products at affordable prices, without the hassle of searching individual websites.
From clothes and shoes, to electronics, garden, and sports equipment, you’re bound to find something you need (and by need, we mostly mean want) – and best of all, you won’t feel guilty about buying it.
Officially proving that being frugal never has to go out of fashion…
Cost: Free
Perfect for: The shopping addict.
Looking for ways to find your perfect job on the go? Download the reed.co.uk app for iPhone or Android now.
