Well that is Christmas and the holiday season over for another year, and for many it is a time for looking at the damage done to your savings or your credit balances. For those lucky enough not to have to borrow or put aside for Christmas then the next few weeks will pass by like any other. For those of us that are genius, like the kid above, paying off our seasonal debt comes naturally, but for some of us less fortunate, the financial impact of Christmas can last much longer. With that in mind, we have put together a selection of the finest money saving apps for the year ahead to help you either manage money, save money or even to make a little extra cash.
Apps for promotional offers and to make money
So let's start with a few apps that can help you find a great deal or make a few extra dollars.
Swagbucks
The Swagbucks website will actually pay you for your opinions. Similar to sites like Qark, you can complete a survey for points that can be exchanged for rewards. However, unlike most of the competitors for this type of app, you can also get rewards for watching a video or using the search tool to earn points called Swagbucks. You can even earn points when you make normal purchases through any of the participating online stores. When you have earned enough, you can exchange them for gift cards to spend.
Right now, you can exchange 849 swagbucks points for a £5 Amazon voucher or 450 for a $5 voucher. The amounts vary depending on your geographical location and currency. Vouchers are available for a large variety of popular stores, and the list is constantly increasing. So why not make a little extra cash for you opinion? The app is free and can be found here: http://www.swagbucks.com/mobile
Groupon App
If you have a little down time and are flexible in how to use it, you want to eat out somewhere nice but are watching the budget, or perhaps you are just looking for promotional offers in general, then Groupon is one of the best sites to find short notice deals. The site has deals and offers in over 500 cities, giving up to 90% off the full value for a variety of activities and venues. The mobile app allows you to navigate these promotions and redeem vouchers on the move. So if your budget is tight but you still want the freedom to let loose when you can, apps like this can help you have your fun (if you are flexible on the activities and venues offered) at a price you can afford.
The websites for Groupon can be found here:
- http://www.grouponnz.co.nz
- http://www.groupon.com.au
The mobile apps, depending on your platform can be found here:
Lasoo
Lasoo is another great site and app for making sure you're up to date with vouchers and promotional offers. This app helps you to find the best deal from a large database of retailers. Once you've found a deal, you can save it to a shopping list and use your phones' GPS to find the nearest store. The site and app are loaded with catalogues from a large range of retailers, as well as coupons from stores that often get missed when the paper copy comes through the mailbox and goes straight in the bin. There are some great deals available, and the app is free.
The website is here, and the app can be downloaded here:
Apps to help cut your phone bills
Want a little help reducing your mobile bill? Or perhaps you're going travelling or have family heading abroad you want to keep in touch with but are afraid of the cost. While many mobile packages come with an abundance of free texts or minutes, it's very rare for any packages to come with free calls abroad. That's where apps like these come into their own.
If you don't have unlimited texting or you're travelling overseas, use WhatsApp to text your friends for free. WhatsApp sends messages over your internet connection or data plan, so make sure Wi-Fi or data roaming capabilities are enabled when you travel. Watch out for the exorbitant roaming fees that phone companies charge, though!
The app can be found here to download on a variety of platforms including Android, Apple, Windows and Blackberry. The first year is free, $0.99 per year after that.
Skype
The Skype app, like WhatsApp above, is multi platform, but if you have access to an internet connection you can also make voice and video calls for free. Perfect if you've run out of free minutes for the month, or credit on your pre pay plan. You can also use it on tablets, smart TVs and PCs as well as your mobile.
This app can be found here, free.
Apps for checking you're getting the best deal
Let's face it, there is nothing worse than the feeling of forking out for an expensive purchase just to walk further down the street and see it for a whole lot less. No one likes to feel that they've paid above the odds for an item, and apps like this can make that scenario a thing of the past.
Price Me
This app from Price Me will search for the product you are looking for, bring up a list of retailers selling the product, their price, reputation and locations. So if you're standing in the store, impulsively reaching for your wallet, reach for your phone first and make sure you are getting the best price you can.
This app is free and can be found here. It is also available for Android here.
Apps to help keep track of purchases and accounts
This set of apps is focussed on helping you keep track of the money you have, your accounts, your balances, your budgets and your purchases to help you maintain a healthy and transparent financial lifestyle.
Quicken 2014
This great little personal finance app is a comprehensive finance tracker. You can store all of your data synchronised across your PC/Desktop and mobile device. It also allows you to take pictures of any receipts or related financial documents and store them in the Quicken cloud. So if you ever lose a receipt, you can have peace of mind knowing you have a backup electronic copy. It will also provide you with visibility of all your accounts, help you create a budget and track how you are performing against it. It will allow you to track your spending in every area and you can even budget by activity. So, for example, you could set a budget at the start of the month of $50 for bars and clubs, and track what you actually spend - the app will let you know when your budget is gone.
The app is free to download, and the site can be found here, with links to the app for iPhone and Android.
HomeBudget with Sync
Much like Quicken, this app is a finance tracker. HomeBudget is essentially an integrated expense tracker. It can work across all your devices and is designed to help you track your expenses, income, bills due and account balances. The app offers support for budgeting and allows a graphical analysis of your expense and income data, using a series of charts and graphs. There is a small fee for this app, but with a price tag of less than $5, it may well be worth its weight with the information it can provide you. The app can be found here:
So that concludes our selection of money saving apps for 2014. We have tried to provide a diverse range for both direct saving, saving on spending, and tracking your spending - as prevention is often easier than dealing with the consequences of over-spending. So why not get going: put your knowlege to use with Swagbucks, or get yourself a budget set up on Quicken. The sooner you start, the sooner you will reap the benefits. Good luck!
