Four money apps to help your cut your spending

Plum says it helps more than one million people invest, save and manage their spending

(Image credit: © Plum)

last updated 14 June 2023

A growing number of money apps are popping up to help users manage their finances, save them cash and build their financial resilience. If you have a smartphone you probably already have a few banking apps to check your current account or credit card balance, and maybe one to keep an eye on your investments. But there’s also a range of budgeting and money-saving apps that can help you manage your finances better and even cut your household bills – something we’re all looking to fo during the cost of living crisis.

Money apps can save you time and money, with some switching your household bills to a cheaper competitor, cancelling unwanted direct debits for you, helping to file a tax return, or automatically squirrelling away some of your earnings to invest or save. We round up four of our favourite money management apps.

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By using Open Banking you can connect your bank accounts and credit cards to the app and see them all in one place. This allows the app to “snoop” through your finances and look at where you already spend your money. Snoop lets you know if there are voucher codes available for when you buy something from one of your favourite stores, or cheaper competitors for you to switch your bills to, such as broadband or car insurance.

Using Open Banking you can connect your accounts, including investments, to the app and view them in one place. The app can find and cancel any subscriptions you may have signed up to but forgotten about, offers cashback at more than 500 retailers, and helps you save for different goals by creating “Emma pots”. There are also three paid-for versions of the app that offer extra features, ranging from £4.99 to £14.99 a month in price, though you can do a 7-day trial for free.

Plum says it helps more than one million people invest, save and manage their spending. The app tracks your spending habits and gauges how much you can afford to save, then puts some money aside for you every few days. This auto-save feature also gives the option to round up your purchases to the nearest pound and save the difference (for example if you spent £2.60 on a coffee, it would save 40p).

The basic version app is free, but you can also upgrade for £1 a month, which means your savings will automatically be invested into shares and bonds via a Plum Isa (additional investment fees will apply). There are alternative plans ranging from £2.99 to £9.99 a month (note: you can do a 30-day trial for free) , offering extra features such as cashback of up to 11% when shopping with certain retailers, a Plum card and additional stocks to invest in.

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Ruth is an award-winning financial journalist with more than 15 years' experience of working on national newspapers, websites and specialist magazines.

She is passionate about helping people feel more confident about their finances. She was previously editor of Times Money Mentor, and prior to that was deputy Money editor at The Sunday Times.

A multi-award winning journalist, Ruth started her career on a pensions magazine at the FT Group, and has also worked at Money Observer and Money Advice Service.

Outside of work, she is a mum to two young children, while also serving as a magistrate and an NHS volunteer.