Is money causing you stress? There’s an app for that. Personal finance software has made it easier than ever to take control of your finances. We’ve rounded up a list of the very best personal finance software to help you achieve your financial goals and say goodbye to money worries.
Personal finance software helps you budget, plan for the future, and become better at managing your money. From budgeting to tax-software, we rank the top players in each category based on reviews, reputation, and functionality so you can find the right fit.
Basic Budgeting
Budgeting software has been a game-changer in the financial lives of many users. These tools can help you create custom budgets, offer insights into your spending, and help you pay down your debts. They link directly to your bank accounts so all your finances are in one place.
YNAB (You Need A Budget)
🥇 Best Paid Software
👍 Recommended for: People who are serious about budgeting and zero-based budget enthusiasts.
Life-changing, eye-opening, and amazing customer service are just some of the ways users describe this popular budgeting software. While its price tag may deter you from trying it, YNAB claims its budgeters save on average an impressive $6,000 in their first year alone. It’s designed to help you stop living paycheck-to-paycheck and clear your debts.
What differentiates YNAB from its competitors is that it’s not just a budgeting tool. According to users, it’s an educational tool that completely changes your mindset and your relationship with money.
👎 Cons:
- The steep initial learning curve.
- This is a hands-on budgeting tool, so if you want a more automated hands-off experience, this may not be the right fit for you.
- Costly if you’re on a tight budget.
⭐ App Store User Rating: 4.8/5 (45k ratings)
💵 Cost: $14.99/mo (34-day free trial) or $99/year
Mint
🥇 Best Free Software
👍 Recommended for:
- Users who want either a hands-off or hands-on experience.
- Users who are new to budgeting and don’t want to commit to a paid plan.
Mint is the most downloaded and widely used budgeting tool you can get. Besides tracking your spending and budgeting, it also offers extra features like credit monitoring and bill payment reminders. Users say it’s helped them stay on top of all their bills, create long-term savings, and improve their credit score.
👎 Cons:
- While it’s completely free, it does have ads.
- Users have reported it sometimes miscategorizes your transactions or loses connection to your bank accounts so you have to re-link them.
⭐ App Store User Rating: 4.8/5 (777k Ratings).
💵 Cost: Free
More Recommendations:
- Every Dollar – For fans of zero-based budgeting
- GoodBudget – For families
- Honeydue – For couples
- PocketGuard – For people with unsophisticated, simple finance needs (like students)
- Menvelopes – For fans of envelope-based budgeting
💡 Determining which budgeting method works best for you can help you choose the right budgeting software.
Savings-Focused
If you have a savings goal and want to be more in control of your spending, here is the best personal finance software specifically designed with savings in mind.
Oportun
🥇 Most Popular
👍 Recommended for:
- Users who want a simple, automatic way to save money.
- Users who struggle to save money on their own.
This popular app allows you to create different goals, like saving for a vacation or paying off your credit card debt and automatically finds money in your checking account to put aside towards these goals. Oportun claims that the average member saves $2,200/year.
👎 Cons:
- It withdraws arbitrary amounts from your account so you need to be aware of your balance at times.
- You need to save a decent amount to justify the monthly cost.
⭐ App Store User Rating: 4.7/5 (274k ratings).
💵 Cost: $5/mo (30-day free trial).
Qapital
🥇 For saving & investing.
👍 Recommended for:
- Long term savers who want to invest their money.
- Couples with a common savings goal.
- Cash Back Rewards.
Qapital helps you put away a percentage of each paycheck and also makes saving fun by setting rules with each savings goal you have. For example, if your goal is to save for your honeymoon, you can ask Qapital to transfer $5 to your savings every time you buy coffee. With the complete subscription, you can invest your savings and Qapital handles it all for you, a big help for new or inexperienced investors.
👎 Cons:
- Users have reported glitches in the app since it’s been recently updated.
⭐ App Store User Rating: 4.8/5 (82k Ratings)
💵 Cost: From $3/mo to $12/mo depending on user needs (30-day free trial)
More Recommendations:
- Acorns – For savers and first-time investors.
- Twine – For couples.
- Rocket Money (previously Truebill) – For saving money by lowering your bills and canceling unused subscriptions.
Small Business Management
Small business owners and freelancers take note: some software goes beyond personal finance and integrates features that can help you manage your small business.
Bonsai
👍 Recommended for: Freelancers
Bonsai is a small business management tool that will make any freelancer’s life easier. This software is packed with features. It can help you with things like contracts, proposals, invoicing, tax preparation and even task management.
👎 Cons:
- Some of the features are only available on more expensive plans.
⭐ Average User Rating: 4.8/5
💵 Cost: Starter – $24/month, Professional – $39/month, Business – $79/month
CountAbout
👍 Recommended for: Small business owners
Often mentioned as an alternative to Quicken, this personal finance software is for individuals and small business owners alike. You can also set up invoicing as an add-on feature (for an extra $60/year). Some of its features include attachments of receipts, financial reports, budgeting, and more. It’s easy to use and customizable according to your business needs.
👎 Cons:
- Costly.
- Reviews suggest app version needs improvement.
⭐ Average User Rating: 4.4/5
💵 Cost: $9.99/year for basic, $39.99/year for premium (45-day free trial)
GnuCash
👍 Recommended for: Micro-businesses, freelancers, and startups.
GnuCash is free accounting software that you can use for your personal and small business needs. It may not be the prettiest looking software, but its users don’t mind as it offers excellent features. You can manage your personal accounts as well as your customers, vendors, invoicing, and more.
👎 Cons:
- You can’t add additional users to the application so if you’re looking to grow your small business, you’ll have to upgrade to a different software down the line.
⭐ Average User Rating: 3.3/5
💵 Cost: Free
Investment Management
Investment management software can help you achieve your investment objectives by consolidating and tracking all your investments in one place. Whether you’re a first-time investor or a veteran, modern tools are at your disposal and only a click away.
Empower
🥇 Best Free Software
👍 Recommended for: All investors.
Empower’s completely free financial dashboard is one of the best investment management tools you can use. You can link all your existing investments (including retirement accounts) to it and use their Investment Checkup Tool to track their performance and compare them against benchmarks. You will receive an investment strategy, risk analysis, and advice on how you can improve your current investments.
The software will even help you minimize your retirement plan fees and look for ways to save you money on your investment fees while minimizing risk.
👎 Cons:
- Ads/notifications for Empower’s Wealth Management feature (which requires a $100,000 minimum investment portfolio to join).
⭐ App Store User Rating: 4.7/5 (132k ratings)
💵 Cost: Free
Morningstar Portfolio Manager
🥇 Most Reputable Software
👍 Recommended for: All Investors.
Morningstar offers a free way to track your investments, create an investment strategy, and manage your investment portfolio in one place. It’s been around for a long time and it’s a trusted tool that many investors use to manage their portfolios.
👎 Cons:
- Not a suitable tool for beginners.
⭐ App Store User Rating: 4.2/5 (6.4K ratings).
💵 Cost: $249/year or $34.95/month (7-day free trial)
More Recommendations:
- Quicken Premier – expensive but good for sophisticated investment needs.
Tax Software
Whether you’re new to filing taxes or want to save money filing this year, here is some of the best tax software available to you. If you’re thinking about using paid software to file your taxes, check out our guide to the IRS Free File Program.
CreditKarma
🥇 Best Free Software
👍 Recommended for:
- Users with simple finances.
- Experienced taxpayers who are familiar with IRS rules and want to file their taxes for free.
Credit Karma is very user-friendly, straightforward, and helps you narrow down the sections you need to file based on your unique tax situation.
👎 Cons:
- Not recommended for people with complex finances.
- Doesn’t offer advice or professional support.
⭐ App Store User Rating: 4.8/5 (6.0 Mil Ratings).
💵 Cost: Free
H&R Block
🥇 Best Paid Software
👍 Recommended for: All taxpayers, including self-employed individuals.
While this is one of the pricier products around, it’s also one of the most trusted tax filing software packages. Users rave about its easy-to-use layout and its expert advice at your fingertips. Many say it’s like meeting face to face with a CPA without actually having to leave your home.
👎 Cons:
- Hight price
⭐ User Rating: 4.8/5 (148k Reviews).
💵 Cost:
- Free for students and taxpayers with simple needs.
- From $55 to $115 depending on your tax needs.
Tax Slayer
🥇 Best Value
👍 Recommended for: all taxpayers, especially those who don’t need much support.
Whether you have simple or more intricate tax filing needs, TaxSlayer offers you great value for your money. Its fair pricing combined with a user-friendly experience makes it a favorite among American taxpayers.
👎 Cons:
- Tax advice is only included in the more premium packages.
⭐ App Store User Rating: 4.8/5 (13k ratings)
💵 Cost:
- Free for military and users with simple needs.
- $34.95-$64.95 for more complex needs.
More Recommendations:
- Turbo Tax– Pricier than other software, but worth the cost.
- Tax Act – Good value but trade time for money to file.
- Liberty Tax – Best value for self-employed taxpayers.
Multi-function Personal Finance Software
Are you looking for personal finance software that can do it all? The following tools were designed to give you a holistic view of your financial life in one place. They are especially helpful for users with multiple needs and financial assets.
Empower
🥇 Best Free Comprehensive Software
👍 Recommended for All users
With Empower’s easy-to-use software and advanced features, it’s easy to see why it’s made our list twice. On top of investments, Empower analyzes your accounts, credit products, and any other assets you have to give you a comprehensive view of your finances.
Users rave about it, saying it’s improved their overall financial well-being, offered them valuable investment advice, and helped them meet their long-term financial goals.
👎 Cons:
- Empower’s upgrade feature, Wealth Management, requires a $100,000 minimum investment portfolio to join.
⭐ App Store User Rating: 4.7/5 (132k ratings)
💵 Cost: Free
Quicken
🥇 All in One Personal Finance Software
👍 Recommended for:
- Users who want all their finances in one place.
- Users with more sophisticated finances like property management and investments.
Quicken is the OG of personal finance software. It’s been around for decades and has over 17 million users. If you want software that will do it all and prefer working on a desktop this may be the right fit. Quicken does everything from budgeting, bill payments, investment tracking, retirement planning, and more.
With so many high-quality players in the fintech market that can deliver the same functions for a quarter of the price, it’s not surprising Quicken has been fading from the limelight. Compare this product with newer alternatives before making a decision.
👎 Cons:
- Expensive.
- Users often report glitches, sync issues, and an overall decline in quality over the years.
- The Mobile version still needs improvement, according to many users.
⭐ User Rating: 4/5 (43k reviews)
💵 Cost: From $28,68 to $71,88 per year
Various: Legal
There is no shortage of personal finance software out there. Some will even help you with legal matters you’d rather avoid, like writing a will and even estate planning.
Do Your Own Will
👍 Recommended for: Users with simple, straightforward wills and estates.
If you have simple needs and don’t want to splurge on legal assistance, DYOW gives you a free way to create a will, power of attorney, and access to other legal forms.
👎 Cons:
- If you have a more complicated estate, you should use a professional adviser.
⭐ Average User Rating: 4.5/5
💵 Cost: Free
Bottom Line
While these are all useful tools, it’s your responsibility to use them in a way that will be beneficial to you and your financial well-being. They will help you do the work, but they won’t do it for you!
There are dozens of products in this market, and all of them have devoted followers. Your task is to choose the one that fits your personal needs. To do that, you’ll need to clarify your needs and objectives and select the product that fits them best. It’s worth putting some effort into that decision. The right choice can streamline your finances and make your life easier. The wrong choice could just leave you frustrated. Smart shopping makes it more likely that you’ll make the right choice!
How We Chose the Best Personal Finance Software for 2023
Personal Finance Software covers a pretty wide range, and we look at many packages here that do not compete directly with each other. There are still common features that we used to reach a decision.
- Cost. his list includes both free and paid products. Paying isn’t necessarily a bad thing if what you are getting is worth it to you, but you should be aware of your needs and try to satisfy them at the lowest possible cost.
- Simplicity. Whatever the software’s purpose, we looked for products with clear, simple, easy-to-manage interfaces.
- Multiple systems. We preferred mobile (Android & iOS) software and browser-based versions.
- Reputation. Good customer reviews are a plus point.
- Efficiency. Each of these software packages is designed to achieve a specific task. We looked for software that is known for successfully addressing its purpose.
Not all of these features will be equally important to all users. Keep your personal priorities in mind when making your choice!
