Best Apps That Help You Save Money

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If you’re looking for the best apps that help you save money, I’ve got seven that are worth your time. And I’ll tell you the popular apps you don’t need to bother with.

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Best Cash Back Apps That Help You Save Money

By now it’s evident that most Americans don’t have the cash to cover unexpected job loss or even a $500 emergency. My hope is that these apps will help you create a habit of saving and being thrifty, not get you to buy more things.

The first 5 will get you cash back on things you’re going to purchase anyway. The last two will help you skyrocket your savings to meet whatever goals you have.

1. Rakuten

Rakuten has partnerships with over 2500 stores so it just has more options for cash back. I wrote a blog post on all the random stuff I get cash back on and it’s stuff I’d buy anyway, the cash back is really just a perk. 

Why do I like it? You used to have to go through the Ebates website, see where the cash back was, then go shopping which was a pain. But now they have a Chrome browser extension so when you visit any store online a Rakuten button will pop up if there’s cash back available. You click the button, and you’re getting that cash back when you make a purchase. It’s so easy.

When you sign up through this link you’ll get a $10 bonus after you spend $25 at any of their partner stores. So do it to at least get a free lunch.

2. Honey 

Honey is a browser extension that aggregates and automatically applies online coupons when you’re checking out online. Just download the extension, Honey will remind you to check for coupons at check out, you press one button and it runs sometimes dozens of promo codes for you.

Why do I like it? There are SO MANY REASONS. I used to search for promo codes before I’d buy something and now I don’t have to. I can rely on Honey to get me 20% to 40% off coupons on almost everything, it’s brilliant. 

I also use the Droplist feature. I can add items to my Droplist and Honey will send me an email when the price drops. I can also see the price history up to 6 months so I know if I’m getting a good deal. And Honey will show me if the price is lower on another site. And if it’s the same price on another site but I can get some extra cash back from Rakuten then my decision is made.

Now you can get cash back with Honey but You can’t stack cash back from both Rakuten and Honey so I prefer to use Rakuten because I get actual cash, And Honey only offers gift cards. 

I use it mostly for promo codes and the Droplist and it has become a necessary tool for me.

Sign up through this link or use my referral code BXN99LS to get an extra 500 Honey Gold (equal to $5 and gets you halfway to your first cash out.)

3. Dosh 

A new app that I’m using is Dosh. What drew me to Dosh is that it’s completely passive. No pressing buttons, no taking pictures of receipts, and no digging through products to look for cashback. You connect the cards you pay with and when you make eligible purchases you get cash back.

Why do I like it? I don’t have to think about it! There is one drawback, most of the cash back is 5% which is great if you’ve ever used any cash back apps but you need a minimum of $25 so you’ll have to spend roughly $500 to withdraw your cash. A lot of the stores are local restaurants so that’s totally doable over the course of a year but don’t expect to make more than enough for a date night.

Sign up using this link or use my Dosh referral code JENNIFS1170 to get a whole extra dollar so then you’ll only have to spend $480 to cash out. You can also stack rewards with a similar app called Pei but the app was confusing so it’s not on the list but it is an option if you wanna stack.

4. Fetch Rewards

Fetch is a rebate app. I don’t really like rebate apps, they make you choose products, scan your receipt, yada yada, but I use Fetch for one reason. You can connect it to Amazon and your email provider and it will detect and scan receipts for you.

Why do I like it? You can cash out at 3,000 points which is $3. This can be your coffee fund because you don’t have to wait a year to cash out your earnings. 

The downside is that you have to buy name brand products. I say buy generic even if it gets you a few pennies on Fetch it’s not worth it to buy the brand name. But if you love Breyers ice cream and nothing else will do it for you then Fetch can get you 1% back on your $4 ice cream. That’s another downside, most of the rewards are 1% so you’ll have to use bonuses to get you to 3,000 faster. I can get 40 points for my Breyers but I get 750 for uploading a full receipt. It’s not hard but it’s not Rakuten or Dosh.

You can get an extra $2 when you sign up here or use Fetch referral code 1R94G.

5. Ibotta

Ibotta is another rebate app that does require you to scan a receipt, load offers, and all the things I don’t really like in an app but it can pay you better than any other app. Cold hard cash, not just gift cards.

I like Ibotta for two reasons. First is the generous welcome bonus. You can earn up to $20 in the first month. You can get a $10 Welcome Bonus for redeeming a name brand in-store offer, $5 for redeeming a Mobile Shopping offer, and another $5 for redeeming another in-store or Mobile Shopping offer.

You can use this link here or my Ibotta referral code: BIYDOBC to get that first $10 welcome bonus.

Then if you keep using the app you can get rebates on generic items so ibotta is worth it just for the welcome bonuses but I’d time it around a week where you’re planning on buying multiple name brand items and do them all in the same month, which shouldn’t be hard, so you can get extra bonuses that are month specific.

Best Savings Apps That Help You Save Money

Apps that help you save money into your emergency fund or sinking funds might actually be my all-time favorite apps ever. The thing is though, they’re always changing. As of right now, here are my favorites.

6. Tip Yourself

Tip yourself is a savings app to help you build better saving habits and you know I love anything to help build good habits. The app allows you to transfer small amounts of money from your checking account to your tip jar in the app.

The tip jar is FDIC insured and connected to your checking account using bank-level security. You don’t need pro features but even those are affordable at $9.99 a year.

Why do I like it? It puts your savings in an account separate from your regular spending and the saving is manual so it creates a rewards system that integrates with your habit building. The one downside is that your earnings don’t accrue interest so you’re missing out on that roughly 2% but for short term sinking funds you’re not missing much and you’re gaining all the other benefits.

I would use it as a sinking fund for a big expense. Like if I wanted to go on a cruise in nine months that will probably cost $1,000. 30 days times nine months equals 270 days to save $1,000. That’s just under $4 a day. So if I follow through with practicing two good habits that I’m trying to build everyday and tip myself $2 for each I’ll have earned myself a cruise and created an incentive to keep up with my habit building.

7. Albert

The last app on the list is Albert. It has a lot of features but my favorite is Smart Savings. The feature analyzes your finances and figures out how much you can safely save over the course of the month. You can expect it to save $25–$100 per week, usually spread across 2–3 transactions ranging from $5–$30 each. 

Why do I like it? Because you don’t have to spend to save. I like that an algorithm decides what you can save then does it for you versus round-ups that might actually encourage you to make more purchases.

I would use this if I was just getting started with saving and really didn’t know where to start. Sometimes our brains can get in the way of us reaching our goals whether it’s scarcity mindset or fear but when you look up after a few months and see what a computer algorithm has calculated you can save and its actually worked and you have a couple hundred dollars saved, that’s empowering and it can change some mindsets.

Savings Apps I Don’t Like

I don’t like receipt scanning apps. I mentioned earlier but my time is more valuable than the $.50 cents I’m going to earn looking up your offers, buying name brand, and scanning my receipt. I make an exception with ibotta only because of that rich welcome bonus and the opportunity for rebates on generics. 

So I personally wouldn’t waste my time with Receipt Hog, Shopkick, or Checkout51. If you have a lot of time on your hands or every penny counts that’s a different story but for most people, your time is better spent meal planning and prepping. 

For savings apps, my rule is that it shouldn’t cost you money to save money. So any app that costs a monthly fee is out. The most widely known ones I will never use are Acorns, Qapital, and Digit. 

• Acorns: minimum $1 monthly fee
• Qapital: minimum $3 monthly fee
• Digit: $5 monthly fee

You can get everything you need in the free savings apps that are out there. So try these seven apps that help you save money before you go out and download every money-saving app in the App Store.