A guide to money-related apps

Photo by Bagus Hernawan on Unsplash

We all know that apps can be extremely useful in day-to-day life, especially when it comes to dealing with tasks such as managing money. However, with so many options to choose from, it can be difficult to know which ones to use – I know I have certainly struggled with this! So in order to make all of our lives easier, I have done the research to tell you which money-related apps you could consider downloading and using. In this blog, I will be categorising the apps into four different categories:

  • Budgeting
  • Cashback
  • Money-saving
  • Investing

Photo by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash

Budgeting 

Budgeting apps can be very helpful when managing money. They have saved me a lot of time and stress, and it has helped me to see exactly where my money is going. There are many different apps to help with this. From my research, here are the top five best budgeting apps for students:

  • Emma

Overview: An app that connects all your bank accounts in a single place, sync budgets, track spending and help identify subscriptions that can be cancelled. You can also add and track cryptocurrencies and pensions through this app.

Advantages:  

  1. Easy to sign up and navigate  
  2. In-depth analysis and budget 
  3. Highlights wasteful subscriptions 

Disadvantages:  

  1. No savings category 
  2. Interface can be a bit too simple 
  3. Not all banks are supported  

Cost:  

  1. The basic version of Emma is free, but premium subscription can be up to £9.99 per month.

  • Money Dashboard 

Overview: It organises all your spendings to generate a clear dashboard that clearly outlines how your money is being spent.

Advantages: 

  1. Free to download and use 
  2. Free access to premium features  
  3. Available on desktop 

Disadvantages:  

  1. No clear instructions on how to use  
  2. Unable to see pending transactions which is available on other apps 

Cost:  

  1. Free.

  • Squirrel

Overview: Helps you to split your income/money wisely. It also has a savings feature to put aside certain amount of money.

Advantages: 

  1. Easy to use 
  2. Visualises data well  
  3. Helps budget for costs well  

Disadvantages: 

  1. Have to pay to use 

Cost:  

  1. £3.99 per month but a free 3-month trial is available.

  • Splitwise 

Overview: an app designed to make the process of sharing/dividing expenses with other people easier. Tracks and organises expenses, and enables people to add money & pay other people through the app.

Advantages:  

  1. Easily able to split bill among people 
  2. Able to easily invite contacts to split the bill  

Disadvantages:  

  1. Fulfils its main purpose of splitting the bill  

Cost:  

  1. Free but premium versions are available.

Photo by Marcel Strauß on Unsplash

Cashback

Cashback is a great way to save money when buying products online. From my research, I have found that these are the top apps and websites to receive the latest cashback offers:

  • TopCashback 

Overview: People receive a cashback when they buy products from featured retailers through their website.

Advantages:  

  1. Variety of options available for how to receive cash back rewards 
  2. No registration or membership fee 
  3. Lots of partner stores 

Disadvantages: 

  1. Payouts can be slow 

Cost:  

  1. Basic version is free  
  2. Premium membership is £5 per month.

  • Quidco

Overview: offers cashback when people purchase from select online retailers. Quidco Clicksnap also offers discount on certain groceries.

Advantages:   

  1. Variety of retailers 
  2. Sign Up bonus 
  3. Earn rewards in store 

Disadvantages:  

  1. Inconsistent payout times 

Cost:  

  1. Basic version is free 
  2.  Premium version is £5 per year.

  • Swagbucks

Overview: people can earn points through select online purchases, which can be turned into cash/vouchers.

Advantages:  

  1. Easy to join 
  2. Easy to navigate 
  3. Excellent reputation – a top survey company  

Disadvantages: 

  1. Customer service can be slow 
  2. Not available in all countries 

Cost:  

  1. Free.

Photo by Katie Harp on Unsplash

Money-saving  

On a student budget, saving money is always a win.  I tend to find shopping online a lot easier and am always on the lookout for some good deals! These are the top apps that can save you time from searching the internet for random discounts codes:

  • Trolley 

Overview: Allows people to compare the price of products in shops and supermarkets to find the cheapest price for groceries.

Advantages:  

  1. Good coverage of supermarkets 
  2. Easy to set up and use  

Disadvantages: 

  1.  Have to search up items separately rather than able to upload complete shopping list  

Cost:  

  1. Free.

  • Latest Deals 

Overview: helps people compare prices of products across a wide range of categories. Also shares freebies. 

Advantages:  

  1. Able to secure cheap deals easily  
  2. Able to use for all shops  

Disadvantages:  

  1. Does the job efficiently  

Cost:  

  1. Free to download and use.

Photo by Markus Winkler on Unsplash

Investing  

Investing is becoming more popular as an alternative stream of income. Currently, there are a variety of options available and to make it easy for you, I have chosen a couple of apps that are a good place for beginning investors to start.

  • Moneybox 

Overview: allows people to invest in ‘global companies like Google, Apple and Netflix via simple tracker funds. With three starting options (cautious, balanced, adventurous), the app works by rounding up people’s purchase and investing in their spare change.

Advantages:  

  1. Simple way to get into investing for beginners 
  2. Good range of investment account-types 
  3. Investment is protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) 

Disadvantages:  

  1. High account fees for the return 
  2. Limited investment selection 

Cost: 

  1. No fees for saving in a moneybox saving account 
  2. Minimum investment £1 
  3. Monthly fee £1 
  4. Platform Fee 0.45%, charged monthly.

  • Plum 

Overview: people can invest in sectors such as technology and ESG, and the app shows indications of the risk levels of each fund. People can invest from £1, and can split or withdraw their deposits as they like.

Advantages:  

  1. Automatic saving  
  2. Able to invest from as little as £1 
  3. Easy to set up  
  4. FCA regulated 

Disadvantages: 

  1.  Money in primary pocket is not protected by Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) 
  2. Investing charges are expensive if only investing small amounts 
  3. Have to pay for some features that other apps offer for free 

Cost:   

  1. Minimum investment £1 
  2. Monthly fee £1 
  3. Platform fee 0.15%.

Nutmeg 

Overview: allows people to set their goal and choose their investment style for investment. The investment team chooses investments based on their preferences.

Advantages:  

  1. Competitive fees 
  2. Heavily regulated 
  3. No need for prior knowledge of investing  
  4. Variety of risk levels to choose for to invest 

Disadvantages:  

  1. Unable to choose individual stocks 
  2. Initial lump sum investment is high  

Cost:   

  1. Minimum investment is £500 to open an ISA, General investment and Pension Fund or £100 for lifetime ISA or junior ISA.

We hope you have found this blog post useful and have a clearer picture of some money-related apps. Please feel free to ask us if you have any questions or queries regarding the apps in the comment section below!

Hania Hussain
King’s Student Money Mentor
Part of Money & Housing Advice

We only shared a handful of apps that some students may find useful in this blog. You should research further into the apps before using/purchasing them for more information!

The King’s Student Money Mentors blog shares our students’ personal experiences and thoughts on money-related topics. Any reference, opinions or recommendations on a particular company/brand are only the views of the student(s) who wrote the blog post. King’s College London, the Money & Housing Advice service and the Money Mentor project do not share the views in the blogs nor endorse any of the companies mentioned. Readers should conduct their own research before using any companies mentioned in our blog posts. 

Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL)

If you’re a bit of a shopaholic like myself, then you will understand the feeling when you come across a dress that is so breath-taking. You know it would look so good on you, but the price is a bit too much, and yet you still want to buy it? Now, there is a solution to this problem, or at least we think there is.  

Photo by Jonas Leupe on Unsplash

Buy Now Pay Later allows people to pay for in-store and online purchases in smaller, more manageable instalments without interest for a specified time period. A well-known scheme is Klarna which allows you to spread the cost of orders over three payments and gives you a timeframe of 60 days to do this. After this point, they might charge you interest or a late payment fee. For example, if you buy a red mini dress from ASOS using Klarna for £21.90, you will have to pay this in instalments of £7.30. This means you will pay the first instalment when you purchase the item, the second after 30 days and the third and final instalment after 60 days. Other schemes include ClearPay and Laybuy, but these are less well-known. Repayment from the provider may be taken automatically, similar to a standing order such as your monthly phone bill, which will show on your online banking. Still, some providers may remind you if a payment is due, which means you have a small time frame to ensure that you have enough money in your bank account to make the payment. By opting to pay for your order in instalments using Klarna or ClearPay, it does not mean that what you are purchasing is any cheaper, as you are still expected to pay the full price of your purchase. This payment method is relatively new and mainly targets those who do not own a credit card, with approval of this credit being granted almost instantly.

These schemes can be great if you are waiting to be paid from work or are buying something expensive for a special occasion, such as a prom dress, as it allows you to spread the cost over time. Imagine working at a restaurant where you are paid at the end of the month. Your partner’s birthday is just around the corner, and you want to buy them their favourite pair of shoes, but you don’t have enough money in your bank account to purchase them. However, you know that you will be able to afford the shoes when you get paid, so you don’t see the issue with using ClearPay for a one-off payment for a birthday gift. In this particular instance, the individual has a steady income from their job and is aware that they can repay the money they owe after receiving their paycheck at the end of the month. Also, this is a once-in-a-blue-moon payment because they needed a short-term loan to help them pay the cost of a present they bought for their partner whilst they were waiting to be paid.

Photo by Emil Kalibradov on Unsplash

However, these schemes can also be problematic in many ways. They can act as a bait to lure people into buying products that they cannot afford because you only have to pay a fraction of the price when you click ‘Submit Order’. As money is being taken out of your bank account in small increments over a longer period of time, it can encourage people to buy a lot of things and be more financially irresponsible with their money. I’ve personally never tried these buy now, pay later schemes because I believe if I can’t afford the cost upfront, I’m overspending and so should look for something more affordable. Also, depending on the provider, if you are late to make a repayment, you may be charged a large sum of interest, adding to your existing debt. Alternatively, you may be ordered to pay a late payment fee, which is why it’s important to read the terms and conditions for these schemes. Missed payments may be recorded on your credit report and affect your future credit score. Before you decide to use this scheme, I would urge you to consider this one question: if this scheme didn’t exist, would you be able to pay for this product upfront? Remember, only use this scheme if you are certain you can pay for the product’s full price- not just the first initial instalment! You don’t want to end up paying interest or any late or missed payment fees.   

Similarly, MoneySavingExpert suggests asking yourself 3 questions before using this scheme:  

  1. Would you have purchased the item(s) in the first place if BNPL was not an option? 
  1. Can I meet the repayments in accordance with the scheme? 
  1. Is this the best form of borrowing for me? (E.g. do I have other temporary options, e.g. 0% overdraft) 

For more information about Buy Now Pay Later schemes, visit Experian and MoneySavingExpert.   

Nazish Bibi
King’s Student Money Mentor
Part of Money & Housing Advice

If you are struggling with debt, you can contact the Money & Housing Advice Service, Citizens Advice and the National Debtline.  

The King’s Student Money Mentors blog shares our students’ personal experiences and thoughts on money-related topics. Any reference, opinions or recommendations on a particular company/brand are only the views of the student(s) who wrote the blog post. King’s College London, the Money & Housing Advice service and the Money Mentor project do not share the views in the blogs nor endorse any of the companies mentioned. Readers should conduct their own research before using any companies mentioned in our blog posts. 

Introducing King’s Student Money Mentors (2021/2)

Do you have any questions about money management during your time at university? Would you like to speak to another student about your budgeting concerns? If so, the Money Mentors are here for you! We are current trained students at King’s with a particular interest in being money savvy, and we hope to support our fellow students with all sorts of money-related matters. If you’re unsure of how to create a realistic budget, would like to explore various ways of saving money, and keep yourself safe from scams throughout the year, our Money Mentors would always be happy to support you. We will introduce our Money Mentor team below, which consists of students from different backgrounds and courses.

Beth 

I’m Beth, a final year medical student and I’ve been part of the Money Mentor team throughout my time here at King’s. I love meeting other students and promoting discussions about money on campus; whilst playing silly games and giving out prizes of course. I joined the Mentor team as a part-time job and it has helped me to earn spending money whilst at university. My favourite Money Mentor job was creating and delivering the Pathway to Financial Wellbeing workshop, taking a holistic and practical approach to student money management. In the last two years I have learned a lot about social media as a force for spreading the vibes of financial wellbeing and literacy.  I’m hoping to see the Money Mentors transition back to the face-to-face world and get on campus soon so we can reach the students that didn’t know they needed us. 

Chloe 

Hi! My name is Chloe, and I’m a final year medical student. I have been a Money Mentor for the last four years after hearing about the role during a Welcome week talk held by the Money & Housing Advice Service. 

During my time as a mentor, I have enjoyed working alongside other students from different courses and meeting members of the King’s community from various backgrounds during campaigns, such as Talk Money week and National Student Money Week!  

I also enjoy doing Q&A sessions and participating in K+ events. As part of my role, I have also helped write and update articles and guides for Student Services Online.  

In the upcoming year, I look forward to producing new content to help improve students’ financial wellbeing and meeting more students during our exciting and fun events! 

Olivia 

My name is Olivia, and I am a final year BA English student. I became a Money Mentor because I wanted to support other students with money management — and I’m enjoying working with the fantastic team! Some of my main responsibilities are managing our Money Mentors blog and working with students interested in writing blog posts. I was also involved in National Student Money Week (NSMW) 2021, where I spoke at two Instagram live events. I look forward to NSMW 2022 and hope to see some of our students in our upcoming events!

Sarah 

My name is Sarah and I’m a final year medical student. I’ve been a Money Mentor since my second year after hearing about it in a Welcome Week talk, and I have learnt so much about managing my money since I’ve started! My main responsibility is jointly running the social media (Instagram and Facebook) with a couple of other Mentors, but you can also see my handiwork in the interactive online housing guide, and the scams workshop which I helped to write. I’ll be winding down my involvement with Money Mentors over the coming term, but I’m looking forward to training some new faces for social media so we can keep reaching students with money tips online! 

Rhea 

Hi my name is Rhea and I am a 4th year medical student. I became a Money Mentor during my 1st year at university to share my knowledge and work alongside likeminded individuals to help students. My responsibilities as a Money Mentor vary from being involved in campaigns to writing, reviewing, and updating our content. I am looking forward to our upcoming event (National Student Money Week 2022) and seeing some new and familiar faces, hopefully in person! 

Where can students speak to or connect with the Money Mentors?  

Students can reach out to Money Mentors on Instagram and ask any money-related questions they may have! You can also take a look at our Money Mentors blog for some tips on managing your money and staying (financially) safe during your time at university. However, if you need specialist advice tailored to any complex financial situation or have serious concerns that require urgent help, please contact the Money & Housing Advice Service where you can speak to a Specialist Money & Housing Adviser.  

Do Money Mentors organise any events that students could attend?  

Yes! We have an upcoming campaign during National Student Money Week in February, which is an annual event where we arrange various informational talks or events to help students build their confidence and knowledge to take control of their budget and enjoy university life without constantly being anxious about running out of money. We actively promote our upcoming events on our social media, so do keep an eye on them if you’re interested in attending one (or some!) of our events.   

Can students apply to become a Money Mentor? 

Yes! We are planning on recruiting more Money Mentors. If you are interested in getting involved, please keep an eye on our Instagram, as we will be advertising our recruitment opportunities there.  

Whether you’re interested in speaking to another Money Mentor or are hoping to become a Money Mentor yourself, we hope this blog post gives you a better idea of who we are and what we do alongside our specialist advisers. Student Servies also has a page on Money Mentors, should you be interested in learning more about us! Finally, if you have any concerns about financial wellbeing or wish to know more about what we do, again, please do not hesitate to contact us on Instagram!  

King’s Student Money Mentors
Part of Money & Housing Advice

The King’s Student Money Mentors blog shares our students’ personal experiences and thoughts on money-related topics. Any reference, opinions or recommendations on a particular company/brand are only the views of the student(s) who wrote the blog post. King’s College London, the Money & Housing Advice service and the Money Mentor project do not share the views in the blogs nor endorse any of the companies mentioned. Readers should conduct their own research before using any companies mentioned in our blog posts.