#FinancialBytes: Useful tips, apps for college-students to manage money better
What's the story
Handling finances is one of the biggest challenges faced by college students, especially those living away from their family who often struggle with money management.
However, they should learn to save money, track and reduce expenses, make a budget, plan and manage money efficiently to keep finances under control.
Here are some tips and mobile apps to help college students manage money better.
Tips #1
First, set a monthly budget and plan expenses accordingly
To manage money better, the first and the most important thing students must do is to set a monthly budget and plan their finances properly.
They should calculate their monthly expenditure to plan and set a budget for each of their expenses. Students should try to spend within the set limit as this can also help them save a considerable amount every month.
Tips #2
Cut down on expenses, save some money every month
In order to manage their finances properly, students should also reduce their expenses.
It is necessary to track expenses to find out what they can cut down on and avoid spending on unnecessary things. Planning purchases ahead of time can also help in spending money efficiently.
They should even focus on saving some money every month, which can come in handy during financial emergencies.
Tips #3
Check overspending; try to use cash instead of cards
Students should also check overspending and one of the best ways to do it is using cash wherever possible instead of debit/credit cards.
While debit/credit cards come with many offers/discounts and are helpful if used wisely, some tend to spend more using cards than they usually would when paying with cash. For such people, using cash is the best option to check the overspending.
Apps #1 and #2
Walnut and Money View are popular money management apps
Walnut Money Manager, Expense Tracker is one of the most popular expense manager apps. It offers many features like bank balance tracker, withdrawals/spends/expense tracking, expense splitting, bill payments, spending habit analysis, etc.
Money View Money Manager is another good India-specific money management app. It can track expenses, sync bank transactions through SMSes to analyze daily/weekly/monthly expenses, set budgets, track bill payments, set reminders, etc.
Information
App #3: Splitwise is another useful mobile app
Students can also use Splitwise, which is one of the best apps for splitting expenses with roommates, friends, or partners and ensure that everyone gets paid back. Users can keep track of their bills/expenses, spending trends, view balances, set up bill reminders, etc.
Apps #4 and #5
For budgeting, YNAB and Goodbudget are great options
Students can also use YNAB (You Need A Budget) app that helps them work on a budget based on their finances. Features offered include bank account/transaction tracking, budget setting, providing spends reports, etc.
Goodbudget is another handy app that works on the envelope budgeting system. It involves dividing finances, creating separate envelopes for monthly expenses, and spending money for something from its corresponding envelope.