Management of finances today is no longer a matter of choice due to the numerous commitments we all have. Which goals do you have? For a new house. For retirement planning. Or simply for wanting to manage your funds properly. In such situations, financial planning tools are quite handy, as they steer you toward your objective, quite expertly. Given the multitude of applications and platforms available for use, it is often very difficult to know which ones will help you best achieve your aims. This article will present the most effective financial planning tools to assist you in reaching all your dieting goals.
Mint: Best for Budgeting
Mint is the most well-known budgeting app. This is a free service that links to your personal bank accounts and reviews your credit, loans, investments with a comprehensive dashboard for expense and budget management. Users of mint do not have to worry about spending reports every month where money has been spent. Hence all transactions carried out within a month are recorded under various heads that cannot spill over. Additionally, goals for finances may be set up and monitored and alerts for payments on bills or suspicions on account activities may be issued.
Pros:
- No cost involved
- The ability to arrange the transactions to categories at a click of the button
- Capability to allocate funds, set limits and issue notifications
Cons:
- Offers and advertisement can be very intrusive
- There is little opportunity for the advanced user to change the settings
YNAB (You Need A Budget): Best for Hands-on Budgeting
In case you most definitely hate looking at spreadsheets and prefer practical means of controlling your finances, then You Need A Budget (YNAB) will be ideal for you. YNAB is built on the get the job done principle (i.e. allocate money on a budget to the expense category) as one gets paid. You spend money only when it has been budgeted for, and in particular, for specific reasons.
YNAB is also appealing because it does not only help users create budgets but also, educates them on how to manage personal finances through articles, workshops, etc. It is understandable that there is a user fee but in return, it seems that the users Hersey have spent looking for solutions which control every detail and design the budget around it.
Pros:
- Approach to budgeting is proactive.
- Vast education services offered.
- Device synchronization in a more streamlined manner.
Cons:
- A subscription is necessary ($14.99 per month, or $99 per year)
- For beginners it might be something difficult to grasp
Personal Capital: Best for Investment Tracking
Let us assume that budgeting is not the focus but rather investment tracking as well as retirement investing, in that case, Personal Capital is the best option to consider. This tool the way it is embedded into the account is devoted towards investment accounts and gives details regarding how the assets are allocated, the charges incurred, the performance of the assets. There are additional tools that are available at no cost such as FP models for retirement and Networth tracker tools, so it’s also suitable for people with more extensive portfolios.
Also, for those users who have the paid services, as a bonus offer that comes with the package is the qualified advisers who will assist in formulating custom-made investment plans. Nevertheless, its free features are good enough for most users so that they do not even need to upgrade.
Pros:
- Investment tracking tools free of charge
- Retirement saving strategies as well as net worth forecasting and monitoring
- In-depth evaluation of investment expenses
Cons:
- Advisory services are quite expensive
- Business side of a household management program is over-weighed in it rather than an everyday budgeting
Quicken: Most Suitable for Full Financial Control.
Forget Less Than Perfect Quicken is one of the oldest and still one of the most complete programs for financial planning. Using Quicken, one can perform tasks like preparing a budget, tracking investments, managing bills, etc. Due to its features, it is best suited for those who want a single package for all their financial needs.
Quicken users not only make transactions; they keep records on the transactions with respect to income and outcome, investments, and so on and make reports. It also includes the mobile application that connects to the desktop program for the management needs while moving.
Pros:
- Effective financial management in various aspects;
- Excellent reporting and comparisons;
- Convenient integrated bill payments.
Cons:
- There is an annual subscription fee ($41.88 – $77.88 per year);
- The installed app software for desktops may seem traditional with the recent applications.
FutureAdvisor: Best for Robo-Advisor Investment Help
If you do not want to manage your own investments and prefer low-cost solutions, then the Future Advisor tool is for you. As a robo-advisor, it will assist you in defining your investment strategy according to your personal preferences, risk appetite, and duration of the investment. FutureAdvisor focuses on secondary asset allocation for investment management, enhancement of portfolio tax benefits, and periodic rebalancing.
Although most of its basic features are free, the service offers additional paid options with actual financial planners providing support and tailored advice. This blending of automated and human management services achieves the investment goals of Accounting and Finance Making FutureBrand successful as an investor.
Pros:
- Investment management outsourcing
- Portfolio optimization and balancing
- Lower costs in the instance of expensive advisors
Cons:
- Not only investment (no spending tools available)
- Premium services can be costly
Tiller Money: Best for Spreadsheet Enthusiasts
For budgeting and finances in an organized way for those who love using spreadsheets, Tiller Money is your choice. Tiller links to your bank account and with the help of add-ons brings in bank transactions to unique templates in Google Docs and Excel sheets. These sheets can be adjusted any way you would like, in essence turning Tiller into a tool for power users as well.
While full integration solutions that provide automated financial management are absent from Tiller, its reports, budgets, and overall organizational information patterns are easily alterable for those who wish to have tighter control over their information.
Pros:
- Good level of customization in Google Sheets or Excel
- Automatic transaction importing
- Versatile expense tracking
Cons:
- Gonna pay a subscription of $79 per year
- Lack of a mobile application and any structural inside advice
Conclusion
The proper selection of a tool for that financial planning would be a positive factor in comfortable attainment of your goals. If you were interested for just management of bills and expenses or for astounding bills as well as investment plans, these tools were to assist keeping such finances. Once you choose your appropriate tool to suit, all your targets should be achievable within the period you planned in your budget.
