Does this budgeting app exist?

[milesmachine]

I know this question has been asked a lot as I have searched and read old threads but I can't seem to find the right solution for me and I'm hoping someone might be able to give me a recommendation.

I am looking for an app to help me budget that will connect with my current account. Off the back of some older threads I downloaded PLUM but I'm finding the different 'pockets' difficult to manage and am frustrated it doesn't seem to have the ability to track my spending.

I've spent some time this month working out quite a detailed monthly budget. Such as (figures here are made up obvs!)
Incoming: £3000
Mortgage: £800
Groceries: £230
Nursery Fees: £950
Trips Out: £70

And then I want to put away some money each month that I will have instant access to so I don't get hit when I need them. Such as:
Birthdays/Christmas: £50 put away a month
Kids Clothes/Shoes: £60 put away a month

Ideally I want to be able to set up DDebits into different pockets that build up funds for the above. But I also want to track my spending and see how much I have left. So each time I spend in sainsburys for example, it will allocate against 'Groceries' budget (even if I have to start off putting the transactions against the right budgets) and tell me how much I have left within the month

I'm trying to get a handle on spending and want to try and keep on top of it within the month rather than after so that I can see how much I'm really spending (I have analysed past months spending and this is where the budgets have come from)

Any help and recommendations would simply be amazing. Thank you

I don't think Monzo credit check for an account. Just the soft search for ID purposes. I've never heard of anyone being rejected.

It's a few years since I applied but my credit score was in the absolute toilet at the time and it was no issue. Literally took me about 10 minutes from the start and then I was looking at my new account. Mind blowingly quick and easy.

Another vote for YNAB, it’s changed my life. You do need to learn the method though, I found watching the YouTube videos most helpful for this. The Facebook groups are helpful too. Once you know what you’re doing you’re away though.

You wont get rejected from opening a current account due to poor credit.

I also recommend Monzo.

I love their round-up feature - all transactions get rounded up to the nearest pound and gets added to my savings. I end up with a nice top-up to my savings pot at the end of each month.

Also their pots earn a decent amount of interest whereas if I kept the money in my current account it wouldn't earn anything.

I worked out my budget then transferred my spending money to Revolut. I do this weekly, as paid weekly. I set Revolut up to save for smaller purchases out of the spending money. It's working well so far.

I use Moneyhub and it's been great, it lets you do what you want with budgeting and custom categories as well as linking all your accounts in one place. 6 months free trial then a small subscription after that.

Another vote for Money Hub - I use it everyday, it's easy and intuitive. Got 6 mths free then upgraded, not sure of the cost but very low. I categorise everything and it automatically tags transactions which are quite accurate on categories ( you can change the category if you want).

Honestly don't bother with all these fiddly apps, and especially don't pay for them! Monzo and Starling have all these functions. As a pp said, virtual cards can be created linked to pots, all of which you label and colour co-ordinate to make it easy. Eg I have a virtual groceries card linked to a pot, virtual transport etc etc.

Monzo and Starling allow you to make pots (or spaces as Starling calls them) and will categorise your spending for you eg coffee, groceries, shopping etc. You can re-categorise payments and set it yourself remember for next time.

Transferring your current account is easy, they do it all for you, and you can have an account set up tonight in 10 minutes if you own a smartphone.

Monzo "Plus" accounts are £5 a month and for that you can also create your own bespoke categories. This is what I've done so I have a bespoke category called "nappies" so I can track how much we spend on those, and one called "haircuts" and so on. You can get really granular and detail everything, then Monzo will do all the work at the end of the month, creating pie charts and tonnes of analysis if you want it.

Thank you again

I'm interested in YNAB but slightly put off that it takes some getting used to and needs a support thread

I will look at some review videos of mondo and starling today and spend some time setting up something

My bonus has now gone in the bank so it's time to financially declutter!

I don't want to let it fritter away

With YNAB, you also get the third month free (once you've paid for month 2) if you sign up with someone's referral link. That will give you 3 months to give the system a try before committing to the cheaper annual fee. It's completely different to the Monzo etc apps as you are looking to the future, not tracking the past.

Yes, I think this is the thing that people don't understand about YNAB. It isn't a tracking app. It does track, of course it does, but it isn't what it's for.

YNAB is about accurately recognising your true costs, prioritising your spending, and working towards secure finances.

If you use YNAB properly, it's revolutionary.

I'm interested in YNAB but slightly put off that it takes some getting used to and needs a support thread

I felt like this. I did give it a go once though on a free trial but I just could not get on with it. It felt like a huge amount of input needed and reconciling and reading guides to understand xyz. So many people say give it a couple of months, work at it, then you'll love it...but I just couldn't be arsed. Not when there are excellent free alternatives that take 10 minutes to get your head round!

Thank you. I'll also have a thorough look into YNAB

I've downloaded it but am already baffled so need to investigate properly

I've also been alarmed at the number of negative reviews of monzo-lots of accounts being closed,
Money held and terrible customer service that does worry me somewhat

I've been using YNAB for two years.

Invest the time getting your head round it you won't regret it! We still don't 100% fully understand it and linking a credit card always throws mine off a bit.

The YouTube videos really help, we've even emailed support a few times and they're great. I think we gave even started again once or twice but you can re set back a few days if you really bugged it up.

Every month when I get paid I still download and allocate funds coming in and where they sit, YNAB says every £1 has a job, it's very satisfying, my savings have built and I feel I have knowledge of where I spend and what on, always tricky with constant card spending, good luck and don't forget to reconcile!

@milesmachine it's honestly not hard, especially now that it brings your transactions in from your bank.

Come over to the support thread if you want help setting it up.

I spend about 3-5 minutes per day on YNAB, just making sure I enter transactions and reconciling my accounts. Twice per month I spend 10 minutes allocating my income.

It's honestly fantastic.

Yes, if you understand it’s a zero based budgeting system it helps. So when your money comes in you allocate it to bills, spending and saving you need to make until you’re paid again, you don’t allocate money you don’t have yet so it’s always based on the here and now.

I spent 5 minutes a day sorting my money out and maybe 10/15 minutes once a month checking my budget.

I really like Moneyhub too. It was pretty easy to set up and I like seeing all my accounts, pension etc in one place and it automatically categorises all spending and tells you whether you're spending more (say) on groceries this month to last. Really intuitive.

I'm an old fashioned spreadsheet girl with a Starling account. Tried most apps and didn't really get on with them.