PlanGuru is a quick and nimble budgeting app that's great for startups and people in the finance or accounting field. The app enables you to create a simple yet flexible small business budget that you can break down into multiple departments. PlanGuru's 20 forecasting tools are a top-selling point. It easily syncs with QuickBooks Online, Excel and Xero. PlanGuru is priced at $99/month.
Best Budgeting Apps for Partnerships and Family-Run Businesses
Managing budgets with another person can get a bit messy. Honeydew makes it simpler to track expenses together and is best for partnerships where you and your partner share the business bank account and credit cards. How? Honeydew allows you and your partner to link accounts, loans and credit cards to the app so you both can see each other's status. It also enables you to create custom fields to categorize expenses, such as "office supplies," "travel expenses" and "raw material cost." The best part of Honeydew is its attractive pricing — free!
13. Wally
If you're seeking just a joint budgeting app with no other financial or accounting capabilities, try Wally. Wally's features include joint expense and savings tracking so you and your partner or spouse can stay in sync. Business partners can build lists together and also upload receipts, lease agreements and bills so all documentation is easily accessible to both. Wally is also well-supported throughout the world, so it would fit perfectly for any digital nomad business structure. The app is free but has many in-app purchases that start at $2.99/month.
Is your spouse your partner in life and business? You both are managing it all — business, kids and additional caregiving duties — but are struggling to find time to sync the finances. Check out Firstly, an app that is exclusively designed to help partners or spouses who are juggling multiple responsibilities. You can sync multiple bank accounts, customize budgets and saving goals, track expenses and even pay bills. Firstly is free to use.
Best Basic Financial Budgeting Apps
Sometimes simpler is better — that's certainly the case with Spendee. This no-fuss budgeting app has a life-long free version and a premium version at $14.99/year. You can import and export transactions, set up a budget, categorize expenses and also share the metrics with anyone else (accountant, business partner or spouse).
Thinking of budgeting and complex apps giving you a panic attack? Don't worry and try out Unspent. The app's beauty is in its simplicity. It's an easy-to-use finance app that lets you create one-off budgets (home office or raw materials) and track spending, making it a clean and basic app. If you don't want to overthink the budget with fancy charts and bank connections, then this app might just be the one for you. Unspent costs $0.99/month.
What Features Should I Look for in a Budgeting App?
The correct app can make a significant difference in your venture's bottom line. Here's what you should be looking for while shopping for a budgeting app.
Meets Your Financial Goals
Are you an overspender who needs to curb the reins a bit or are you looking for an effective way to budget with your business partner? Trying to save for some long-term investment like retirement or capital or do you want to pay off any debt? If you know your WHY, then it's easier to find a budgeting app that will match it.
The Right Pricing
Is there a free trial? While the majority of the apps are free and offer a free trial, to access some of the app's most-loved features, you might need to dish out a small monthly fee. Remember to read the fine lines to see if there are any undisclosed charges like automatic renewal.
The Features Are Useful
There are standard features across most apps, but is there anything specific you are seeking? It's easier to narrow down your "must-haves" when you have a clear financial goal.
Some neat and popular features that budgeting apps offer are:
Budget alerts
Bill payment reminders
Ability to share budgets with others
Goal setting
Auto-sync transactions from banks
Automatic transaction categorization
Data Security
With the increase in cybercrimes, security should be a top priority when you are comparing budgeting apps, as the majority can be synced to your bank accounts. While reviewing an app's website, look for security features such as 256-bit encryption and multi-factor authentication.
Good Technical Support
If there are any discrepancies in the synced bank transactions or you made an error in bill payment, what sort of support or technical team is there to assist you? Browsing other customer reviews on the app store can help you to get a better picture of a company's after-purchase support.
Small Business Budgeting
What is budgeting all about? It's about understanding how much money is flowing in versus how much is flowing out. It helps you curb your spending so you have enough in the reserve for future business growth, retirement or just the unexpected rainy day. Budgeting is a pillar of ensuring financial success for your startup by having maximum control over your money, yet it's not a practice adopted by all small businesses. According to a study by Clutch, only 54 percent of small businesses created a budget in 2021.
We understand — numbers, calculations or tracking it all can be a lot. But there are a variety of ways you can set a budget and stick to it:
DIY it. This can come with a steep learning curve.
Hire an accountant. Accurate, but not exactly budget-friendly (which might defeat the purpose).
Use a budgeting app. Saves time and hassle and is usually lower cost.
Taking Control of Your Money
Setting up and sticking to a budget isn't exciting. It might feel like you are going on a diet — a financial diet. But learning to curb spending and avoid going overboard is a wise move for any business owner.
Using a budgeting app can make budgeting, finances and savings for a rainy day a lot more manageable and simpler. What's the best app for you? Well, like clothes and exercises where there are multiple options, it comes down to what works best for you instead of what's trendy.
We hope our list of budgeting apps makes the budgeting and the numbers portion of your business easier. But, if you need more support, Bizee can still help. We have helped numerous small business owners with their bookkeeping, accounting and taxes so they can build a brighter and stronger future for their businesses.
