Five free apps that will legit help you save money
For those of you whose New Years resolution was to actually stick to a budget this year, you’re probably wondering where to even start. If you’ve already broken your resolution, don’t worry – there’s still time to get back on track. Thankfully for the lazy among us, there are a whole bunch of simple apps that can help you not only budget your money, but save in all the aspects of your life where you usually blow the most money. Download now and thank us later.
Groceries: Cloud-Freezer
If you find the hardest (and most expensive) part of your week is doing groceries, this app will make your life a whole lot easier. Storing an inventory of all the items in your pantry, fridge and freezer, it will help you avoid buying unnecessary items you might already have tucked away in the cupboard.
The handy features include countdowns to expiry dates and the ability to scan receipts and barcodes so you don’t have to manually add every new item on your grocery list. The app comes in handy when you’re meal planning, curating shopping lists and generally helps you to avoid wasting food and money.
Travel: Hopper
We all know travel is exxy AF, but 100 per cent worth doing. So if you're thinking of embarking on an overseas trip, be savvy about it and save as much as you can when booking your flights and accommodation. Hopper predicts the time of year and specific days that are cheapest to travel, so if you’re flexible with dates you can save up to 40 per cent on flights. Enter your travel destination into Hopper and it will also scour the web for deals in that location. You can even book through the app – handy as.
Eating out: Dimmi
If most of your weekly pay goes towards brunches, dinners and drinks with friends, this will definitely be of use to you. Rather than abstaining from eating out altogether (let’s be real, that’s never going to happen), Dimmi is a restaurant booking system that works on a points basis to save you money. There are filters to help you find the cheap eats in your area, and you only need to book with Dimmi three times and write three reviews to earn a $20 voucher towards your next meal. They even occasionally do 50 per cent off deals on specific restaurants – no need to give up that avo on toast after all.
Petrol: Gasbuddy
Nothing sucks away money faster than an empty tank. Thankfully, there’s an app that can help you search for the cheapest petrol stations near you when you’re getting low. Search by fuel type and location and it will direct you to the nearest and cheapest gas station (though Gasbuddy doesn't advise you use the app while driving). It can also provide you with notifications when the price of petrol is going up or down and gives you the chance to win a $100 fuel voucher. Um, yes please.
Managing your finances: Pocketbook
If numbers aren’t yo thang and you’d rather let someone else figure it out for you, this app helps you to work out an ideal budget based on your incoming and outgoing funds. Even easier, Pocketbook can sync up and connect to most major banks, so it automatically takes into account all of your spending. If you have regular bills like Netflix payments, phone bills or gym membership fees, the app takes all of this into account and tells you how much you should spend a month. Now the hard part is avoiding that ASOS splurge that the app is telling you not to do.
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