Mint, the popular household finance app, shut down on March 23, 2024. In an initial press release, Intuit, Mint’s parent company, invited Mint users to migrate to another of his Intuit services, Credit Karma.
Although Credit Karma offers a number of resources (including credit monitoring), the service’s financial tools are fewer than what Mint once offered. This is especially true for budgeting. As a result, millions of former Mint users continue to look for alternatives.
5 Best Budgeting and Money Management Apps to Alternative to Mint
The good thing is that there are many budgeting options to help you manage your money. If you’re still looking for Mint alternatives, consider these five tools.
1. Rocket Money
Rocket Money offers a variety of financial tools, including monthly budgeting, subscription tracking, and cancellation services. You must pay to access premium services (unlimited budgeting categories, automatic smart savings accounts, account sharing, etc.) and bill negotiation. However, Rocket Money also offers a free membership plan that includes basic budgeting tools.
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Fee: Basic membership is free, premium membership costs $6 to $12 per month, and bill negotiation services offer discounts of 30% to 60% for the first year.
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Major features: Create a budget (free and premium versions), unlimited budgets, automatic savings, bill negotiation, subscription management, account sharing between multiple users.
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Who is Rocket Money best for? Couples and families who want to manage their money together may be particularly interested in Rocket Money, along with those interested in unlimited budget categories and automatic savings account features. However, note that apart from the basic budgeting service, you will have to pay a monthly fee to become a premium member of Rocket Money.
2. Empower
If you’re looking for a free online budgeting tool now that Mint has closed its virtual doors, Empower might be worth considering. Empower, formerly known as Personal Capital, offers free budgeting services along with a spending tracker. The app also has investment management tools, but these services come at an additional cost.
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Fee: Budgeting tools and spending trackers are free, but optional investment management services cost extra.
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Major features: Free budget planning and tracking, net worth tracking, spending and savings management, and optional investment management services for an additional fee.
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Who is Empower best for? Those looking for a free budgeting alternative to Mint may appreciate the features Empower offers.
3.Pocket guard
PocketGuard is another free budgeting solution that replaces the now-closed Mint app. The app also has the ability to import your history from Mint, making it easy to transition to your new budgeting tool. The free version of the app allows you to track your expenses, income, and net worth. However, if you want to access premium features like debt repayment plans and unlimited budget categories, you’ll have to pay extra.
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Fee: Basic membership is free, PocketGuard Plus is $12.99 per month or $74.99 per year (billed annually).
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Major features: Customized budget, unlimited budget, debt repayment plan, spending tracker, bill and income tracker, net worth tracker.
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Who is PocketGuard suitable for? PocketGuard may be suitable for people who want to control their spending, especially those who are working on paying off debt.
4. You’re on a budget
Goodbudget is another free budgeting app. It takes the classic envelope budgeting strategy and updates it for the digital world. With Goodbudget’s free version, you can create up to 20 digital “envelopes” to separate your cash into different categories (gas, groceries, meals, etc.) each month. This allows you to plan how you will spend your money before you spend it. This app also provides debt tracking functionality.
Upgrade to the paid premium version of Goodbudget to enjoy unlimited budget categories and share your budget with multiple users. This feature may be useful for couples and families who manage their finances together.
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Fee: Basic membership is free and costs $10 per month, and premium membership is $80 per year.
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Major features: Digital envelope budgeting method, debt tracking.
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Who is Goodbudget suitable for? If you’re a fan of envelope budgeting or want an easy way to track a zero-based budget on your own or with a partner, you might want to consider Goodbudget.
5. You need a budget (YNAB)
You Need a Budget (YNAB for short) is a zero-based budgeting tool that helps you plan how you spend your money before you spend it. There is no free version of the YNAB app outside of the initial trial period, but the company says users can save an average of $600 in their first two months.
The app is also packed with premium features, including the ability to share your budget with up to 6 people, unlimited budget customization, financial goal planning, a spending tracker, debt management tools, and a net worth tracker.
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Fee: $14.99/month or $99/year
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Major features: It features unlimited budget customization, debt management, financial goal planning and tracking, a spending tracker, and the ability to share your budget with up to 6 people.
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Who is YNAB suitable for? Anyone, couple, or group who wants to start or manage a zero-based budget and doesn’t mind paying for a robust household budgeting app.
next step
If you’ve been relying on Mint to budget, track spending, or meet other financial goals, it’s important to find a replacement. Otherwise, you risk going off track when it comes to money. While we’re sad to see Mint go, the good news is that there are plenty of other budgeting apps available.
When looking for an alternative to Mint, the trick is to look at the features offered by different household finance apps and find the one that best suits your needs. Of course, free services are attractive. However, if the cost fits within your budget and the benefits outweigh the expense, it may be worth paying for the service.
Frequently asked questions (FAQ)
Is Mint closed?
Yes, the budgeting tool Mint officially shut down on March 23, 2024. Users will no longer be able to access their data or Mint’s budgeting features through the platform.
Is Rocket Money safe?
Rocket Money is a legal household budget app that is safe to use. We do not store your financial login information. Rocket Money links your accounts using Plaid, which follows strict security protocols to ensure your sensitive data is protected.
What can I replace mint with?
Mint users can transfer their data to Credit Karma. However, most of Mint’s comprehensive budgeting features are no longer available.