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I wanted to join Mint but don't like the idea of giving it all my passwords. I want something to simplify things for me. Right now I'm doing it manually but it's taking up a lot of time.
I want something to simplify things for me.
Right now I'm doing it manually but it's taking up a lot of time.
How deeply detailed do you get now?
Most people will have a basic set of expenses each month
that w/don't change very much in variety or in amount... are you really different?
That leaves the petty small purchase spending that most should just mostly curtail.
(ie: whether you spent $30 or $50 at Starbucks isn't the issue... spending ANY is)
Since most of your expenses are fixed. (More or less).
You need to look at the small stuff you spend.
I also like quicken, and use there Smart phone app, to record cash. I try to track every dollar , (and penny), All my credit cards, Bank accounts, Etc are all downloaded. Give me a good view, and can look back at the history, going back to ~1990's in detail.
Another vote for Quicken. I looked at Mint and had the same fear.
I've used Quicken and several other programs (no longer made). Quicken is better than it was 6 - 7 years ago. It can now be easily migrated into tax programs, among other improvements.
Quicken is perhaps the most popular personal-finance software available today. It’s fairly comprehensive and well-supported, but not without problems. Old versions are “sunset-ed” at regular intervals, forcing users to upgrade if they want to continue using certain features.
I used Quicken for nearly a decade and it was a great tool for keeping track of everything: checking, savings, credit cards, investment accounts, retirement, loans. You still need to give Quicken all your passwords, but they are stored locally on your computer. In the past couple years, I've become more frustrated with Quicken as it will occassionally refuse to download transactions from some banks that have changed their security policies and is incompatible with some institutions entirely (like my sons 529 plan). I've occassional had it miss some transactions causing inaccurate balances that I have to correct manually. The honest truth is I only kept using Quicken (over Mint) because it kept track of my cost-basis data in investment accounts (which brokerage companies now track for you).
I switched to Mint earlier this year and haven't looked back. I change passwords a couple times a year, so I don't worry about Mint having the passwords to my accounts. Some of my banks actually use a "security code" which only allows downloading of transactions, so I don't have to supply Mint with my actual password. I believe Mint's UI is better than Quicken and its trends and budget features are easier to use. Which is probably why Intuit bought Mint!
One caveat with Mint is that they are collecting a lot of personal data about your financial status and spending history to tailor advertisements and offers. This is how they can keep such a great resource free. If this bothers you, stay far away from Mint.
A lot of people dont realize how many tools come along with their online banking. A lot of banks have analytics and charts tied to your account. I personally download my activity into Excel and just do my budgeting in there. There really shouldnt be much that a software package can tell you about your spending that is a shock to you, if youre paying attention.
I agree with the above post in regards to banks online budgeting. I bank with USAA and PNC and I think both of those banks have amazing tools for budgeting, but it is limited to if you use THEIR products (their credit card, their debit card, etc). Overall, I use and love You Need a Budget, but I know people who swear by Quicken or just a good old Excel sheet. I had to poke around before I found something that worked for me. I used Quicken, Microsoft Money, Moneydance, before settling on YNAB.
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