One of the hardest things is managing a budget and that is where using smart online budgeting software helps.
It’s easy to write a budget but hard to stick to one …. budgets don’t work!
It’s true that budgets are easy to write but hard to stick to.
As mortgage advisers what we like about Pocketsmith budgeting software is that you cannot hide from your spending as it uses your bank transactions as the source of the information. If you use the automatic bank feeds in the Premium option then it is always up to date too.
Given that you have real information you can then focus on certain areas of expenditure rather than trying to stick to the whole budget.
For example you might focus on the cost of your utilities this month.
You can review what you are spending on electricity which can be a large household expense and then use a website like Power Compare to check if you are getting good value or should be making a change. Try Power Compare
If you are already getting good value then that’s great, but you can change providers if you can save money.
I have found that it is easier to focus on making small changes on a regular basis rather than trying to change everything.
Pocketsmith Budgeting Software
There are a number of features that I like which make Pocketsmith easier and therefore more efficient than most types of budgeting systems.
Flexible Budgeting – you can break down your budget into specific expenses, expense categories or time frames and this makes it easier to review things.
Looking Back – when you start you can upload bank data for the previous 3-months which is great as it gives you an instant snapshot of what you have been spending – you cannot hide from that! Most budgets and budgeting software starts from the day that you set it up and therefore you do not really get a real picture of your spending habits.
Automatic Bank Feeds – on the Basic version you manually upload the transactions from your online banking; however if you upgrade to the Premium version this is all automatic and that means it’s easier and kept up to date.
Mobile App – yes, there is a mobile App too. Most people now prefer mobile App’s as it makes it easier to keep track of things.
Training Guides – there are plenty of training guides on the website to help you every step of the way.
If you are serious about managing your money then you should get Pocketsmith.
Free & Paid Options
There are three options of the software;
Basic – this is the free option and is a great starting point but there is more manual data inputting to do.
Premium – this is the recommended and probably best value as it has automatic bank feeds meaning your income and expenses are automatically imported into the budgeting software, and then once you have set up the system it will also automatically code the bank transactions to the right income or expense classification.
Super – this option gives you the ability to add more bank accounts and project out for 30-years.
You can start with the Basic option which is FREE; however the Premium option is not expensive and probably worth the few dollars a month for the time it saves.
