I get it… as parents, we sometimes overspend on our personal needs (and wants….) but most of the time money gets sucked right out of our wallets to buy for our family’s wants and needs. And it seems each year that the same amount never manages to stretch quite as far… am I right?

It’s really a parent thing….. Not only wanting what’s very best for your family but also giving in to the urge to treat and spoil them whenever you can. It makes you feel good and it delights them but unfortunately, the impact on the budget is not always a good news story.

When you take a minute to stop and think about finances (instead of ignoring the reality of a budget…. oops) between grocery shopping and overspending on food to feed the ever-growing teen appetites and being lured into a spontaneous clothing purchase because you just know that skirt will look better on you than the mannequin, there are so many black holes our hard-earned money can seemingly disappear into.

Oh, don’t get me wrong! Providing for the family well is crucial of course and the occasional splurge and treat is often well deserved and easily justified BUT it can lead to a total financial mess if there’s no accountability, tracking or management of the dollars that come in and out of the household.

But don’t worry the solution to money management for families has is now more simple than ever…. And they’re found at arm’s reach.

It can be a case of trial and error as you install, try, and test some of the many apps on the market that can help you save time and money.  

There are a great number of money management apps available right at your fingertips and here are just a couple of the best money budgeting apps I’ve tried and found helpful in getting my head around a more effective budget for me and my family.

MONEY COACH

Money Coach helps to create a smart budget for daily living and special occasions. You can check how much you have spent and saved during the current pay period.

It has a simple interface which allows you to track your everyday spending from food, drinks, weekend activities, tickets etc and also helps you to plan for other occasions such as a vacation, a new car, and upcoming birthday parties.

This unique and clever budgeting app will also allow you to set a monetary allocation for each spending/expense category at the beginning of the month and will chart outgoings as you keep track of your expenditure and savings on a daily basis.

What’s best about this app is it’s overall analytics and insight function. It will succinctly help you to analyse any bad habit spendings over a period of time.

BONUS FEATURE: Money Coach allows one account signed in to multiple devices. It can be automatically synced over your iPhone, iPad or other iOS devices. Plus, it’s also equipped with the option of changing the currency which can help you easily budget your money during any international getaways.

If you are an iOS user, you can download it here.

WALLY

Wally is one of the best money budgeting apps worldwide and in fact, it has been rated globally as a top favourite finance app.

Wally helps you compare your income to your expenses in order to understand where your money goes. It also helps you to set and achieve financial goals while keeping track of every detail of your spending on a where, when, what, why and how much basis.

BONUS FEATURE: Wally also allows you to take photos and archive your receipts for expenses which is a helpful tool when you need to refer to major purchases and if you can claim some expenses at tax time.

You can download Wally for iOS and Android here.

You Need A Budget (YNAB)

You Need A Budget (YNAB) excels at providing guidance for smart money management and financial responsibility.

Basically, every dollar you’re projected to earn is assigned a job. It’s either spent or saved. YNAB connects directly to your financial accounts to pull in account balances and other information in real time. It’s more of a traditional approach to budgeting and it’s a good approach for people who are serious about managing their money.

You can download YNAB for iOS here.

There you have it!

I hope these will help you in your 2019 money management journey and remember too that modelling good money management for our teens is important as many of them begin working and earning at this age.

In case you’d like to add an app or program that has worked well for you, don’t hesitate to comment in the section below, I’d love your input.

You can also follow us on Facebook to join our fun online community of mums full of humour, light-hearted moments, and relatable experiences.

P.S. You can also download your FREE 2019 Planner + BONUS Daily & Weekly planner here. I also have upcoming programs and courses for parenting teenagers. You can also stay tuned and subscribe to be one of the first mums to know when it’s out. X