Things getting more and more expensive, the best budgeting apps can help you manage better and ultimately save money.
It’s not cheap to be an international student. On average, students at American universities spend $10,000 to $18,000 per year on accommodation, food, textbooks, travel, weather-appropriate clothing and entertainment. Tuition fees for undergraduate programs can range from US$3,800 to US$38,070, depending on the College Board, College Pricing and Student Aid Trends 2021.
These expenses can add up. Budgeting lets you do more than see where your money is going — it helps you plan future spending and reach your financial goals. Maybe you want to get out of debt or save for a new laptop or a trip, or just for a rainy day – whatever it is, these are the best budgeting apps to help you get there:
Some of these apps can help you budget and track your expenses automatically. Source: Ina Fassbender/AFP
Best Budgeting Apps for International Students
1. Mint
mint compiles all your accounts in one place, giving you insight into your financial life. With this free app, you can customize your budget according to different categories such as bills, entertainment, personal care, etc.
Linking your bank accounts to your Mint profile will automatically analyze your spending and offer you personalized budget goals.
A user explained how he benefited from using Mint“Without Mint helping me manage all my accounts in one place, I wouldn’t have been motivated to pay off $125,000 in student debt in 3 years.”
You can download Mint from the App Store, Google Play, or create a free account on its website.
2.Wally
Wally is another free app that works similarly to Mint. However, it should record your transactions manually. On the plus side, you don’t need to connect your bank account to enjoy all the benefits.
With Wally, you can see your budget, making it easier to determine where you can cut spending.
You can download the app from the App store.
With Digit, you can automatically save small amounts of money every day. Source: Stéphane De Sakutin/AFP
3. Good budget
Are you looking for an effective method to save money? To download Figure. This budgeting app connects to your bank account and automatically saves you small amounts of money each day.
You can specify the maximum recording limit for Digit on a given day. Whether it’s 75 cents or a dollar, it adds up. The app also separates the right amount to be transferred into your “Bills” account to pay monthly bills such as rent, utilities or subscriptions.
The best part? You enjoy a six month free trial to familiarize yourself with the application. After that, you can pay a monthly subscription of US$5. Digit is available for download on the App Store and Google Play Store.
4. Rakuten
When you’re in college, some expenses — like textbooks and groceries — are hard to escape. You might be thinking, “Wouldn’t it be nice to earn some extra cash from these essentials?” »
Rakuten can help. It is an application and a browser extension that will help you get your money back while shopping online or in person. Once you connect your debit or credit cards to the app, you will receive a certain percentage of cashback when shopping at a store affiliated with Rakuten’s network (more than 3,500 stores are included).
Cash back is paid quarterly by check or Paypal payments. This app is available on IOS and Android.
5. Better reimbursement
If you are an international student studying in the UK, Better reimbursement will allow you to claim money back on your online and in-store purchases at over 5,000 merchants.
Your cashback will appear on your “Earnings” page seven days after your purchase. Once the merchant pays the commission for your purchase, your cashback becomes “payable” and you can withdraw it through your PayPal account. You can also convert it into a gift card with a bonus of up to 20%.
You can download Top Cashback from the App store and Google Play Store free.
