It’s true when they say that there’s an app for everything, and that includes budget apps to keep track of your finances. When you’re creating a basic budget, there are many free apps that make budgeting easy.

These five budget calculators and apps help you record your income and spending, keeping you on the straight and narrow to save for your financial goals – all for free!

1. 22seven

Cost: Free
Available on: Mobile (Google Play, App Store)
Security: Encrypted

Features:

• Syncs with all bank accounts, investments, loans and rewards, and automatically updates spending records in real time
• Organises your budget into different spending categories
• Displays your spending in easy-to-read graphs and charts
• Offers useful personal budgeting tips based on your spending habits
• Stores all transactions on your profile to be sourced or exported

Why we love it:

You can invest directly in funds through the app. Also, any loss due to negligence on 22seven’s part is insured.

2. MyFinancialLife

Cost: Free
Available on: Desktop
Security: Encrypted

Features:

• Links to all bank and savings accounts, pension funds and reward accounts
• Dashboard shows visually how you’re spending your money
• A budgeting calculator helps you set a budget for each category

Why we love it:

The app identifies patterns in your spending, suggesting ways to save more.

3. Sage Pastel My Money

Cost: Free for basic option OR R15/month to automatically sync bank statements
Available on: Desktop
Security: Encrypted

Features:

• Capture bank and credit card statements manually, or scan till slips to record purchases
• Paid version allows you to sync bank accounts and update statements automatically
• Create a monthly budget from scratch or based on spending history
• Download and print reports

Why we love it:

It records all your household content purchases for insurance purposes. A special Drill Down feature makes sense of spending statistics in an easy-to-understand way. For those that share household accounts, you can invite up to three other users to view and use your profile.

4. Spending Tracker

Cost: Free for basic, R36–R47 for Pro upgrade
Available on: Mobile (Google Play, App Store, Microsoft Store)
Security: None

Features:

• Log all transactions manually as you make them
• Categorise transactions for easy reference
• Set an overall weekly or monthly budget
• View reports on the app and upgrade to Pro status to download them

Why we love it:

You can document all transactions on the go, whether you're spending on your card or using cash.

5. Money Mammals® Save for a Goal

Cost: Free
Available on: Mobile (Google Play, App Store)
Security: None

Features:

• Caters for preschool and early primary school age
• Educational videos, tips and fun games teach the difference between needs and wants

Why we love it:

It's a fun and easy tool to teach children about earning, saving and spending!