Try these three free apps to help you keep track of your spending

While many financial institutions have created budgeting tools that are a good experience on laptop, not all have a robust option that fits in your pocket.

Here are a few of the most popular mobile budgeting apps — and they’re free.

Wally

This is the bare bones of budgeting apps.

For people who just want a quick look at how much they have to spend overall and where every dollar is going, this is perfect. It does have the capability to set goals and track spending, but the strength of Wally comes in its simplistic view of a user’s real-time financial status.

Best for: Budget beginners

Compatibility: Wally for iPhone; Wally+ for Android

Mint

Mint provides a 10,000-foot view of your finances.

For people managing a lot of funds or keeping track of complex expenses, the numerous features of Mint could provide great value. Users are able to connect all of their accounts and see their financial standing at a glance, including funds available, bill reminders, spending habits, upcoming expenses and even tips for saving.

Best for: Serious budgeters

Compatibility: iPhone; Android

PocketGuard

This is a sleek approach to expense tracking.

PocketGuard shows a dashboard of your accounts and a quick view of how much you have to spend on a weekly basis. One of the coolest features of this app is the ability to organize expenses using hashtags. Quickly see how much you’ve spent in categories that you create.

Best for: Simple budgets

Compatibility: iPhone; Android

This is just the tip of the iceberg — there are dozens of budgeting apps that aren’t tied to any particular financial institution, and each can provide varying levels of budget help. Not to knock your pen and paper methods, but this could change your budgeting game for good.

Kat’s Money Corner is posted on Dollars & Sense every Tuesday. Kat Hnatyshyn, when not blogging or caring for her little ones, is a manager with CommunityAmerica Credit Union. For more financial chatter, visit communityamerica.com.

This story was originally published August 16, 2018 at 7:13 PM with the headline "Try these three free apps to help you keep track of your spending."