Managing money and our personal finances has never been an easy task. We can’t plan for every eventuality, and unexpected expenses are always around the corner. 
Many of us are often tempted to accept that our resources are limited and that, this time around, we won’t be able to save any money. But is this truly how it needs to be? 

There’s one tool that is so accessible and easy to use that there’s simply no excuse not to make the most of it, especially when the payoff can make a huge difference for our personal finances. You might even be using this tool to read this article right now! It’s your own smartphone.  

How can my smartphone help manage my finances? 

Sounds pretty easy, doesn’t it? There’s a good chance you already have an app on your phone that allows you to manage your money, whether it is for contactless payments or sending money. That is indeed a great first step, but there’s so much more you could be doing for your finances with your mobile phone!  

Here’s a look at how your smartphone apps can help you manage your funds, from budgeting to saving. 

Budgeting 

Let’s start with the basics. Having a budget is really the most essential thing you should  do with your money, especially in a digital world where overspending is often far too easy. Until you start tracking your spending properly, you won’t truly understand where your money is going, how your spending habits add up over time, and where to cut expenses.  
While the idea of creating a budget may be dreadful for most spenders, it does not have to be an insurmountable task. There’s no need to use boring spreadsheets or confusing software when you have simple but effective options available right on your smartphone. Plenty of apps offer you the perfect tools to decide where your money will go in the next month. Some popular names are NerdWallet and Goodbudget, and they are only two of the many apps out there that can help you track and categorize expenses, generate a transaction history, create expense groups, manage bills, and track your credit score. 
Want a general tip? One of the most widely accepted budget rules is “50/30/20”: spend 50% of your net income on needs, 30% on wants and 20% on savings. This can be a great starting point, which you can adjust depending on your salary, lifestyle, and unexpected changes. 

Savings 

Talking about percentages, does saving 20% of your income sound doable? Not if you wait the whole month before safely storing it in your savings account. Want to know a nifty trick? You can’t spend the money you don’t have access to, meaning you should store away the money you intend to save right when you get paid. To make the process even more effortless, and to avoid the temptation of spending your salary right away, you can get help from your very own mobile phone. Mobile banking apps can move your money straight into your savings account every month – you just need to set the amount you wish to save and a fixed date to move the money every month. Once you set the details, your virtual tool will automatically store your money away at the beginning of each month, just like a virtual piggy bank! 

Paying 

Contactless payments through mobile wallets have become an increasingly common life-enhancing tool. One of the main advantages of mobile payments is their accessibility, which has made the expansion of mobile wallets in developing countries all the more successful, contributing to financial inclusion and helping overcome major development challenges for people in rural communities or otherwise unable to take advantage of traditional financial tools. 

There’s plenty of payment service providers that offer you the possibility to pay with your mobile phone, and you can easily choose the one that best suits your needs. 

Paying digitally instead of using cash also helps with tracking your spending. By going through your expenses’ history, you can easily check your spending trends and know with certainty where your money is going. And of course, there’s an app for that too. Many banking and mobile wallet apps even offer charts that break down your expenses by category, helping you see how much you are spending on dining out, entertainment, or other items you could choose to reduce to save more. 

Alerts and spending limits 

Are you really spending too much on your specialty coffee? Is food delivery truly what’s eating up your monthly wage? Once you have checked your spending and set your budget, you can focus on correctly managing your money by setting spending limits and alerts. Is there a maximum amount of money you want to spend each week? Your phone can let you know if you have passed that threshold with an alert. You can even have your account block expenses once you have reached your set spending limit. Of course, you always have the ability to change your limits and alerts, but having them in place can help you manage your money more closely and carefully from the get-go.   

Our mobile wallet

Did you know you can send money with Ria using just your smartphone? With Ria’s app you can send money to 72 different mobile wallets in 39 countries. With our app on your mobile phone, you can transfer money and track your transactions while on the go and from the comfort of your home. When you send money via the app, you can decide whether to deposit directly into someone’s bank or mobile wallet account or have them pick up the cash from one of our 520,000+ locations around the world. 

Sending money? Try Ria Money Transfer app! It’s safe, fast, and easy to use. Download it for free on iOS or Android.

For more info: comms@riamoneytransfer.com