Make Better, Smarter Financial Decisions In 2025 With These Apps

Managing finances is a huge challenge for many people, especially as major economies grapple with the skyrocketing prices of goods and services. Back in the days, personal finance management was marked by journals or paper-based strategies to help reduce costs and keep track of expenses.

The rise of the technological age has paved the way for paperless management and also ushered in transformative ways to assist in personal finance. AI-powered apps made personal finance much easier, bringing automation and even analytics into the process.

The new year is a new opportunity to review your finances and take control of your expenses. If you're committed to improving your financial habits in 2025, these trailblazing apps can help you manage your money so you can make more empowered financial choices in the coming year.

1. Public's Alpha

Public Holdings, Inc. created Alpha with the goal of providing consumers an AI assistant that will help make financial management easier. Leveraging the power of generative large language model (LLM) GPT-4, Alpha has a natural language interface that instantly delivers financial insights to help you make informed investment choices.

If you've decided to make the right investments in 2025, Alpha may be what you're looking for as it provides a comprehensive look into financial markets to help you make smart and informed decisions about investing.

Best features:

• Live data – Alpha utilizes live data from the market to deliver the latest insights on stocks and various assets, making the app a top choice for retail investors who may be looking to diversify their portfolios, all without the need for learning the ins and outs of financial investment.
• Expert data – The app also pulls up information from earnings calls of various companies whose stocks you may be interested in, as well as transcripts and analyst ratings and updated SEC filings to help you assess whether you've got your eyes on the right stocks or not.
• Just ask – If you want to know something about a certain stock or asset, you just have to swipe down and ask. Basic.

2. Quicken Simplifi

From budgeting to spending, from savings to investments – this app "does it all" for you. Quicken Simplifi has a handy dashboard that many people have praised due to the exceptional user experience it offers. It provides excellent reports and is packed with flexible and effective budgeting tools for your personal finance goals.

Best features:

• Spending tracker – You can track and categorize your spending to help you plan for your future expenses, and will also help curate a fully customizable spending plan.
• Projections – This app offers projected cash flows that should help you reach your savings goals.
• Sharing – Your Quicken Simplifi account can be shared with your trusted people such as a financial advisor or your partner.

3. Origin

Dedicated to boosting your savings? Looking to grow your investments? Origin is your one-stop-shop. It goes into detail and eliminates the need for multiple financial tools that are usually obtained through multiple fees. With Origin, you've got your finances at the palm of your hand.

Best features:

• AI assistant – Origin's AI-powered assistant is effectively a digital and personalized financial advisor that can provide meaningful and highly-accurate advice.
• All-in-one – As mentioned, Origin has everything you need to take control of your finances – estate planning, budgeting, investment management, and even tax filing.
• Intuitive interface – Most people who are into personal finance don't have much time to spare, and Origin understands that well. Its intuitive interface is the perfect pick for anyone who wants an app with top-notch ease of use.

4. YNAB

Did you know that you can spend all your money as long as you spend it well? This belief is what the YNAB app stands for – that personal finance isn't about money management but about "self-actualization."

Instead of providing you with various tools to help limit your spending, YNAB supports you if you want to spend it all...on the right things. The app understands that your money is your life, but you will only really be financially free if you spend your money well.

Best features:

• Goal tracking – This app is focused on helping consumers prioritize their spending, and thus, it has a "target-setting" feature to allow at-a-glance monitoring of one's financial goals.
• Loan calculator – YNAB will calculate the interest and time needed to save toward debts, eliminating the need to do manual work on stressful debt-related matters.
• Reports – The app also provides charts where you can check your spending and net worth. You can also track whether you're spending beyond your means through the "Income v Expense" feature.

5. Albert

Albert is always on top of personal finance app lists due to its easy-to-use interface and automated features that help you save not just money but also time. It also has a team of human financial experts that you can reach via text to provide personalized advice on various finance-related matters.

Best features:

• Income analysis – This app can provide data based on your spending habits and income to provide you with a deeper look into small amounts that it believes you should be setting aside for savings instead.
• Bill alerts – Albert will notify you regarding your current and past bills, letting you know if your monthly bill increased or decreased.
• Subscription flagging – Should you keep that subscription, lower your subscription level, or save a few bucks by completely dropping it instead? Based on your financial data, Albert will provide insight into subscriptions that you may not be using as much after all.

6. Greenlight

Want to teach your kids about saving up early on? Greenlight may be the best choice, especially in a world where a few taps on a smartphone can lead to surprised parents paying for online-shopped goods.

Greenlight is a top app for parents and children that help parents monitor their children's spending habits while also ensuring that kids learn how to spend their money wisely.

Best features:

• Parent controls – Both you and your child need to download the app, but it offers tailored experiences for the parent and kid such as chores for kids and allowance automation for Mom or Dad.
• Stay connected – The app has a safety hub where parents can activate location sharing. This feature allows parents to monitor their children's location and receive driving reports with real-time alerts, as well as an SOS alert system and crash detection.
• Invest together – In this feature, Greenlight enables parent and child to invest together with flexible controls for parents. Explore stocks and assets through the app and invest with as little as $1.

7. Cleo

Don't have time to type things up for your personal finance? Cleo's got your back. This app stands out among the rest with its conversational interface that's makes financial management fun and engaging.

Best features:

• Smart saving – The app allows you to set aside money automatically so you won't be tempted to spend what's supposed to be on your savings account.
• Fun and ease – Known for its humorous approach to personal finance and easy-to-use interface, Cleo is a top choice for people who are just starting out with personal financial management.
• Adaptive features – Not only are you getting personalized financial advice but Cleo's AI assistant also adapts to your spending behaviors over time, ensuring that its advice remains relevant as you evolve into the financially secure person you've always wanted to be.

8. Monarch

With almost all of the features that people look for in a personal finance app, Monarch is a capable pick for people who are focused on budgeting and transaction management. It works especially well for self-employed individuals since it keeps track of tax deductions easily.

Best features:

• Transaction marking – You can mark your transactions that are tax-related to make it easier for you to monitor your tax deductions.
• Budgeting tools – Monarch's budgeting tools allow you to create a budget that fits your lifestyle, reducing the pressure on having to be the one adjusting especially if you're just starting your personal finance journey.
• Transaction reviewer – You can view all of your transactions, or just the purchases or investments you prioritize. You can also edit the items and categorize them as necessary for a more organized view of your finances.

9. Trim

Don't we all have some subscriptions we've completely forgotten? Trim will pinpoint on these transactions and manage them while analyzing your spending habits to determine where you can cut costs.

Best features:

• Negotiation – Yes! Trim is known for its expert negotiation skills – whether it's for your internet or cable bills, Trim will negotiate on your behalf.
• Debt tools – The AI-powered app also provides tools to help with your debt payoff goals. It will also offer personalized financial recommendations to help you make smarter decisions in the future.
• Data sifting – As mentioned, the AI assistant's data scouring ability is focused on helping you save money. It will analyze your credit card or bank account to determine whether you should reduce some of your subscriptions and cancel those you haven't been using all along.

10. PocketGuard

Just as its name says, PocketGuard serves as your pocket's guard from over-spending. It not only helps with finance management but also has accounting and budgeting features to make your 2025 personal finance goals easier to achieve.

Best features:

• Support – Known for having some of the most excellent support resources, PocketGuard has a trove of advice and information for individuals who are new to the world of savings and appropriate investments.
• Routine alerts – If you're one of those over-spenders who need constant reminders of how much you can spend within a day, PocketGuard is the right app for you. It lets you know when you're about to reach your limit and literally "guards" your purse from getting dried up.
• Estimation – PocketGuard also estimates your upcoming bills based on your previous bill transactions and will provide you with an amount left over to spend to ensure that your bills, savings, and debts are covered before any online shopping sprees.