Are you in search of ways to reduce expenses and end up with more disposable income each month? One of the easiest ways to achieve the goal is to use a budgeting app. The good news is that there are hundreds to choose from, and most do a pretty good job of giving you an overview of money spent and earned. Some of the retail products can get a bit pricey if your aim is to micro-manage a large family budget. But, for most people, one of the free or low-cost versions will do just fine.

Another wonderful thing about these clever, helpful applications is that they’re easy to use and you don’t need to be an accounting or finance nerd to get the most out of them. In fact, the best products out there are specifically designed for non-finance types. Here’s why so many people are raving about personal budget apps.

They Work

The programs behind personal finance applications are complex but are written in such a way that anyone can use them. For some consumers, the main advantage is simply to have a detailed tracking of monthly expenses, daily spending, and annual totals. Because you can do everything from your phone screen, it’s hard to miss a spending event. That means at the end of each month, you have a detailed monetary report at your fingertips.

You Can Lower Your Monthly Expenses

Most of the free to download products in the finance app marketplace are sophisticated enough to make suggestions about expense items that can be reduced. But, even without robotic assistance, it’s obvious that refinancing student loans is a quick and easy way to whittle down what is a very common expense category for college graduates. If there’s a framed diploma on your office wall, and you haven’t yet reached middle-age, chances are you’re paying on a student loan. You can refinance the agreement through a private lender and possibly get more favorable terms and much lower monthly payments. Use your finance app to show you how your entire budget can change for the better when you reduce a single obligation through refinancing.

Newer Apps Are User-Friendly

The latest budget-apps come with tips for beginning budgeters and some other impressive features. Of course, for top-of-the-line products, expect to pay something more than $25, but the cost is well worth it in most cases. What’s changed in the past 10 years? For starters, today’s offerings are smart in more ways than one. They can do short-term and long-term projections based on expected income growth, show you national averages for things like rent, fuel costs, car payments, salary, house payments, and more. But the biggest improvement is how easy the apps are to use. You don’t need to know any programming language or coding to get the most out of their features.

You’ll Learn How to Save

Perhaps one of the main advantages of using an application for personal budgeting is that the better products can teach you how to save money. By tracking your entire outflow and income for just two or three months, the program can nudge you by making suggestions when you begin to over-spend in a particular category.