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One of my resolutions for 2014 is to keep better track of my finances. I'd like to use an iPhone app to do this. I've used a few personal finance apps in the past, but none of them do precisely what I'm looking for. I don't need anything particularly sophisticated, just the following features:

  • Ability to add a new transaction with as little effort as possible. I want to capture every single payment I make, so if the UI isn't up to scratch it will get really annoying. I want to be able to enter how much the transaction is for, what account it's coming out of, and what category it should be filed under: i.e., "Car", "Electric", etc.

  • Those categories should be hierarchical, so the "Car" category should include subcategories called "Gas" and "Servicing"

  • Ability to create recurring payments

  • Synchronisation with iPad and Mac. Mac synchronisation is less
    important and I suppose I'd be satisfied with a detailed spreadsheet download, but synchronisation with iPad is a must.

Can anyone recommend an app or two that would fit the bill?

4 Answers 4

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If you prefer native and non web-based solution try Money app by Jumsoft http://www.jumsoft.com/money/

Three client apps for Mac, iPhone, iPad. Featured: subcategories, simple scheduler, sync. Should be enough for personal finances.

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  • The question lists some specific requirements. How does the app you recommend fulfill these?
    – nohillside
    Dec 20, 2013 at 21:00
  • All four requested requirements are fulfilled.
    – mtayler
    Dec 20, 2013 at 21:07
  • I've had a look at all the apps recommended on this page and Jumsoft's "Money" definitely looks like the best bet. Many thanks for the recommendation.
    – Jim
    Dec 24, 2013 at 1:17
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I used Mint.com for quite awhile and liked it. It easily pairs with most bank accounts (except ones with 2-step authentication, like I have enabled which caused me to move away from it), so most transactions are populated automatically, and even categorized automatically.

Manually adding transactions is quick, and very simple. As you can see in one of the screenshots, all one has to do is open the app, and then top the "Compose" icon in the lower right corner. This opens an interface which is very intuitive.

I don't remember right off whether it allows hierarchical categories, and recurring payments, as those are not areas I specifically used, but I do know it has excellent customization of categories, and handles bills well.

They have a Mac app which is functional, but the online interface is probably better overall. Mint has native iPhone and iPad apps, which have the ability to lock with a passcode if so desired.

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PocketMoney would be perfect -- it's probably the quickest app in the App Store with regards to posting a new transaction, it has iOS and Mac OS X versions, and supports the hierarchical categories which you ask for (I use this hierarchical arrangement myself). I've been using it for 3 years, give or take a couple of weeks, to keep track of every aspect of my financial life and it has served me fairly well, even though the developer and I didn't see eye-to-eye when reporting bugs and feature requests.

So why do I say it would be perfect? Well, the developer responsible for the app since the beginning of time (it even had a Newton version way back when) has recently passed away, and a family member took over the company. Even though he had some experience with the codebase, he was quite clearly struggling with it, especially since there are so many ports to maintain. As a result, no one has heard from the new owner in a while, and quite a few bugs are still open and affecting many users (myself, I'm affected by this one, which often means a slowdown in posting new transactions). All of this is well documented in their forums.

So right now I can't, in good conscience, recommend that you start using it. Trying to migrate all your financial data later to a new app will certainly be a source of headaches, so I suggest you start with one with a less complicated history.

Sorry if this wasn't very helpful, but at least it may steer you away from an app with many bugs and very little hope of getting them fixed -- never mind what's going to happen once Apple releases a new major iOS version.

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Love Mint.... It's very useful... In addition, I use 'SquareOff Now' to keep A running tab of expenses between friends and family....built in PayPal ....Free :-)

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