9 Best Automatic Savings Apps to Help You Save Money (Painlessly) in 2018

Well, there are apps just like that. They are known as “Automatic Saving Apps“.

These apps allow you to save money automatically. You set them up, and you start saving. It’s as simple as that.

And, if you’re struggling to save, like many people are, that’s exactly what you need – something simple.

As I said, many of us don’t save because we simply can’t get into the habit of doing so, or we don’t want the hassle or stress of having to put money into a savings account.

But, with automatic saving apps, all of these issues are taken away – saving becomes easy, hassle free, and something you don’t even have to think about.

Below, we’ve compiled a list of the best automatic saving apps out there, which help you to save money without thinking about it.

1. Digit

Update 12/20/17: Digit now charges a monthly fee of $2.99.

Digit is arguably the best automatic saving app on this list. It’s so easy to use, it makes saving so much simpler, and it’s completely free!

Here’s how it works:

• You connect your bank account with your Digit account.
• Digit analyzes your income and spending patterns and determines a safe amount for you to save.
• Then, every two to three days, the app transfers money from your bank account into your Digit savings.
• You can access your savings at any time.

What’s great about Digit is that it is truly automatic – you don’t even have to input any data or the amount you want to save. The app does it all for you.

So, if you’re looking for something that is truly hand’s off, then Digit is the app for you.

If you want to learn more about this app, then check out our Digit review.

2. Level

Level is another excellent automatic saving app. With this app, you can manage and save your money.

Here’s how this app works:

• It creates a financial plan for essential bills and expenses, like your rent and utilities.
• You can set a target savings goal.
• Any money that’s left over is referred to as your “Spendable”.
• The app replaces your bank balance with your Spendable number for the month.
• This number tells you how much is safe to spend recreationally, on the non-essentials, like coffee, eating out or trips to the movie theater.

It’s a really easy to use app that simplifies the saving process.

3. Bank of America’s Keep the Change

Through the Bank of America’s Keep the Change program, you can automatically boost your savings.

This app is designed for people who have an account with the BOA. If you don’t already have an account, then you’ll need to set one up with the bank.

Here’s what you need to qualify for the program:

• A checking account
• Debit card
• A savings account

Once you have a BOA account, you can participate in the program.

Here’s how it works:

• Enroll in the program.
• Use your card as you normally do – make everyday purchases with it.
• Then, the Bank of America rounds up the cost of each purchase to the nearest dollar amount. So, for example, if you buy a cup of coffee for $3.50, the bank will round up the price to $4.00.
• The bank transfers the amount it rounded up into your savings account. So, using the example of the coffee above again, it would transfer $0.50 into your savings account.

With this app, you save small amounts of money, based on your spending. While 50 cents or so here and there might not seem like a lot, over time it adds up, and it can really get you into the habit of saving.

You can track your savings at any time through Online Banking.

4. Simple

Simple is a unique automatic saving tool. It offers you a bank account that has the tools you need to manage money and save built in.

With Simple, you get:

• A Simple Visa Card
• An app for iOS or Android
• A web interface
• Customer support

Simple is an app that acts like a personal budget consultant.

With Simple, saving money is much easier, thanks to two of its primary features:

Goals

You can input your savings goals and Simple will automatically transfer the money.

Safe-to-Spend

The app has a unique feature, called “Safe-to-Spend”.

The app analyzes your savings goals and expenses, like upcoming bills, and then it determines how much is left over for you to safely spend – this is your “Safe-to-Spend” amount.

The Safe-to-Spend amount lets you know exactly how much you can spend without using money that should be going towards your savings goals or bill payments.

According to simple, its customers save, on average, 10% of their yearly income.

Simple is branchless. It doesn’t charge ATM fees or any other fees either. You’ll be glad to know that an account with Simple is FDIC insured.

5. Daily Budget

Daily Budget is another app like Digit that completely automates the process of saving.

The app allows you to input your savings goal and expenses.

Daily Budget then creates a daily budget for you, based on your income and expenses, like rent and utilities. So, it automatically calculates how much you can spend each day.

It allows you to automatically save money too.

Daily Budget is an effective app, because it gives you a Daily Budget to stick to while building your savings.

6. Dobot

Another app that makes saving a whole lot easier is Dobot. With this app, you can easily boost your savings, whether you need money for your next vacation or a new coffee table.

Here’s how it works:

• You create a savings goal. You’ll need to give the goal a name, enter the amount you want, and state when you’ll need it.
• Connect your bank account to your Dobot account.
• Dobot then determines the amount that’s safe for you to spend, and it transfers a small amount of money into your savings each week.
• You can withdraw money from your savings at any time.

If you really want to save money without thinking about it, then Dobot is definitely a good option. It’s such an easy to use app, and you don’t have to think about how much to put into your savings – the app does it for you.

7. Qapital

With Qapital you can automate your savings. This app works in a slightly different way to the others on this list, but the focus is still the same – saving money!

With Qapital, you create “rules” that curb your spending habits and encourage saving.

According to Qaptial, “Rules turn everyday activities into opportunities to save.”

There are several rules that you can use, but here are just a few examples of the ones on offer:

The Spend Less Rule

With this rule, you think about how much you usually spend in one place, and then challenge yourself to spend less than that.

For example, if you usually spend $60 at the grocery store, set a Spend Less rule to only spend $50.

When you spend less than your usual budget, Qaptial automatically transfers the remainder to your savings. So, for the example above, $10 would be transferred.

The Roundup Rule

According to Qapital, this is the most popular rule. Essentially, this rule rounds your change up every time you make a purchase and allows you to save it.

The Set and Forget Rule

Set the app to automatically transfers money into your Qapital savings account once a day, week, or month, depending on what you choose.

If you want to learn more about the rules and what other rules you can set up, then check out this page.

8. Money Clouds

Money Clouds is another app that simplifies saving. With this app, you save automatically.

Here’s how it works:

• Create a Money Cloud for the things you need to save for.
• Decide how much money you want to save, and how often you want to save it. You can use the app’s savings calculator to help you to decide.
• Then, Money Clouds automatically transfers the money into your savings.
• You can easily track your savings progress through the app.

Money Clouds savings are held in an FDIC insured bank account.

9. BoostUp

BoostUp is a totally free app that makes savings easy!

Here’s how it works:

• You decide how much to deposit, and when.
• You can pause or cancel your plan at any time.
• There’s even a RoundUp option to save the change on your purchases.
• BoostUp can also link you up with crowdfunding!

See our full review of BoostUp here.

Bottom line

Saving money can be tough. Arguably, the hardest part is simply getting into the habit of doing it. Also, deciding how much to save can be tricky. With automatic saving apps, however, these issues are taken away, and saving becomes easy.

So, whether you need money to put towards a weekend getaway or a new coffee maker, using an automatic savings app can really help you to build up your savings.