10 Budgeting Software and Online Apps

You Need A Budget 3 still actually teaches sound budgeting practices as you use it, but now YNAB runs on Windows, Mac and Linux systems. There's also a YNAB iPhone app, and the budget can be shared among multiple users. Use YNAB as intended, and you can truly live debt free.

PearBudget online budgeting software tracks a monthly personal budget, applying envelope budgeting by using irregular expense categories for annual quarterly or other non-monthly expenses. PearBudget rolls unused amounts for irregular expenses forward to the next month to facilitate envelope budgeting and runs in four different Internet browsers, so it can be used on all operating systems.

Mvelopes is a fully-featured online personal finance app with strong envelope budgeting features. Mvelopes is subscription-based and includes mobile apps for Android and iPhone. There's a free trial, just be sure to cancel the subscription on time if you decide not to use this software to avoid having your credit card charged.

Mvelopes Review

Inzolo is a relatively new addition to the envelope budgeting software world, and it looks promising. Inzolo was created after the developer, Dustin Davis, found that spreadsheets were too time consuming for money management and that the personal finance software he tried was too light on budgeting features.

Dividing paychecks among envelopes, or anticipated spending categories, is done very quickly, and Inzolo supports OFX Connect to make importing transactions easier. You can try Inzolo for free, and plans are priced at $7/month with discounts for paying by quarterly ($17), annually ($57) or for a lifetime ($177). Inzolo has a mobile web app that runs on smartphone browsers.

NeoBudget is low cost, easy-to-use online envelope budgeting software that includes a nice debt reduction module.

Budget by Snowmint Creative Solutions LLC uses virtual envelopes to show you how much is available to spend in each budget spending category. Budget includes calendar for budget reminders and investment tracking and uses QIF to import transactions from your financial institution and tracks investment account balances.

Budget by Snowmint Creative Solutions LLC has two desktop versions, one for Windows and one for Mac.

MoneyWell envelope budgeting software for Mac OS uses buckets instead of envelopes to show how much money you have left in each budgeted spending category. If you overspend in a category, its bucket tips over.

MoneyWell uses a one-window interface for setting up spending buckets, recording transactions and viewing reports. MoneyWell is shareware, so try it at no charge then buy it if it works for you. MoneyWell imports QIF data data from Quicken and Microsoft Money.

Although Fortora Fresh Finance has many features, I have to mention it for those who are looking for software that supports multiple budgets or that allows for sharing budgets with others. Fortora Fresh Finance is a bit pricier than most other budget software, but it can be networked, runs on a Mac or Windows PC and one license can be used on up to three computers. Fortora aims to provide the best customer service you can find as well.

It's Your Money's Check Register with Envelope Budgeting is an easy-to-use, great looking spreadsheet template that you can download for free. You will need to have Microsoft Excel 97 or later, or OpenOffice Calc spreadsheet. This envelope budgeting spreadsheet should work on a Mac with the right Mac spreadsheet software (Office for Mac for one).

CalendarBudget online budgeting software lets you easily see how your budget will be affected by future income and expenses. While CalendarBudget has the clean look most people who use online financial software are looking for, it is not for everyone.