The best personal finance apps to manage your money

According to the Development Bank of Latin America (CAF), in countries like Colombia, Brazil, Ecuador, and Peru, 61% of people don’t save at all, and a large portion of the remaining 39% keep their money stashed at home.

Between a lack of financial education and low monthly incomes, saving can be tough for the average Latin American. But the truth is, saving is the first step toward building a stable financial life.

Managing your finances means understanding your income, fixed and variable expenses, debts, investments, and more. And it’s directly tied to your ability to save and plan for the future without fear of the unknown.

When you take control of your finances, you can start setting realistic short, medium, and long-term goals—from something as small as treating yourself to something nice, to long-term plans like saving for retirement.

One of the biggest benefits of technology is how it can offer a solution for practically everything. And when it comes to money, especially when financial know-how is lacking, there are plenty of apps that make tracking personal expenses a lot easier.

Here are some popular money management apps that help you organize, understand, and even start planning investments:

Wallet
Launched in the Czech Republic in 2010, Wallet is one of the longest-running apps on the market. It helps you manage your finances by organizing your income and expenses into categories and subcategories. The premium version even syncs with your bank accounts to automatically track your spending.

Fintonic
This Spanish app won Google’s Mobile Innovation Award. One of its main features is the ability to link all types of bank accounts, cards, and even insurance policies. It also gives users financial product suggestions, like insurance and loans, so it goes beyond tracking and into financial advice and education. While it’s not available across all of Latin America, you can use it in Mexico and Chile.

Monefy
This one brands itself as “your personal finance tracker” and has a super user-friendly interface. Thanks to its use of icons, graphs, and percentages, it’s easy to visualize your manually categorized expenses, making it a great option if you prefer not to link your bank accounts.

MoneyHero
This app not only tracks your spending, it also encourages you to set a savings goal. Each day, it gives you a suggested budget to help you hit your goal by the end of the month.

Toshl Finance
Toshl lets you track all your banks, credit cards, payment accounts, and even cash—all in one place.

While these apps are great tools for keeping your monthly spending in check, there are a few key habits that can really level up your money game and help you save, pay off debt, and build a solid financial future:

• Create a monthly budget: Know exactly how much you earn and spend, and assign amounts to each monthly expense.
• Save with a purpose: Your budget should include a specific line item for savings—whether it's for housing, education, or a future trip.
• Build an emergency fund: This is for unexpected events that could seriously impact your finances—like an illness, job loss, or other major disruptions.
• Keep an eye on “money leaks”: These are small, frequent expenses that add up over time. Cutting back on them can make a big difference in your long-term savings.
• Get financial education: Saving and investing are harder without the right info. Read up, take a course, and talk to trusted people who can guide you in making smarter financial decisions.
  

Understanding your finances—and using that knowledge wisely—is key to setting goals and reaching them. Whether you go with an app to track your spending or invest in learning from financial experts, the most important thing is to start becoming aware of the small money decisions you’re making today, and how they shape your future.