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TUAW's Daily App: Mint.com Personal Finance

by Mike Schramm May 21st 2010 at 8:00AM

Not all of the apps we spotlight here are new or games (though I admit that most of them have been lately). Mint.com's app has been around for a while, and it's just as useful as the site that gives it the name and functionality. If you have a bank account, you should at least give Mint.com a look -- just by plugging in your bank information (which is as secure as it can get on the site), you can start seeing patterns and trends in your spending even without doing anything at all. And after a few months of use, the site will even do things like create a budget automatically for you, tell you when you're spending more than you usually do, and even recommend ways to save your money.

The iPhone app does all of that on the go, giving you instant access to your financial information wherever you are. You can check your accounts, edit your transaction records, and see your monthly budget (so even while out shopping, you can know exactly how much money you've got to spend) as long as your iPhone has a connection. You can get alerts when something goes wrong. And security even on the mobile device is excellent -- there's a password built-in to the app, so anyone using your phone can't get immediate access to your information, and if you lose your phone, you can even disable iPhone access directly from the web app, ensuring that no one who uses your lost phone gets any sensitive information from the app.

Oh yeah -- and it's all free. Mint.com is definitely worth a look if you haven't installed it yet.

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Not all of the apps we spotlight here are new or games (though I admit that most of them have been lately). Mint.com's app has been around...
 

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18 Comments

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Sherlin

I want mint for my iphone. When will this guys update it. For more info:

http://www.prime-targeting.com

June 17 2010 at 4:18 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Thomas Houston

really, a wonderful app

May 22 2010 at 10:55 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Scott

I have tried for about a year to start using Mint, but they are extremely reluctant to update the access to my bank (they show it in the search, but my bank switched banking software) and after numerous emails explaining that they need to update their site, they wont.

I hope in the future they make it work, as I would love to use mint on my iPhone.

May 22 2010 at 2:36 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
aph3x

Meh. Mint.com had horrific problems with staying up to date with my accounts. I've just given up on it at this point.

May 21 2010 at 7:20 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Joe Van Wyk

Guess this is my first post ever on TUAW, even though I'm an avid reader.

I'm throwing in my 2¢ in hopes that others won't get burned on Mint like I (and many thousands of others) have.

When you commit to software like this, it is for the long haul. At least a year, because you'll eventually have to print some sort of a report out for tax purposes. Suffice to say, it's an important decision.

What's the problem?: DUPLICATE TRANSACTIONS. After hours and hours and hours of setting up my account, categorizing, fine tuning, etc., a few months ago I logged in and all of my transactions were duplicated. This caused my "Mint Balance" to get so out of whack with my bank balance, it ended up being a lost cause. Rather than trying to describe what a nightmare this was, I would just encourage you to go to the Mint discussion groups and look around. Do a search for "duplicate" and read all of the horror stories.

May 21 2010 at 4:25 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
rocketmann

I love Mint except for some of the notifications. I would love to see an iPad version soon.

May 21 2010 at 11:51 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
1 reply to rocketmann's comment
raleedy

Why an iPad version? The web version should work fine on Safari on the iPad, isn't it?

May 21 2010 at 1:45 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Mark

I prefer the app from moneyStrands.com it's has way more features.

May 21 2010 at 9:54 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
jeffofla

Does Mint still make duplicate entries. This was a big problem for me and I discontinued it because of it. But I liked it otherwise.

May 21 2010 at 9:38 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
leon

you should try out MoneyBook. looks a lot better than mint.

May 21 2010 at 9:34 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
1 reply to leon's comment
Cris

You're joking right?

May 21 2010 at 1:28 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
MikeWard1701

Friendly request; could you please mention region availability/restrictions for apps?

I've been intrigued by several apps you've mentioned recently, only to find they're unavailable in the UK store.

May 21 2010 at 8:39 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
2 replies to MikeWard1701's comment
PistolPeet

I don't think mint.com works with UK bank accounts anyway :''(

May 21 2010 at 9:33 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Kishen

Definitely try http://www.xero.com/personal/
which is great for the UK (and NZ and Aus)...

May 21 2010 at 10:24 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
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