Do you struggle to understand where your money goes at the end of the month? Or do you constantly face financial crises? The solution is expense tracking. Nowadays, you can easily track your spending using smartphone apps—for free!
In this guide, I’ll show you how to track expenses using free apps, so you can take control of your finances and increase your savings.
Why is Expense Tracking Important?
Tracking expenses helps you:
✅ Identify unnecessary spending
✅ Stick to a monthly budget
✅ Increase savings opportunities
✅ Achieve financial goals (e.g., buying a house, becoming debt-free)
Best Free Apps to Track Expenses
Here are the best apps to manage your daily expenses effortlessly:
1. Money Lover (Android & iOS)
📌 Features:
✔ Income & expense tracking
✔ Budget setting
✔ Bill reminders
✔ Multi-currency support
✔ Wallet management
📌 How to Use?
-
Download the app.
-
Create income & expense categories (e.g., food, transport, entertainment).
-
Log daily expenses.
-
Review monthly reports and adjust budgets.
2. Walnut (Android Only)
📌 Features:
✔ Automatically tracks expenses from SMS
✔ Monitors credit card & bank transactions
✔ Helps set savings goals
📌 How to Use?
-
Install the app and grant SMS permissions.
-
The app auto-categorizes transactions.
-
Manually edit if needed.
3. Spendee (Free Version Available)
📌 Features:
✔ Colorful visual reports
✔ Shared wallet feature (for family tracking)
✔ CSV export option
4. Google Sheets/Excel (Manual Tracking)
If you prefer not to use apps, track expenses manually using Google Sheets or Excel.
📌 How to Create a Template?
-
Set up columns: Date, Description, Amount, Category.
-
Log daily expenses.
-
Use SUM function to calculate total spending.
Best Practices for Expense Tracking
Just downloading an app isn’t enough—you must track consistently! Follow these methods:
1. Record Every Expense Daily
✔ Log even small expenses (e.g., tea, cigarettes).
✔ Spend 5 minutes before bed updating the app.
2. Categorize Expenses
✔ Essential: Rent, bills, groceries
✔ Non-essential: Shopping, dining out
3. Review Weekly & Monthly
✔ Which category has the highest spending?
✔ Where can you cut costs?
4. Compare with Budget
✔ Set budgets in the app (e.g., monthly food budget: 5000 BDT).
✔ Check if you’re staying within limits.
Common Mistakes in Expense Tracking
❌ Ignoring small expenses (10-20 BDT adds up!)
❌ Not updating the app regularly
❌ Incorrect categorization (makes analysis difficult)
❌ Not comparing with budget
Money-Saving Tips (After Tracking Expenses)
Once you track expenses, you’ll see where to cut costs. For example:
✔ Cook at home instead of eating out (Save 2000-5000 BDT/month!)
✔ Cancel unnecessary subscriptions (Netflix, Amazon Prime)
✔ Use public transport (Cheaper than private cars/ride-sharing)
Final Words: Start Today!
Expense tracking is the first step to financial freedom. Download a free app and start tracking today. In 3 months, you’ll be amazed at how much you’ve saved!