Mobile apps typically let you set an additional PIN on the app itself. You can also remotely deactivate most personal finance account from an online admin portal.
If you've never used an online tax preparation tool before, we have a great recommendation for a service that you'll want to read up on now in advance of your 2012 filing. Here are some of our favorite programs, Web apps, and mobile apps for managing your finances.
FEATURED IN THIS ROUNDUP
Mint.com
Free
Mint.com and its mobile apps (such as the Mint iPhone app and Android app) offers a quick and dirty look at all your account balances, from bank accounts and credit cards to loans and investment accounts—the works—updated in real-time, as long as you're connected to the Internet. Use Mint to set up personalized budgets for various categories of expenses, as well as goals, like saving for a vacation or to buy real estate. When you purchase something, Mint automatically categorizes the transaction and alerts you when you're about to go over budget. Opt-in push notifications can even remind you when bills are due. Mint nabbed the Editors' Choice pick for personal finance apps because of its speed and reliability—truly the easiest way to track all your accounts on the fly. Read the full review ››
Free
Mint.com and its mobile apps (such as the Mint iPhone app and Android app) offers a quick and dirty look at all your account balances, from bank accounts and credit cards to loans and investment accounts—the works—updated in real-time, as long as you're connected to the Internet. Use Mint to set up personalized budgets for various categories of expenses, as well as goals, like saving for a vacation or to buy real estate. When you purchase something, Mint automatically categorizes the transaction and alerts you when you're about to go over budget. Opt-in push notifications can even remind you when bills are due. Mint nabbed the Editors' Choice pick for personal finance apps because of its speed and reliability—truly the easiest way to track all your accounts on the fly. Read the full review ››
Adaptu Wallet iPhone App
Free
Entry-level to semi-experienced budgeting enthusiasts should consider using the Adaptu Wallet iPhone app\ for their personal finance needs. Adaptu packs some features that make it more like a virtual wallet than just a ledger of your accounts. You can track your loyal programs, create spending forecasts, and store photos of business cards, insurance cards, or anything else you usually stuff into your billfold. Adaptu is free of advertisements (yay), but the company behind the app says it may start charging for advanced features sometime this year (boo). Read the full review ››
Free
Entry-level to semi-experienced budgeting enthusiasts should consider using the Adaptu Wallet iPhone app\ for their personal finance needs. Adaptu packs some features that make it more like a virtual wallet than just a ledger of your accounts. You can track your loyal programs, create spending forecasts, and store photos of business cards, insurance cards, or anything else you usually stuff into your billfold. Adaptu is free of advertisements (yay), but the company behind the app says it may start charging for advanced features sometime this year (boo). Read the full review ››
Pageonce
Free
We love the Pageonce iPhone app (as well as its apps for Android, iPad, Windows Phone, and BlackBerry) because it's the only mobile app from which you can perform transactions. Bill pay costs just 30 cents per transaction. If you're the kind of person who doesn't like automatic bill pay and needs to keep a closer eye on exactly when your money goes to service providers, Pageonce is the app for you. It also has the best interface of all the personal finance mobile apps we've seen, placing key account balances in thumbnails that appear on the home screen. Unfortunately, it lacks PayPal support, so it doesn't necessarily paint an accurate picture of your net worth if you're a heavy PayPal user. Balance updates aren't as fast as Mint.com or Adaptu, sometimes taking two days to reflect a bill payment or transaction. If you pick up the mobile app, you'll want to explore the full website version of Pageonce, too, to make sure you're using all the features available. Read the full review ››
Free
We love the Pageonce iPhone app (as well as its apps for Android, iPad, Windows Phone, and BlackBerry) because it's the only mobile app from which you can perform transactions. Bill pay costs just 30 cents per transaction. If you're the kind of person who doesn't like automatic bill pay and needs to keep a closer eye on exactly when your money goes to service providers, Pageonce is the app for you. It also has the best interface of all the personal finance mobile apps we've seen, placing key account balances in thumbnails that appear on the home screen. Unfortunately, it lacks PayPal support, so it doesn't necessarily paint an accurate picture of your net worth if you're a heavy PayPal user. Balance updates aren't as fast as Mint.com or Adaptu, sometimes taking two days to reflect a bill payment or transaction. If you pick up the mobile app, you'll want to explore the full website version of Pageonce, too, to make sure you're using all the features available. Read the full review ››
Doxo
Free
Managing your own money is one thing, but taking charge of household expenses is another matter. Doxo is a relatively new website and service that lets you manage household payments, connect with utility and service providers, and backup important family documents while you're at it. Think of Doxo as an online filing cabinet, where you can view all your e-statements at once. No more logging into ten different sites—your electric and gas providers, cable providers, credit card, video streaming service, etc.—just to know where all the household bills stand. You can even connect to healthcare providers to see medical statements, too. Doxo is off to a strong start in an interesting and still developing category that blends household financial management with personal data management (we call them "online family organizers"), and it's well worth signing up for if your real filing cabinet is in shambles. Read the full review ››
Free
Managing your own money is one thing, but taking charge of household expenses is another matter. Doxo is a relatively new website and service that lets you manage household payments, connect with utility and service providers, and backup important family documents while you're at it. Think of Doxo as an online filing cabinet, where you can view all your e-statements at once. No more logging into ten different sites—your electric and gas providers, cable providers, credit card, video streaming service, etc.—just to know where all the household bills stand. You can even connect to healthcare providers to see medical statements, too. Doxo is off to a strong start in an interesting and still developing category that blends household financial management with personal data management (we call them "online family organizers"), and it's well worth signing up for if your real filing cabinet is in shambles. Read the full review ››
Office Time
$47
OfficeTime, which records billable hours as you work and generates invoices and reports based on them, is a small business owner's best friend. Freelancers, contractors, and others in the self-employed ranks grapple with the financial administration and paperwork that comes with running a small business. This highly practical yet relatively simple program helps SMBs keep track of their billable hours by tracking how much time you spend on various projects and tasks while you're working. It shows the minute-by-minute costs as they accumulate, or with numbers rounded however you choose. Slightly larger businesses can even use OfficeTime for team projects. OfficeTime is the kind of app that pays for itself in no time—and would still do so if it cost twice as much. Nimble, inexpensive, and smartly customizable, OfficeTime belongs on every SMB's computer. Read the full review ››
$47
OfficeTime, which records billable hours as you work and generates invoices and reports based on them, is a small business owner's best friend. Freelancers, contractors, and others in the self-employed ranks grapple with the financial administration and paperwork that comes with running a small business. This highly practical yet relatively simple program helps SMBs keep track of their billable hours by tracking how much time you spend on various projects and tasks while you're working. It shows the minute-by-minute costs as they accumulate, or with numbers rounded however you choose. Slightly larger businesses can even use OfficeTime for team projects. OfficeTime is the kind of app that pays for itself in no time—and would still do so if it cost twice as much. Nimble, inexpensive, and smartly customizable, OfficeTime belongs on every SMB's computer. Read the full review ››
TurboTax Premier Online
$49.95 for federal filing, $36.95 for state filing
(less expensive versions available; prices based on 2011 tax year)
If you haven't yet migrated to using an online tax filing system, read our review of TurboTax Premier Online
,
which was written by an accounting professional, and you'll likely be
convinced of the benefits. Many—though not all—individuals can file
reasonably complex forms with this stellar service. The cost of filing
seems steep compared with other tax preparation Web apps, but it's still
a bargain in light of what you could be paying a human professional.
Plus, additional versions of TurboTax, like "Federal Free Edition
Online" and "Deluxe Online" cost much less. Another huge benefit is that
TurboTax is available everywhere, with mobile apps for iOS and Android.
Read the full review to understand how TurboTax Premier Online works so
you can keep the records you need now so that next year's filing goes
smoothly. Read the full review ››
$49.95 for federal filing, $36.95 for state filing
(less expensive versions available; prices based on 2011 tax year)
If you haven't yet migrated to using an online tax filing system, read our review of TurboTax Premier Online
,
which was written by an accounting professional, and you'll likely be
convinced of the benefits. Many—though not all—individuals can file
reasonably complex forms with this stellar service. The cost of filing
seems steep compared with other tax preparation Web apps, but it's still
a bargain in light of what you could be paying a human professional.
Plus, additional versions of TurboTax, like "Federal Free Edition
Online" and "Deluxe Online" cost much less. Another huge benefit is that
TurboTax is available everywhere, with mobile apps for iOS and Android.
Read the full review to understand how TurboTax Premier Online works so
you can keep the records you need now so that next year's filing goes
smoothly. Read the full review ››
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