Before building your own app, you might want to test several popular personal budget apps to find out why people like them and how you can make something different to gain your competitive advantage. Of course, since every person has a different style of money management and different financial goals, there's no single opinion on what budgeting app is the "best". But there are a few apps that are the most popular among users.

Mint

Pricing: free.

Mint is the most well-known mobile application for managing personal finances. Users like it because of a simple intuitive interface and customizable tools like bill reminders, and the ability to save for multiple goals. It's user-friendly and helpful if you want to better understand the general state of your finances:

You Need a Budget (YNAB)

Pricing: free for 34 days. Then $83.99/year.

This app is somewhat more sophisticated than Mint, taking longer to set up, and having an elaborate interface. What's good about YNAB is that apart from the usually expected budgeting tools and spend monitoring, it also serves as an educational tool, providing instructional videos on how to avoid debt or cut costs:

Personal Capital

Pricing: free.

Personal Capital uses interactive cash flow tools to help you control spending habits, ensuring that you always stay within limits. But unlike the majority of its counterparts, it's more of an investment tool. Investment functions consist of interactive advisors giving directions on where better entrust your money and how to review and track your investments:

Goodbudget

Pricing: Free. Possible upgrade to $50 a year.

Goodbudget is different from the above apps in a way that it isn't linked, so all the information has to be input manually. It works on the tested "envelope" principle, taking your income, dividing it into parts, and allocating it into different envelopes for different categories: