Apps
BillGuardmakesiteasytomanageyour
moneyonbothyourphoneortabletWell designed, useful and
free. Everything that
banking should bePerformance
Design
Value
»specification
Designed forPhone and tablet
Requires Android4.0PriceFree
» verdict
Before the rise of
internet banking and
comparison sites, most
people stuck all their
money in one bank and left it there.
However, people are much more
savvy when it comes to money these
days and it’s easier than ever to
search for the best deals. The upside
of this is that people are getting
more bang for their buck, but the
downside is the sheer number of
accounts to keep track of. If you have
a savings account with one bank, an
ISA with another and your main
current account with a third, it can be
very diffi cult to keep track of where
all your money is going into and
coming out of. Most high street
banks now have apps but it can be a
hassle to switch between them
when trying to work out your
fi nances. This is where the stylishly-designed BillGuard app comes in.
Connecting your accounts with the
app only takes a couple of steps
each and then you’re good to go.
Each account’s outgoings are split
up into an easily understood wheel,
which tracks how much you have
spent on rent, eating out or
shopping. This can be really helpful in
working out which areas you need to
scale back if you’re needing to save
for something. BillGuard also allows
you to set up spending goals and
budgeting targets. Having all your
accounts in one place and being able
to see the wheel of spending makes
the process of sticking to a budget
much easier because it’s much
harder to hide your spending from
yourself when there’s only one app to
log into! The app will also alert you if
it thinks any strange payments have
been made. This way you can seewhat potential suspicious activity is
going on with your card, without
having to wait till the end of the
month when your statement comes
through. If you’re worried about
safety, you needn’t be. The app is
encrypted with bank app-level
security, password protected and
the added ID protection is provided
by Experian, one of the world leaders
in credit dealings. Also no money
gets moved with BillGuard. It is
merely a tool to show you where and
when money is moving, meaning that
if anyone steals your phone and
gains access to the app, they will
only be able to see your outgoings
and can’t transfer your life savings
into their account. It will let you
report suspicious activity to your
bank if there is an unexpected
charge, kick-starting a process that
would otherwise require you to go into the bank or deal with the
minefi eld of a helpline. BillGuard is a
really accessible app, providing an
important service in a way that is
very easy to understand. The
budgeting side of it is also easy to
set up and stick to, thanks to the
large spending wheel in the middle.
Switching between accounts is
much easier than opening and
closing multiple banking apps and
makes you much more likely to take
control of your fi nances.BillGuard
The easy way to check your balance
BANKING AWARENESS » If you’re a little boggled, this handy free
app explains some of the tougher banking terminology.»best free
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You’ve got 2 hours to decide!keep refund
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»0-40 minutes
120!^4080 Simplesetupisagoodstart»40-80 minutes
Realise food spending is a
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