Learning in college is as much about life lessons as it is about lectures. It’s the first time you’re managing everything on your own—especially finances—and as you apply for jobs and look for apartments, you may increase the amount of personal information you put online. We’ve rounded up the budget apps we’ve tried and ultimately recommend, as well as services that can help you track passwords and protect your online activities. These are the tools we wish we had when we started out as undergrads, and we hope they make the adult parts of college a little more manageable.
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Mint time turn offwe went to look for it the best budgeting app to replace and land Accelerate simplification. Unsurprisingly, what stands out the most is the simplicity of the app, with a clean interface and a remarkably low learning curve. It’s as good as any other app at categorizing expenses (it’s rarely great, but in this case, just fine), and the budgeting feature was intuitive to set up and understand.
Unfortunately, there’s no free trial, and you’ll need to set up your account fresh, without using an Apple or Google ID to get started. But Simplfi offers a 30-day money-back guarantee, so if you decide it’s not for you before the end of the month, you’re out the $4 monthly fee. But overall, it’s not as expensive as the competition, which we think is pretty important for something that’s meant to help you control your costs.
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It’s used by several Engadget staffers to create a more formal budget YNAB (You need a budget) and we recommend it in our guide student budget. It is based on a theory that lays down four conditions.Rules” improving your money management and learning these principles now will benefit you long after you graduate.
The browser and mobile app interfaces are pretty easy to use and YNAB has a ton of instructional content for beginners that can point you in the right direction when you first set up expense categories, debt trackers, and sunk funds. It’s usually $15 a month or $99 a year, but students who can prove they’re in school can get a year free.
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Between loans, jobs, and if you’re lucky, scholarships and financial aid, a student’s “extra” money can be quite limited. Good budget is a budgeting tool that converts the envelope technique into a software format, dividing your money into the things you need to pay for. By visualizing what you have and what you need, you can see when there’s room for things you want, like going out with friends or decorating your first apartment.
Lots of charts and sliders help you figure out your situation, and Goodbudget also offers free online classes for those who want to be better with money (really, this can be a tough sell when you’re already in school).
The free version gives you twenty total envelopes divided between expenses and goals and lets you add a bank account. The paid version is $8 per month or $70 per year for unlimited accounts and envelopes.
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Let’s say you’re drinking an espresso shot with iced roasted vanilla oat milk for $5.75. The Acorns investment program collects the last 25 cents and puts it into an investment account and your money grows over time. By providing a simple app and recommending several different portfolios, Acorns takes some of the complexity out of investing.
Especially for students, investing a few cents here and there is much easier than larger chunks of cash when you’re just trying to get by. The monthly plan is $5 per month with a $3 plan option at signup. Both come with a checking and retirement savings account in addition to investment features, so this can be useful if you’re starting out completely fresh.
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we put 1 Password At the top of Engadget guide to password managers. Like all services like this, 1Password one helps you create unique and complex credentials for each site you use, and then stores them securely so you don’t have to remember them all.
It works across most platforms and even lets you share login and credit card information with other people if needed, making it easy to access any family accounts you need while you’re at school. Security and encryption measures are top-notch with a zero-knowledge policy that ensures the company does not store your data. bug bounty a program that rewards ethical hackers who discover any vulnerabilities.
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If you’re studying in public places where WiFi is suspect, a VPN can give you an extra layer of protection. It’s not a cure-all for online security problems, but VPNs create a secure “tunnel” to keep out people who might have access to your data, like your internet service provider or hackers targeting public WiFi.
Proton VPN is, is, is, is the best overall choice not just because it’s easy to use. The Swiss-based company also maintains a no-logs policy, and their open-source software regularly defies independent audits. Unlike some VPNs, it didn’t slow down our connection speeds in our tests either. Proton charges $10 a month to access servers in 65 countries, or you can get a free version with access to just three.
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Free email services are everywhere, but it’s almost impossible to find one that isn’t supported by selling your habits and history to advertisers. Although you can get a school email address, a good personal email will serve you well after you stop accessing alumni mail.
ProtonMail focuses on privacy: It uses end-to-end encryption, whereas a service like Gmail only encrypts messages in transit. Proton’s open-source encryption methods are independently verified, and because the service is supported by paid subscriptions rather than advertising, the company has little incentive to snoop on your data.
Free plans give you one gigabyte of storage and allow you to send 150 emails per day, while a $13 per month subscription gives you 500 GB of storage and removes email limits.
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As a non-profit organization, there are no tech giants at the helm Alarm, which sets it apart from other messaging services. A phone number is required to set up, but that’s all the information Signal collects.
It’s a favorite of journalists, protesters, and people living in volatile areas, but students who understand that their communication is no one else’s business will also find the app useful. The texts, videos and images you send are end-to-end encrypted using open source protocols, and you can even set messages to expire. The latest enhancements group chats It might make Signal feel a little more like other messaging apps, but the core structure of the service will always be more private than many competitors.
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Staying safe in college goes beyond online safety like apps Afternoon light come in Tinder took a share a few years ago to help people in case of a wrong date in the program. In the app, you’ll find a giant white button that you hold down in sketchy situations. Nothing happens when I hold the button. Leave it and the police will be dispatched to your location unless you enter a secret pin to prove you’re safe.
The timeline feature lets you add names and photos when you meet someone new. The safety net allows friends and family to request a check-in and take action if they don’t hear from you. The free version includes all three features mentioned above, while the $5/month plan adds an iPhone widget and the ability to sync with rideshare apps.
