SOTW: Mint
One of the hardest things to do for some people is manage their money. Especially today with multiple credit cards, loan payments, multiple banks and a variety of other things to keep finances in many places. Welcome to Mint™, the best free way to manage your money.
First off, I know what your thinking. I would never trust a website with my banking information outside of my own bank. Not to worry, Mint™ connects securely with more than 7,000 US financial institutions, with a top of the line web application. But what exactally does this tool do?
“Mint downloads, categorizes, and graphs all of your finances automatically every day— so you don’t have to. Know where you’re spending, without spending any effort.”
That’s right. When you login for the first time, you set up your accounts. You enter in credit cards, you select your loans, and everything gets graphed out in a very elegant manner. The tool is so smart, it takes your locations of use, for instance “Stop and Shop” and it knows it’s a “food” related expense, so it gets categorized under your monthly food spending. It doesn’t stop there; you can set budgets, get reminders for credit card payments, learn your spending trends and habits and even find ways to save with offers directly from Mint™.
After your account is set up, let the fun begin. When logged in, you are presented with a huge variety of graphs, trends and tools to get out of debt sooner than later. Mint™ is great for anyone who wants to get a strong understanding of their finances and monitor spending (or saving) to stay financially in line.
Speaking of monitoring spending, check out the trending area. This can give you a break down of locations where your card was used, and then tell you how frequently you go there. This can be a real money saver by shock-and-awe. “Have I really gone to the movies 12 times this month? wow, I should really cut back.”, “I have spent $52.00 at the burrito shop? Hmm, good to know.” Instances like these really start to go through your mind when you can monitor your assets in this manner.
Tip: Set a budget. Mint™ will notify you if you are staying on target to get out of debt sooner. Set realistic goals and learn from your spending habits.
This tool can also be an extreme time saver, from the auto fetching of account data and transactions, to just the way it is presented on the screen. They are constantly adding new features, banks and other ways to take advantage of todays evolving web technologies to make life and managing financial assets even easier.
To make sure you are on top of their updates and additions, check out the Mint™ blog. That’s where you can see exactly what they are up to. Along with the blog, they have a whole educational center where there are resources, articles and stories on how to manage money. Like any blog now a days, you can subscribe to the Mint™ RSS feed to stay up to date.
The website does require the Adobe Flash plug-in, so if you do not have it, a quick download will be required. But check it out, bookmark it in your Del.icio.us and let us know what you think, was it a valuable tool?
Ease of Use – 4/5
Design – 5/5
RSS Feed – Yes
Blog – Yes
Glossary: Web 2.0, RSS, Adobe Flash Plug-in, Del.icio.us
Website: http://www.mint.com
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Hi im Tim and I love to do experiments and take adventures online. Professionally I am a Digital Media Producer out of Boston, MA and design, develop and produce interactive media.
