[PurpleNess]

DH & I have just downloaded the Free Trial for YNAB - You Need a Budget.

It's really straightforward & with a bit of hard work I think this is going to really help us get ahead this year despite being on one income! It has an App for iPhones & Android that you can track your transactions in real time and updates in real time via a Cloud or WiFi.

Here's a link if anyone wants to check it out, I'm always seeing posters on here looking for help with their budgets.

http://www.youneedabudget.com/

I will also add that I have no connection to this company other than loving their product DH discovered last week via Steam ( Gaming website).

[katiebear26]

i'm going to try this mainly because DH uses steam too! do you have to pay for it eventually?

[great8]

I have been using this program for over 12 months now, it is fantastic, cannot recommend it enough.

[laridae]

I've been using it for about a year now. I quite like it - but you don't have to buy it from Steam, you can get the free trial direct from the developers website.

And yes, you do have to pay to use it eventually, but if you wait a while they will keep offering (via email) it at a cheaper price (at least if you don't get it from steam).

Its well worth it - they are still actively developing so there are lots of updates.

[PurpleNess]

So far we've downloaded the free trail ( 37 Days) but will def be buying it, so worth the money I think.
Did my first transactions today - pay day, so exciting.

Glad to hear good reviews.

[jm3]

It looks pretty good. Does it matter that it's a US program? Does it link to internet banking or something?

I wonder if there is an Australian based alternative...

[Peppery]

Looks great. Thank you for sharing!! I need all the help I can get

[aleithaki]

I also use YNAB and I LOVE it. It has really helped me get my finances under control and save money without even feeling the pinch. I've been using it for about 3 years on and off (and for the last 8 months consistently). I'll probably use it forever.

It totally doesn't matter that it's a US program - I have not had to tweak anything except perhaps just wording, e.g. changing the budget category 'gas' to 'petrol'.

[laridae]

It looks pretty good. Does it matter that it's a US program? Does it link to internet banking or something?

I wonder if there is an Australian based alternative...

Works fine for Aussies It doesn't link in to internet banking directly - you download exports from internet banking and they import in just fine. It does Australian date format and Australian currency.

I just download the exports from each of my accounts every week. For some reason I find it better to swap payees with memos (an option on import) - maybe that just my bank though (NAB).
If you use the scheduled transactions it will match them up with what is imported from the bank (with varying degrees of success) - but you can check them as you go.

Simialr programs are Microsoft Money & GNUCash - they are both free, but don't do the budget part. I find YNAB a lot easier to use.

[jm3]

I've spent all day getting the hang of YNAB and I know I'm going to love it. We already used an Excel spreadsheet like an envelope system so it won't be hard to transition. I really like the idea of keeping track of all of our spending to get a better idea of where the money goes. Already today I have made alternate spending decisions to avoid having to fess up on YNAB