
Sign up & start saving!
Get our weekly newsletter for the latest in money news, credit card offers + more ways to save
$1 per month
Membership fee
As soon as one business day
Payment speed
$100 per week
Maximum payment
Product Name | ChangEd student loan payment app |
---|---|
Requirements | Over 13 years old, live in the US |
ChangEd is an app that analyzes your spending habits and sets aside money for extra monthly payments toward your debt. For instance, if you spend $3.42 on coffee and $40.19 on gas, ChangEd rounds up your purchases to $4 and $41, respectively.
It then puts that rounded-up $1.39 into your account. After you’ve saved $100 with ChangEd, it automatically sends a payment to your student loan servicer.
It may sound like a small amount, but saving more than a dollar a day can quickly add up. ChangEd reports that its average user saves $30 to $50 a month.
And if you find yourself with a little bit of extra cash, you can take advantage of its Savings Boost feature, which allows you to transfer $5, $10 or $20 into your account. Still, you’ll want to weigh the $1 monthly fee against any change you expect to save.
The app includes a dashboard that allows you to easily see how much you’re saving and how those savings affect your loan. Depending on your loan settings, ChangEd can apply your payments to your interest or your principal. Either way, you’re working on paying down your debt without having to budget or cut your spending.
If you apply extra payments toward the interest on your student loans, it won’t affect lowering your overall loan principal or the original amount of your loan against which your interest is calculated. To pay off your student loans faster without paying unnecessary interest, specifically ask your lender or any third party to apply extra payments toward your principal.
Like other spare-change apps, ChangEd allows for passive savings through everyday spending, among other benefits that include:
Before you sign up to send your spare change through ChangEd, consider a few potential drawbacks:
BBB accredited | No |
---|---|
BBB rating | A |
BBB customer reviews | 1 out of 5 stars, based on 1 customer reviews |
Customer reviews verified as of | 16 October 2020 |
ChangEd doesn’t store your bank account information on the app. Rather, it encrypts your personal and financial details using bank-level security. While you build up your savings through change, your money is kept safe in an FDIC-insured account created by ChangEd. If you have questions about ChangEd’s security procedures, feel free to email them at support@changedapps.com.
If you’re interested in applying extra payments toward your student loans but never seem to get around to sending them, ChangEd might be a good place to start. It automates the process of extra payments so you never have to think about it. And although people who are successfully managing their student loans and already making extra monthly payments likely won’t need the benefits of ChangEd, it could be a useful background scrimping tool for sending even more.
Get started with ChangEd by downloading the app. You’ll enter your loan information — including your loan servicer, interest rate and monthly payment due date — and your personal information, linking the app to your bank account.
After the app’s had a chance to analyze your purchases for a few days, you’ll start seeing your transactions in the app’s dashboard. The dashboard shows the amount of your purchases and the change it’s set aside. And once you’ve saved $100 in change, ChangEd applies your payment to your loan. Then the saving process starts again. No thinking, no budgeting, just paying down your loan a few cents at a time.
Founders of the ChangEd app, Daniel Stelmach and Nick Skrzyniarz, appeared on a January 2018 episode of Shark Tank. They scored a deal with Mark Cuban for $250,000.
ChangEd is an easy way to put more money toward your student loans without having to spend hours budgeting. Similar to other spare change apps, the monthly fee is minimal — but you’ll want to weigh even this $1 against the amount you think you’ll save.
If you’re looking to save even more money on your student loans, consider refinancing your loan at a stronger rate.
What does it cost to use ChangEd?
You won’t pay anything to download the ChangEd app. After you sign up, you’ll pay a $1 monthly fee for its services.
What banks does ChangEd work with?
ChangEd works with some 80% of banks and credit unions nationwide. Check with the app to see if yours is available for ChangEd’s services.
How do I use my credit card to fund my ChangEd transfers?
You’ll first need to add a checking account to fund your transfers. After, you can link and use your credit card to analyze your spending with ChangEd and round up transactions too.
Can I use ChangEd to fund another person’s student loan?
Yes! To start transferring your spare change to a friend or loved one’s account, sign up using the steps listed above. ChangEd will then send transfers every time you reach $5 of change.