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Wallet by BudgetBakers review
Finance app Wallet offers a wide range of budgeting features, with a free and a premium version. Here's what you need to know before using it to organise your money.
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BudgetBakers was founded in 2010 by Czech developer Jan Muller. Initially starting as an Android only company, it has since expanded into iOS territory. BudgetBakers’ main product, Wallet, stands above some of its rivals due to its clean app and options that you can personalise.
Our review covers Wallet’s features and pricing, and its pros and cons to help you decide if you really need this finance app to occupy some of your smartphone’s memory.
What is Wallet?
Wallet is a budgeting app that can be downloaded on Android or iOS, or you can use the desktop version if you’d prefer to tackle your finances on a laptop or desktop computer. The Android version of the app is the most complete, while the iOS and web versions lack some of its useful features.
Wallet comes with clean graphics and straightforward menus and options. After you download the app, you can sign up through your email, or using either Facebook or Google. You’ll then be asked to select your default currency. At this point, you can pick and choose the charts and graphs you’d like displayed on your dashboard and you can then start using the app.
The basic features are free of charge, but free Wallet only works as a manual budgeting app. This means you’ll have to manually enter your expenses and handle your accounts. If you’re looking for something a bit smarter and more automated, you’ll need to pay for Wallet Premium.
How does Wallet work?
Wallet’s free features on Android include:
- Up to 3 accounts in one place. Wallet allows you to add up to 3 accounts that can be categorised according to where the money comes from (cash, debit account and loan, for example). You can add the data manually or, if up until now you’ve been using a spreadsheet to do your budgeting, upload a XLS/CSV/OFX file with your previous transactions.
- Categorise your spending. Every time you spend money, you can add a transaction into the app and categorise it accordingly. Categories include, among others, food and drink, shopping, entertainment, transport, housing and communication. Each category has a list of subcategories and can be personalised.
- Saving goals and budgeting. You can set a budget for a specific account or category and Wallet will notify you when you go beyond it. You can also set how much you’re planning on saving this month; Wallet will tell you how close you are and predict if you’ll hit the target basing on your spending habits.
- Planned payments. You can plan regular payments, which means that if you have regular expenses such as rent, you won’t need to add it to the app every month – Wallet will do it for you. However, don’t forget that Wallet is a budgeting app, so you cannot use it to actually spend money and send out payments. You’ll still need your bank app for that.
- Financial reports. Wallet will analyse your financial data and tell you where you’re spending most money. Reports are organised by account and shown in a clear pie chart.
What is Wallet Premium?
Here’s what Wallet’s Premium option adds to its basic deal:
- Bank synchronisation. This feature is the real game-changer. Your transactions will automatically be added to Wallet and categorised, saving you a huge amount of time that would otherwise be spent feeding the app with your financial data. More than 15,000 banks and cards worldwide can be managed through Wallet.
- Unlimited accounts. You can have as many accounts as you wish, both manual and synced.
- Multi-user sharing. You can create a financial sharing group with your partner, friends and family in order to sort out your finances collaboratively.
Wallet Premium is an in-app feature, which means that you need to sign up to the basic version of the app first and then upgrade if you want to. You can currently take advantage of a 14-day free trial, after which point you’ll be charged for a yearly Premium plan. Wallet Premium costs £5.49 if you subscribe monthly or £17.99 for the yearly plan – this is for the first year only, after which you’ll be charged £19.99. Alternatively you an sign up to a Lifetime Premium plan for £48.99.
Is Wallet safe?
As Wallet does not allow you to actually spend your money at any point, even if you buy the Premium option and sync the app with your bank account, data is accessed in read-only mode, so your money is still as safe as your bank keeps it.
Wallet does not sell or share data with third parties, unless it is necessary to provide its services. In plain English, this means that BudgetBakers may, for example, give your data to the company that provides the servers that make the app work, but will not sell your details to an advertiser.
You can protect the app with a PIN or with your fingerprint, so that if your smartphone gets lost or stolen, your financial data is shielded by an extra security layer.
Wallet app customer reviews
On the App Store, the Wallet app scores 4.6 stars out of 5 (over 2,000 reviews), while on Google Play it scores 4.5 stars out of 5 (more than 16,000 reviews). Reviewers praise the app for being “user-friendly” and highlight its budgeting features and ability to handle multiple currencies as big plus points.
On the flipside, the vast majority of negative reviews point to issues with syncing bank accounts and credit cards, with some users also reporting a lack of customer support. (Last updated: July 2021.)
Pros and cons of Wallet
Pros
- Clear and good-looking app
- Organises your finances through personalised budgets, goals and categories
- Has a web interface (some of its competitors are only available on smartphones)
- Useful spending reports, including super-handy charts
Cons
- The iOS and web versions lack some of Wallet’s features
- The free version only allows “manual” budgeting, which is extremely time-consuming
- You cannot make any payment, so you’ll still need to access your banking apps often
- Wallet Premium is quite expensive for a budgeting app
Customer service information for Wallet
| Email support | |
|---|---|
| Telephone support | |
| In-app or live chat | |
| Contact form | |
| Branch support |
The verdict: Is this budgeting app worth it?
If you’re a tech-savvy person who’s simply looking for a budgeting app that helps you save time, it’s difficult to see why you should choose Wallet. Some of the competitors, such as Emma, allow you to synchronise your cards and accounts with the app for free, instead of paying a monthly fee.
However, some people are not big on automation, especially when it comes to financial data and banking. If you’d rather do your budgeting manually, and are looking to upgrade from your endless Excel spreadsheet to something a little slicker, Wallet by BudgetBakers is worth a try.
Get started by visiting Wallet’s website and download the app. If you have read this review and the app is not for you, you can also discover more budgeting apps.
Frequently asked questions
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