The economy sucks. Our country is in a rut. The market dropped another 600 points today after the 500 point drop last week. It's just a terrible time not to have money. So be responsible and save! Yeah, I know it's hard. Where do you start? Do you put it under the mattress? Nope! Just follow the advice of these six apps to multiply your bank account. Mo' money, less problems.
Mint: Mint, the personal finance website extraordinaire, is the best and most comprehensive way to track your spending. Sure, tracking isn't the same as outright saving but seeing what you're spending on shows you the reality of it. You tie all your bank accounts, credit cards, loans, etc. to Mint and it'll automatically analyze your habits and break down where you're spending what. You can set up a budget, see personal recommendations on what to cut down on and more. Basically, it's like having a responsible accountant hawking your money for you. Free [iTunes, Android Market]
GasBuddy: With gas dancing around $4 a gallon at some gas stations, it's like trying to hit a new high score every time you fill up. Am I seriously going to pay $70 today? No, you're not because GasBuddy can help you find the cheapest gas stations around you. It's updated by a sizable user community so you'll always know where to land the sweetest deal. Free [iTunes, Android Market]
ShopSavvy: The original "oh my god I need to show my friends" app on Android has matured into the best shopping assistant around on both platforms. It supports QR codes, price alerts and heck even gives you a database of what ShopSavvy users have scanned. Even with all those features, it's as simple as ever—scan a barcode of a product at a brick and mortar store and see if there's a better deal online or at other stores. Buying stuff without ShopSavvy is just irresponsible. We have technology for a reason! [Android Market, iTunes]
Pay Off Debt: Damn near everyone in America is in some sort of debt and just floating around without a plan to kill that debt is dangerous. You can go on for years without ever seeing the other side! Pay Off Debt is an iPhone app that shows you how much you owe so you can target your debt with the debt snowball method (kill one off at a time). [iTunes]
Spotify: Music makes even your poorest days feel good. And free music (unpirated, of course!) makes those days feel like a distant memory. Don't believe me? Bum a Spotify inite from a friend to soothe those wounds you. Listen to millions of tracks and forget you only have single digits in the bank account when you hear rap stars spit about a milli's and country singers croon about alcohol. It's only free to listen to on your desktop but when (okay, if) things start to pick up again, you can spring for the $10/month premium service to listen on your phone. [Android Market, iTunes]
Google Voice: Screw your carrier. Ditch your overpriced SMS plan and use Google Voice for free text messages. You won't even notice a difference. Oh wait! Yeah, you will. $20 a month saved adds up to $240 a year. [Android Market, iTunes]
Zaarly: If you're a master of saving, why not try to make extra change on the side? Zaarly is great for that. It's an app that connects buyers who post what they want to buy and sellers who post what they want to sell. And though it sounds like Craigslist in an app, there's a service aspect to Zaarly where you can get paid a solid chunk o' change for buying some snooty investment banker's lunch. [iTunes, Android Market]