7 Qualities To Look Out For In A Savings App
There are too many financial apps on the internet and we’re not sure how much more you’ll have to deal with in a few years.
Some will promise heaven and earth to only deliver the size of a tile, others will ask you to “bank on them” and the exact opposite will be your experience. Some will lure you in with freebies but you might end up paying with your hard-earned money.
This is why we wrote this short article to help you navigate all these apps and help you make the best decision — one that helps you meet your financial goals and also keeps your money safe.
Security
One of the first questions you may want to ask yourself is, “Is my money safe here”?
You want to start by researching the company. Look through their website. What do they say they do? Is it different from what is displayed on the app?
Go through their social media to check if they are responsive.
Can you reach them through texts, emails, or even DMs?
Do they respond to customers in the comment section?
If you’re going to put your future in a company’s hands, you need to be sure they can respond to your queries.
You also want to make sure you’re downloading the actual app because there are a lot of lookalikes.
Make sure to download an app from a company’s website. The company’s website should always include links to its mobile apps, along with details about the app’s features and how you can use it. You should also use a trusted platform when downloading and installing the app, like the App Store for iOS users or the Google Play Store for Android users.
Lastly, make sure to go through reviews and related information about the app before downloading it to ensure it’s legitimate.
Did you know that the savings feature on the Moni App is called the Moni Vault?
Ease of Use
There are already stressors in life. A savings app shouldn’t be one of them.
Saving on an app should be as simple as ABC. You shouldn’t have to pull up a manual or watch various videos for you to understand the app you are putting your money in.
What’s the user experience like? You know those apps where you click on an icon and it hangs or takes forever to load? Please delete them.
If the process isn’t seamless, there’s no point in investing your time and energy in the app.
Easy Access to Funds
Almost everyone can relate to the wild gap between the withdrawal and deposit pace of funds from banks. This is one of the things that fintech savings apps have removed from the equation.
But speed doesn’t mean easy access.
You want to be certain you won’t hear stories that touch when it’s time to withdraw your money.
I’ll advise testing the waters with a little amount of money like “urgent 2k”.
Set a target for a week and try to withdraw your money right after. See how easy it is to access your funds before putting in a large chunk of money.
High-Interest Rate
You don’t want to diligently save money for a few months or even a year and get only 1% on your investment. That’s not saving. That’s just putting money under your bed.
After all the spending temptations you fought? You deserve luxury and premium enjoyment, please.
Compare rates across different savings apps and invest your money in the one that suits you best.
Moni, for example, offers up to 18% and more on your savings, this is the highest you’ll come across.
If you ask me, I’ll tell you this for free– It’s a steal!
Be careful of companies with questionable interest rates that seem too good to be true.
They’re usually all over the place and end up folding up. Unfortunately, if you’re not careful, they’ll fold up with your money and we don’t want that happening to you.
You’ve worked hard for your money and you shouldn’t let anybody try to take advantage of you.
Multiple Savings Plans
You may want to save money for different reasons so you should definitely invest in a platform that meets your needs in this regard.
Can you create multiple savings plans on the app? If you want to create separate plans for emergencies, partying, etc, can this app help you achieve your goals?
You can create different plans on the Moni Vault.
While the Reserve plan helps you save lump sums of money for a period of time, the Safebox plan is tailored toward frequent savers. So if you like to save money daily, weekly, bi-weekly, or even monthly, the Safebox plan works perfectly for you.
You can also create multiple plans according to your savings goals. A good example would be creating 3 different reserve/safebox plans. One for a new car, the other for travel to a new country, and the third can serve a completely different purpose.
Bank charges
If the aim is to save money, why should an app constantly make deductions from your funds in the name of bank charges?
Saving apps usually have strict policies to help you stay committed to your goal and some deduct a withdrawal fee if you decide to withdraw your money before the due date.
Asides from this, there shouldn’t be any other reason why a savings app should deduct from your hard-earned savings. Look at the withdrawal fee, what percentage is it? Does it feel like exploitation to you? Ask questions and also make sure to go through the FAQ section on the website to fully understand how it works.
On Moni Vault, every user is given a number of free withdrawals that let you withdraw your money whenever you feel like there’s an emergency you need to deal with. We understand that in the bid to save up money, you can’t predict certain situations and may need access to your funds. This gives you control over your finances.
Once you go through all these steps, you can be sure to make a decision on the right saving app for you. It may look and sound like a lot of work but it’s really important to do proper research. Make intentional decisions for yourself and your money. It’s never a waste of time to put some effort into this process, it saves you from unexpected losses.
Transparency
We saved the best for the last. This is the most non-negotiable thing on this list.
You need to consider how open the brand you’re trusting with your money is.
Was it easy to find answers to your questions? When you speak to a customer success representative, do they personally attend to you or move you down the pipeline?
Is the information you’re receiving from all their channels coherent?
Do they let you know when they are facing technical/personnel challenges or when their systems are down? Do they provide support through these tough times?
Are they accessible? Can you easily explain how they work to your friends and loved ones?
Conclusion
We have done a ton of research and realized that only one app checks all these qualities. It’s the Moni App.
You can download the Moni app from Google Play Store or the App Store.
