• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

The College Investor

Student Loans, Investing, Building Wealth

  • About
  • Podcast
  • Research
  • Contact
  • Save For College
      • How To Start

      • How To Save For College
      • How To Pay For College
      • What Is the Average Cost of College?
      • What Is A 529 Plan and Where to Open One in Your State
      • How Much Should You Have In A 529 Plan By Age
      • How To Use A 529 Plan For Private Elementary And High School
      • What Are Qualified Expenses For A 529 Plan (And What Doesn’t Count)?
      • The Best Brokers To Open A 529 Plan
      • Tools + Accounts

      • 529 Plans: The Ultimate College Savings Plan
      • 529 Plan Contribution Limits
      • Prepaid Tuition Plans | What To Know
      • Understanding And Using 529A ABLE Accounts
      • Using A Roth IRA To Save And Pay For College
      • FAFSA Deadlines for Financial Aid
      • CollegeBacker Review
      • Upromise Review
      • UNest Review
      • Other Options

      • Student Loan And Financial Aid Programs By State
      • The Guide To Military And VA Education Benefits
      • How To Fill Out The FAFSA
      • How To Find College Scholarships
      • The Best College Scholarship Search Websites
      • How To Find Grants To Pay For College
      • Pell Grants: What They Are And How To Qualify
      • Understanding Federal Work-Study
      • How To Use A 529 Plan If Your Child Doesn’t Go To College
  • Student Loans
      • Borrowing

        • How Student Loans Work
        • How To Apply For A Student Loan
        • How To Find The Best Student Loans And Rates
        • Best Private Student Loans Of May 2022
        • Best Student Loans To Pay For Graduate School
        • Best Student Loans To Pay For Medical School
        • Parent Loans To Pay For College
        • No-Cosigner Student Loan Options
        • Guide To Income Sharing Agreements (ISAs)
        • Best International Student Loans
      • Get Out Of Debt

        • Best Places To Refinance Student Loans In May 2022
        • Best Student Loan Repayment Plans
        • Best Student Loan Refinancing Bonuses And Promotional Offers
        • Student Loan Forgiveness Programs (The Complete List)
        • The Full List Of Student Loan Forgiveness Programs By State
        • Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF)
        • Top Student Loan Scams
        • Average Student Loan Monthly Payment
        • Average Student Loan Debt By Year
      • Reviews

        • Credible Review
        • Splash Review
        • Ascent Review
        • Citizens Bank Review
        • Commonbond Review
        • Earnest Review
        • ELFI Review
        • Laurel Road Review
        • LendKey Review
        • SoFi Review
  • Investing
      • How To Start

        • How To Start Investing in High School
        • How To Start Investing In College
        • How To Start Investing In Your Twenties For 22 – 29 Year Olds
        • How To Start Investing In Your 30s For 30 – 39 Year Olds
        • How To Start Investing With $100 Or Less
        • How To Give Kids The Gift Of Stock
        • What Is Dividend Growth Investing
        • IRA Rollover Chart
      • Tools + Accounts

        • Best Online Stock Brokers
        • The Best Traditional And Roth IRA Accounts
        • The Best Robo-Advisors
        • The Best Investing Apps
        • The Best Places to Trade Options
        • The Best Places To Open A Health Savings Account
        • The Best Solo 401k Providers
        • The Best Self-Directed IRA Providers
        • Best Cryptocurrency Exchanges
      • Reviews

        • Vanguard Review
        • Fidelity Review 2022: Still One Of The Best Online Brokers
        • M1 Finance Review
        • TD Ameritrade Review
        • Charles Schwab Review
        • Robinhood Review
        • Webull Review
        • Betterment Review
        • Wealthfront Review
  • Earn More Money
      • Extra Income

        • 15 Best Side Hustles You Can Start Earning With Now
        • Side Hustle Ideas: 50+ Ways To Make Money Fast
        • 100+ Real And Honest Ways To Make Money In College
        • 80 Ways To Make Money From Home (In Your Pajamas)
        • 5 Quick Money Making Ideas (That Take Less Than 1 Hour)
        • 10 Interesting Ways You Can Make Money Driving
        • High-Paying Side Gigs That Earn $1,000 or More Per Month
        • The 10 Best Money-Making Apps
        • Paid Surveys: Earn Money For Giving Your Opinion Online
        • 10 Crazy Ways To Make $10,000 You’ve Never Heard Of
      • Build Wealth

        • 35 Passive Income Ideas You Can Use to Build Real Wealth
        • 3 Ways To Make $50,000 Per Year Without Working With Passive Income
        • How To Become A Real Estate Investor With Just $500
        • 15 Best Online Business Ideas
        • How to Create Streams of Passive Income on a Limited Budget
        • Residual Income: 7 Super Smart Ways to Build It
        • The Most Common Multiple Income Streams
        • How To Become A Real Estate Mogul With Only $10,000
      • Reviews

        • Fundrise Review
        • RealtyMogul Review
        • FarmTogether Review
        • AcreTrader Review
        • Swagbucks Review
        • Survey Junkie Review
        • TopCashback Review
        • DoorDash Review
  • Personal Finance
      • Banking

        • Best High Yield Savings Accounts Of May 2022
        • Best Money Market Accounts Of May 2022
        • 10 Best Free Checking Accounts In May 2022
        • The Best Bank CD Rates Of May 2022
        • 10 Best Business Checking Accounts In May 2022
        • The Best Online Banks Of May 2022
        • 5 Best Credit Unions Nationwide of May 2022
        • Best College Student Checking Accounts In May 2022
      • Insurance

        • Best Life Insurance Companies
        • Renters Insurance
        • Car Insurance
        • Pet Insurance
        • Umbrella Insurance
        • Disability Insurance
        • Tuition Insurance
        • Travel Insurance
      • Credit Tools

        • Best Budgeting Apps
        • Cash Advance Apps
        • How To Get A Free Credit Score Report
        • The Best Credit Monitoring Services
        • Debt Settlement: Inside The Secret World
        • Credit Repair Explained: Should You Pay For Help?
        • Best Personal Loan Companies And Lenders
        • Online Loan Companies To Borrow From Home
      • Tax

        • Best Tax Software
        • Free Tax Software
        • IRS Tax Refund Calendar
        • Common IRS Questions and Errors
        • Federal Tax Brackets
        • Capital Gains Tax Brackets
        • 401k Contribution Limits
        • IRA Contribution Limits
        • HSA Contribution Limits
  • Forum
  • Search
Home » Money » How To Save » The Top 6 Automatic Savings Apps Of 2022

The Top 6 Automatic Savings Apps Of 2022

Updated: December 10, 2021 By Zina Kumok

Tweet
Share411
Share
Pin68
Email

At The College Investor, we want to help you navigate your finances. To do this, many or all of the products featured here may be from our partners. This doesn’t influence our evaluations or reviews. Our opinions are our own. Learn more here.Advertiser Disclosure

There are thousands of financial products and services out there, and we believe in helping you understand which is best for you, how it works, and will it actually help you achieve your financial goals. We're proud of our content and guidance, and the information we provide is objective, independent, and free.

But we do have to make money to pay our team and keep this website running! Our partners compensate us. TheCollegeInvestor.com has an advertising relationship with some or all of the offers included on this page, which may impact how, where, and in what order products and services may appear. The College Investor does not include all companies or offers available in the marketplace. And our partners can never pay us to guarantee favorable reviews (or even pay for a review of their product to begin with).

For more information and a complete list of our advertising partners, please check out our full Advertising Disclosure. TheCollegeInvestor.com strives to keep its information accurate and up to date. The information in our reviews could be different from what you find when visiting a financial institution, service provider or a specific product's website. All products and services are presented without warranty.

Saving is like eating your vegetables – you know how important it is, but probably don’t give it the attention it deserves. Maybe you make a contribution here and there, but more than likely infrequency and inconsistency has your savings goals in a rut.

Thankfully, technology has given us the ability to take personal responsibility out of the equation. Automatic savings apps are an easy, reliable and foolproof method to hack your way to saving more money.

To be a "best savings app", we had a few criteria we were looking for:

  • Free or very low price
  • Ease of use
  • Ability to select goals
  • Other perks or benefits

Read on to find out our picks for the most popular automatic savings apps for 2022. These apps are constantly changing, so let us know in the comments your thoughts.

Best Automatic Savings Apps
1. Chime 
2. Digit
3. Acorns
4. Empower Finance
5. Qapital
6. B of A Keep The Change

Note: The savings offers that appear on this site are from companies from which The College Investor receives compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site (including, for example, the order in which they appear). The College Investor does not include all savings companies or all savings offers available in the marketplace.

1. Chime 

If you're looking for 100% fee free banking Chime may be the fit. However, there are other things you should know. Read our Chime Bank review for more.

Chime is actually an online banking app that has an automatic savings program as one of it's main perks.

This app rounds up each transaction to the nearest dollar, and sets the money into a savings account. They also add a 10% reward to the money you set aside - up to $500 per year. 

Plus, their savings account currently pays 0.50% APY!

They also have a host of other features that make them worth checking out. Read our Chime review here.

OPEN AN ACCOUNT

2. Digit

Digit Logo

Digit is one of the first automatic savings apps that allowed consumers to save based on al algorithm. 

This app recently started charging users to use their service, which has made it less than great, but it still serves a purpose if you plan to save enough with it. You need to save over $5,000 per year to make the fees worthwhile - which can be hard for many using the service. 

Check out our Digit review here.

The app is not free, and they also have a text message based interface.

OPEN AN ACCOUNT

3. Acorns

acorns

Acorns is a hybrid investing and savings app that rounds up every purchase to the nearest dollar and invests the difference in a diversified portfolio. Unlike the other apps listed here, this app focuses on investing, not just saving.

When you sign up, it will ask you questions about your income, net worth and risk tolerance to determine what kind of investments to choose for you. For those interested in investing but afraid or unaware of how to start, Acorns is a good first step. Like other investment programs, Acorns charges a $1, $3, or $5 monthly fee to use their service.

Check out our Acorns app review here.

OPEN AN ACCOUNT

4. Empower Finance

Empower Finance Logo

Empower Finance is a budgeting and account aggregation app that also has savings built in.

They just launched banking in September of 2018, and now not only can you connect your accounts and track your spending, but you can also save money on their platform.

What's great about Empower is that it's free (there is a paid version), and their rates are very competitive in their savings account.

Check out our full Empower Finance review here.

OPEN AN ACCOUNT

5. Qapital

Qapital Free Savings App

Qapital is a hybrid automatic saving app that allows you to save based on goals. You can decide what triggers a deposit, and Qapital will do the work of getting that money into a savings account.

You can also save with group goals - get together with friends and family and set goals together.

For example, their most popular rule allows you to round-up every purchase. Basically, they look at your transactions and round-up, adding that change into your savings account.

You can also pair Qapital with IFTTT. You can combine savings with almost any other service available on the platform.

This app does charge a monthly fee, FDIC-Insured, and available for both iPhone and Android. Check out our full Qapital review here.

OPEN AN ACCOUNT

6. B of A Keep The Change

Keep the Change

Bank of America was one of the first banks to offer automatic savings through its Keep the Change program. For those who already have a BOA account, this may be a seamless transition to automatic saving.

If you enroll your Bank of America debit card, BofA will automatically round up your purchases to the next dollar and transfer the difference to your BofA savings account.

Unlike other apps, you need to have your checking and savings account at Bank of America.

Newbies will have to open a checking account, savings account or debit card through Bank of America.

OPEN AN ACCOUNT

Final Thoughts

CFP Ben Wacek of Wacek Financial Planning said that he understands the popularity of these apps, but doesn’t think they work for everyone.

“For those who are closely following a budget, these automatic savings apps can actually do more harm than good because it can throw their budget off and make it harder to track,” he said.

In other words, don’t automatically assume you’ll benefit from using one of these apps. They can be endlessly helpful – especially for young, tech-savvy people – but are generally aimed at those who want to casually manage their finances. If you’re a penny-pincher, a more hands-on approach is probably best for you.

But if you aren’t the type of person who wants to budget carefully, these apps can help. Let them do the heavy lifting for you, and start working smartly towards your goals.

Do you use automatic savings apps? Why or why not?

DISCLAIMERS

Chime is a financial technology company, not a bank. Banking services provided by The Bancorp Bank or Stride Bank, N.A.; Members FDIC

Zina Kumok
Zina Kumok

Zina Kumok is a freelance writer specializing in personal finance. She has been featured in Lifehacker, DailyWorth and Time, and she paid off $28,000 worth of student loans in three years. She also works with people one-on-one as a money coach at ConsciousCoins.com.

The Top 6 Automatic Savings Apps Of 2022
Editorial Disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airlines or hotel chain, or other advertiser and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.
Comment Policy: We invite readers to respond with questions or comments. Comments may be held for moderation and are subject to approval. Comments are solely the opinions of their authors'. The responses in the comments below are not provided or commissioned by any advertiser. Responses have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any company. It is not anyone's responsibility to ensure all posts and/or questions are answered.
Subscribe
Connect with
I allow to create an account
When you login first time using a Social Login button, we collect your account public profile information shared by Social Login provider, based on your privacy settings. We also get your email address to automatically create an account for you in our website. Once your account is created, you'll be logged-in to this account.
DisagreeAgree
Notify of
I allow to create an account
When you login first time using a Social Login button, we collect your account public profile information shared by Social Login provider, based on your privacy settings. We also get your email address to automatically create an account for you in our website. Once your account is created, you'll be logged-in to this account.
DisagreeAgree
19 Comments
Oldest
Newest Most Voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments

Primary Sidebar

Featured Bank Reviews

>  CIT Bank (recommended)
>  Discover  (recommended)
>  Barclays
>  Chime
>  Chase Bank
>  American Express Savings
>  Axos Bank
>  Quontic Bank

More On Banking

  • 10 Best Free Checking Accounts In May 2022
  • The Best Online Banks Of May 2022
  • The Best Bank CD Rates Of May 2022
  • Best Money Market Accounts Of May 2022
  • Best High Yield Savings Accounts Of May 2022
  • Best High-Yield Checking Accounts Of May 2022
  • The Best Bank Bonus Offers
  • The Best Business Checking Accounts

Footer

Banking

  • 10 Best Free Checking Accounts In May 2022
  • The Best Online Banks Of May 2022
  • The Best Bank CD Rates Of May 2022
  • Best Money Market Accounts Of May 2022
  • Best High Yield Savings Accounts Of May 2022
  • Best High-Yield Checking Accounts Of May 2022
  • The Best Bank Bonus Offers
  • The Best Business Checking Accounts

Investing

  • Best Online Stock Brokers In 2022 (According To Readers)
  • Best Brokerage and Investing Bonus Offers In May 2022
  • The Best Places To Open An HSA (Health Savings Account)
  • 5 Best Investing Apps With Free Stock Trading
  • How To Buy Stocks Online For Free
  • The Best Robo-Advisors Of 2022
  • The Best Self-Directed IRA Providers
  • The Best Traditional And Roth IRA Accounts Of 2022
  • Comparing The Most Popular Solo 401k Options
  • Top 3 Automatic Investment Apps Of 2022

Student Loans

  • Best Places To Refinance Student Loans In May 2022
  • Best Private Student Loans Of May 2022
  • How To Find The Best Student Loans And Rates
  • Best Student Loan Refinancing Bonuses And Promotional Offers

Insurance

  • The Top 10 Online Life Insurance Companies
  • The Ultimate Guide To Renters Insurance – Everything You Need To Know
  • The Cheapest Car Insurance For College Students

Connect

  • Contact Us
  • Advertise
  • Press & Media

About

  • About
  • Our Team
  • Podcast
  • Editorial Guidelines
  • How We Make Money
  • Archives

Social

Copyright © 2022 · The College Investor · Privacy Policy ·Terms of Service · DO NOT Sell My Personal Information

wpDiscuz