Mint is a free personal finance tool that lets you see your working budget at a glance.
In an increasingly online world, Mint’s technology is hailed for its easy-to-use programs and simple-but-informative graphics of an individual’s financial picture. The money management features help consumers pay their bills on time, save for big-ticket items, and monitor their credit scores in one stop.
Using Mint is simple and straightforward. Like many apps and programs, Mint initially requires extra steps signing on and connecting your accounts. Syncing accounts like checking, credit cards, and bills are key because this is how Mint works—by curating your finances and providing an overall picture at a glance.
Key Takeaways
- Mint.com is an online personal finance tool that allows you to track your spending and helps you make a budget.
- Mint is a free service.
- If you want to use Mint, you must sync all of your financial accounts, or at least the ones you want to utilizevia Mint.
- Mintallows you to track your spending and your credit score, and you can sign-up to receive notifications on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis.
Linking Your Accounts
Start by using your email to register on its website or on the app and create a password. Then follow the prompts to sync your accounts. You’ll see Mint already has connections with most banks and provides a dropdown search feature for them.
Mint also tracks the performance of investments and sends alerts on any suspicious activity.
You can connect your mortgages, credit cards, PayPal, and as many bank accounts as you’d like, among other accounts. Mint protects its users' account information with security features that are on par with those of a bank.
When you have all of your accounts connected, Mint will provide you an overview of your finances. The next step is to develop a budget. Based on your finances, Mint will offer a proposed budget for you, but you can adjust that. You can increase or decrease a budget item like “Auto & Transport: Gas & Fuel.”
How to Create a Budget Using Mint
You can use Mint to view your spending trends and monitor progress on your budget. Over time, you can analyze your money habits and identify ways to improve your finances. Here are three ways to use Mint to help you stay on track with your budget and credit.
Purchase Categories
While Mint’s simplicity has drawn over25 million users, according to its website, it also has more advanced features. Among its many tricks, Mint allows users to divide up purchases into multiple categories for a more accurate financial portrait.
Splitting Up Transactions
For example, consumers buying multiple products at Target may want to split their transactions into different categories like “home improvement” and “groceries.” To divide your purchases, click on "edit details" and then the “split transaction” button on the right side. Enter the amount you want in each category for a more accurate snapshot of your finances.
Entering your transactions manually allows users to track their cash spend. For this trick, make sure the drop-down menu says “cash” and Mint will automatically deduct the amount from your last ATM withdrawal so it is not deducted from your cash balance twice.
Customize Notifications
Mint users can customize an array of notifications to meet their needs. You can set daily, weekly, or monthly notices when you go over budget when your credit score changes or when you incur an unusual amount of fees. You can also set the notices so they send to another person as well, such as a spouse.
Aside from categories, a tags feature allows users to see their finances organized in another way. For example, you can layer another label like “fixed expenses” onto the categories to see what percentage you are allotting to fixed expenses like monthly bills.
The Bottom Line
Mint provides multiple ways for you to create and manage a budget. It’s noted for its simplicity and informative overview of your finances, and it is free to try.
FAQs
It's an incredibly versatile, tasty herb.
- Add Fresh Mint to Greek Yogurt with Berries. ...
- Make Tea from Fresh Mint Leaves. ...
- Change Up Your Protein Smoothie. ...
- Mix Up Your Salad Game. ...
- Mint Sauce and Mint Jelly. ...
- Make a Mint Lime Fizzler. ...
- Cool Off This Summer with Watermelon Mint Popsicles.
Enter your email address, create a password, and follow the prompts to set up your account. The next step is to connect your bank accounts and credit cards to Mint. This will allow Mint to automatically track your income and expenses, giving you a real-time view of your financial situation.
What is the best budget app now that Mint is gone? ›
8 Mint replacements
| Budgeting App | Cost | Links to accounts |
|---|
| Rocket Money | Free | Yes |
| YNAB | $99 a year or $14.99 a month and free for the first 34 days | Yes |
| Monarch | $14.99 a month or $99 a year | Yes |
| Goodbudget | Free | No |
4 more rowsMint officially shut down on March 23, 2024. Current users are being routed to Credit Karma. There are other apps that function like Mint, so don't panic.
Why is mint shutting down? ›
According to its parent company, Intuit, Mint wasn't making enough money, so Intuit began the app's closure in January. On March 23, Mint users will no longer be able to access their account data, which could include over a decade of their spending and financial history.
What can I do with large amounts of mint? ›
There are so many ways you can use it to freshen up your cooking.
- 1Feta and mint dip. ...
- 2Creamy lime ice blocks with Mojito ice. ...
- 3Cucumber and mint raita. ...
- 4Mint and dukkah labne. ...
- 5Apple, spinach and mint juice. ...
- 6Orange mint iced tea. ...
- 7Peas with mint & garlic butter. ...
- 8White chocolate mojito cheesecakes.
The reason for closing down the Mint app is the supposed consolidation of Intuit's personal finance products and to prioritize their focus on Credit Karma, which has more features and functions than Mint. However, some key features that made Mint what it is are said not to be available in Credit Karma, like budgeting.
Is Mint going away in 2024? ›
Mint will go offline March 23, 2024.
But that's far from the only option. Budgeting apps are a great way to get a grip on your finances.
How to get the most out of mint app? ›
4. Tips To Get the Most Out of Mint
- Link As Many Accounts As Possible. This is the best way for Mint to get the most accurate picture of your finances. ...
- Add Other Accounts Manually. ...
- Fix Transactions That Are Not Categorized Correctly. ...
- Track Cash Spending From the App. ...
- Customize Your Alerts.
Monarch is better than Mint ever was. Mint would consistently have trouble importing data from several of my accounts. Every month or two, I'd need to reconnect my accounts to Mint. Those same accounts stay linked up in Monarch.
Mint recently announced: “Reimagining Mint as part of Intuit Credit Karma will expand our capabilities,” which is them trying to put a positive spin on the fact that they're shutting down their budgeting app capabilities—and Mint budgeters won't be able to access their budgeting accounts or continue budgeting starting ...
What is replacing Intuit Mint? ›
But on March 23, the popular app shut down, leaving millions of people in need of a new budgeting tool. Intuit -- the company that owned and operated Mint -- encouraged people to switch to Credit Karma, which it acquired in 2020. But Credit Karma only lets you view your latest transactions and monthly spending.
Is Mint a trustworthy budget app? ›
Mint is a personal finance app that is safe to use. The company has safety features including multi-factor authentication and security scanning tools to keep your account and personal data safe. Does it cost money to use Mint? Mint is free to use and includes many useful features.
Is there a free version of Mint? ›
Mint is available in both a free and paid version. The paid version is called Mint Premium and costs $4.99 a month. It's currently only available for iOS users.
How do you get the best out of mint? ›
Get the most flavor out of the fresh herb with this simple trick. To get the most flavor from fresh mint, bruise the leaves. Place the sprigs in a plastic bag and smash them with a meat mallet. This releases their oils—perfect for lemonade and iced or hot tea.
How do you use leftover mint? ›
Use up extra mint by adding it into your morning smoothie or happy hour co*cktail, make a mint pesto to top grilled chicken, blend it into a creamy dip, or toss it into salads. If you have a bunch of mint to work with, look to these 35 mint recipes for a little inspiration.
What happens if you use all your mint data? ›
Select from 5GB, 15GB, 20GB, or Unlimited data each month. And if you use all of your data, no worries, we don't charge overages or ever cut you off.
How many mint leaves can you eat in a day? ›
Consuming 12-15 fresh mint leaves daily is the best way. You can even consume them by adding them to detox water, herbal teas, yogurt, smoothies, salads, soups, dips and sauces, etc.
