Budgeting without connecting your bank

Many budgeting apps work by connecting to your bank through open banking. That's regulated and works well for lots of people. Some people would still rather not link an app to their bank account. You can budget properly either way.

What you actually need

A budget that works day to day needs surprisingly little:

• your take-home pay and the day it arrives,
• your regular bills and roughly when each one leaves,
• what you put into savings,
• and a rough record of everyday spending.

The first three change rarely, so you enter them once and update them when something changes. Only the last one needs regular attention.

Two ways to record spending

Type it in as you go. It takes a few seconds per purchase, and many people find it makes them more aware of what they spend.

Import a statement. Download a statement from your online banking every week or two, and add the lines you want. In MoneyGlass, PDF, Excel and CSV statements are read in your own browser. The file is never uploaded, and only the spending lines you choose to add are saved to your account.

What you give up, and what you don't

Without a bank connection, nothing updates by itself, so you'll spend a few minutes a week keeping it current. In return, no app holds a connection to your account, and you decide exactly what's recorded.

You still get the useful part: a clear figure for what you can spend each day until payday, what's still to go out, and how this month compares with the last.

General information, not financial advice. MoneyGlass does not connect to banks and never asks for your bank login.