In this day and age we are all glued to our phones and heavily rely on them, and while that may not always be a good thing (i.e. too much blue light or screen time is bad for your eyes and for your sleep), the technology we have at our fingertips today can make some things in our life so much easier. Below are a few of my favorite apps that I take advantage of almost regularly that have helped support me in my personal life and hopefully will help you too!

Money Apps

Venmo - I was a little late to the game on this one, but it has been a life changer. It’s fast, free, and easy to use. Essentially you link up your bank account to your Venmo account, and then safely send any contact in your phone money. This is great for when you loan money to a sibling to allow them to easily pay you back, for splitting the cost of dinner or a night out, etc. And transfers are fast, you can get a free transfer in 1-3 business days, or an instant transfer for 10% of the cost of the transfer. Venmo is a member of the FDIC and is a service of PayPal, so it’s safe and secure to use.

Afterpay - Since I was housebound after my brain surgery, I learned to become more comfortable with online shopping, and of course with the pandemic that has become more of the norm when needing to purchase things like birthday gifts, clothes, shoes, etc. One of the greatest things to have been created was the service Afterpay. You might notice that most stores offer you to purchase your order now with ApplePay, PayPal, or Afterpay. Afterpay allows you to take your order and break it into 4 payments that are interest free, rather than paying for your entire purchase outright. Sometimes the thought of putting $50 on your credit card all at once seems daunting, but when you can take that and break it into 4 payments, which also allows you to make a monthly payment on your credit card, freeing up more credit line, it seems a lot more doable. It also means when it comes to holiday shopping or birthday shopping, you can break up paying for those gifts and try and pay off some of those charges as you go as well. This app is also free of charge to use and most major retailer’s already offer paying with Afterpay. You do not need the app to create an account with afterpay and use their service, however, some other nice features of having the app are that you can track your payments/charges to your card and any refunds if you return merchandise paid with Afterpay. afterpay also allows you to sign up for email and text alerts to remind you when your next automatic payment is going to be charged.

RetailMeNot - This app has been a staple on my phone for years, especially during my high school and college days when i was shopping on a budget, and of course in-stores. However, just as everything else, this app has evolved and has offerings for both your in-store and online shopping experiences. RetailMeNot is a coupon platform allowing you to search for your favorite stores and see what coupons, sales, and other discounted offerings they have to offer and apply those to your in-store or online purchase. This has saved me quite a bit at places like Banana Republic Factory Outlet, Gap Factory Outlet, Old Navy, and more when shopping. They even have coupons to support delivery food services now such as DoorDash and UberEats. So if you are in a major city and utilizing those services, definitely download this app today and start saving!

Lifestyle Apps

Poshmark - If you haven’t already realized the world of consignment and being able to trade in or sell your clothes for cash, then you are missing out. I used to do this in person at a local consignment shop, however, I found myself constantly being ripped off because they only took certain labels, things that were less than 2 years old, and never gave you a fair deal on your products. If you have found yourself in the same boat as me, then enter Poshmark. This app allows you to sell your clothes for whatever you think they are worth, and tells you exactly what amount you will get from that sale after they take their cut and factor in shipping fees (because you don’t pay for the shipping!). I’ve sold numerous items on here and it’s been one of the easiest processes I have ever experienced. Someone either bargains with you on price by making an offer (or vice versa), or someone buys your product outright for whatever you have it listed at. Once the purchase is made, you are notified, given a Priority USPS shipping label to download and print off. You box up your item and ship it out within 2 days of the transaction being made. Once it’s been received by the purchaser within about 48 hours your pending funds will then be redeemable! While the money isn’t instantaneous it’s pretty fast for an online app, and if someone rates your purchase you get your funds faster. So if while under quarantine you are looking to purge your closet of some unworn clothes, shoes, and accessories, you should consider Poshmark and make yourself some money from the quality items you have!

Shop - Formerly known as Arrive, this app works with your online purchases to identify new orders and shipments, and compile them into a single location where you can track all of your orders. Made an online purchase that wasn’t automatically identified by Shop? No problem, simply add another package and include the tracking number and give it a title! The app is extremely user friendly and easy to use, and will send you notifications when a tracking status has changed, such as when something is in transit, out for delivery, or has been delivered.

Dunkin’ - If you are a coffee drinker and you also happen to love Dunkin Donuts, then you need to download the app and start rewarding yourself for your purchases. Scan your loyalty card every time you make a purchase and collect points towards a free beverage. Points add up quick, and if you are a frequent flyer, you’ll probably earn yourself a free drink 1x/week depending on how much you spend. Of all the vendor apps out there, this one is honestly my favorite and the most rewarding for your money spent with them. They also offer in-app deals on food items, double or triple points offers, and more allowing you to rack up your points faster towards earning that free drink.

Target - Alright my friends, if you are a Target lover like me and you have not already downloaded the Target app and become a Target Circle Member (it’s free!) then you are missing out big time. I have found that I can save way more money doing some of my shopping at Target than anywhere else. Target’s app offers hundreds of manufacturer coupons, Target Circle discount offers, and in-app offers to earn free gift cards for your purchases. Plus, the app is great to use for their Drive-Up order feature when you are too busy to in-store shop or prefer not to in-store shop, which is one of the most streamlined and quickest services that I have used to date. If you frequent Target, or are looking to save money on products, then you need to be downloading this app TODAY.

Pinterest - If you haven’t already been introduced to the world of Pinterest, here is your introduction. This app allows you to create different idea boards and save links, images, and more to them for you to reference later on. I love this app for finding neat hacks to organize the house, healthy recipes, or DIY projects and gift ideas. You can create endless amounts of boards, you can make certain boards private (i.e. ideas for someone’s surprise birthday party, etc.) however, most are public, and you and your friends can follow each other and save each other’s saved pins. It’s a free app, it’s easy to use, and the ideas on there are endless.

There are so many apps out there today that we can use to help us in our day to day lives that it can be overwhelming to know which ones will be worth our time to invest in. I’ve only shared with you a few that I personally have found helpful for me over the years and my hope is that if you aren’t using these apps already that they might help you too! If you have an app that you use has helped in your day to day life, drop a comment below!