Has anyone used Mvelopes software?

[nana2006]

I'm tired of living paycheck to paycheck, paying late fees for bills I overlook or forget to pay and finally the biggest one - paying my bank for overdraft fees. I'm embarassed to admit this but I need help. I recently came across a thread to Mvelopes and I am wondering if anyone here has used the software or another similar software. Mvelopes is about 8.00 per month with a two year commitment. Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated.

[b4freedom]

$8/month is $96/year. That seems a little expensive to me. I purchased Money 2004 (in 2004) and still use it.

[Fizgig]

I'll second microsoft money. It's about $30, and has bill reminders, budgeting, portfolio management, and even retirement planning. Who wants another recurring bill?

[Diolla]

There are threads on budgeting here on this site. I just recently downloaded a home budgeting shareware program that works well for me.

http://www.tucows.com/preview/198092

That said, no software will control it if you don't take control. You might want to sit down with just a piece of paper first and work out a working budget for yourself. I use a combination of online bill pay and envelopes to control my spending and get my bills paid. I have a chronic illness and need something that runs with minimal input from me.

It sounds like you are ready to take control, go for it! You will be amazed how freeing a budget can be. My DS says it feels like we have more money now than ever.

[Broken Arrow]

I've mentioned this before, but my opinion is that it's best to start out with physical cash and real envelopes.

Cash is very easy to keep track of. If you want how much you're working with, simply count it. You'll also know when you've run out because there's nothing left to work with.

After a while, you'll get a feel of what works for you and what seems lacking with that system, and that'll give you a much better idea on what system to look for to help you budget better. (On the other hand, you may also find that working with cash works perfectly fine for you and you can just stick with that.)

[poundwise]

Mvelopes is a fine system and has a nice feature set, however, 189.60 for two-years is ridiculous pricing in my view. And if you prefer to pay quarterly instead of for two years at a time, it will cost you 39.60, which works out to 13.20 per month.

The basic edition of Microsoft Money, by comparison, is less than $10. For more features you can get Money Deluxe or something like Quicken Premier, both of which will cost a lot less to own than using Mvelopes.

There are other 'envelope' budgeting software options as well such as Budget by Snowmint which costs 29.95 to download. Read a review by clicking here.

[boefixepa]

I have and use Mvelopes and would never use anything else. I have used quicken and did so for years. Every year I'd have to buy the newer version because my bank would not support the old one. Then one time my computer took a dive and I lost it all. So it may seem to cost a little in the month to month expense, but it soooo worth it to me. I've been able to put all of my CC all of my bills and everything on there. I really didn't understand what a budget was until I used this system it was a real eye opener. It has saved me soooo much more than it has or will eve cost me. You simply drop each transaction into it's budget category/envelope and it's right there in front of you each say how much you have left to spend. I use to live and die by my checking account balance, now I really don't even pay attention to you. It was almost scary to watch my checking balance grow. It also comes with a great bill pay service and once you are comfortable and really understand how it all works you can do any tweaking you'd like.

It's really up to you...for me having it all connected, pulling all my transactions from checking, credit cards, savings, investments all at once is great. You don't have to enter anything. You can put all your assets and homeloans into it too, and then the net worth page is a great help to keep you on the right path.

I'm a walking adverstisement for the system I know I may sound crazy, but it's by far better than anything I've ever used or seen. Once it's set up the upkeep is minimal. It recieves all your e bills for you and you can just make a few clicks and everything is paid. It has turned my life around. And this is why....

MOST SYSTEMS TELL YOU WHERE YOU MONEY WENT (Money, quicken, checking account balances etc.) THIS SYSTEM TELLS YOUR MONEY WHERE TO GO, BEFORE IT EVER GETS THERE!!

When you care more about how much you have in an envelope than what your account balance is, you'll know you've got it!

Do what feels good to you but I love it and their support to help you get going is great and if you read the e book that comes with it and really do what they say you'll get on the right path! Good luck!

[itsamy9]

I really enjoy using Youneedabudget. Works on the principle you can only spend what you have. So you live off last month's income. it has helped a lot and it is EASY and it tells me where my money is going so I know where to cut back.

Cable and internet is soo expensive these days...

[nana2006]

Thanks to all who replied. I appreciate all your input and suggestions.