Teenager Harry Uses PocketSmith To Get Ready for Uni
We asked some of our wonderful users to share how they use PocketSmith to be productive with their money and plan for the future. Their stories are filled with ideas, suggestions and inspiration on how you can start crafting a meaningful relationship with your finances.
Read how Harry is setting himself up with good habits by monitoring his income and expenses trends with PocketSmith.
Tell us a little about yourself?
My name is Harry. I have just finished my A-levels and started attending university in September. I enjoy cooking and competitive sailing.
How would you describe your role in your household?
During the summer, I have a job, and my parents give me an allowance to cover my food expenses. I manage this allowance and cook for myself.
What drew you to PocketSmith?
I wanted to track my finances to avoid overspending or being unable to afford things, especially since I’ll be studying in London. PocketSmith helps me stay on budget with its smart budget alerts and visual reminders.
How long have you been with us?
I have been using PocketSmith for almost five months.
What do you primarily use PocketSmith for?
I use PocketSmith to ensure I stay within my budget, monitor changes in spending trends, and flag unusual expenses so I can address them.
PocketSmith helps me track my income and expenses, showing my spending breakdown and enabling me to create rules and filters to automatically sort transactions. I use the label feature to export data as a text document, which I then input into an Excel finance sheet. This process is helping me prepare for managing my finances at university.
How has PocketSmith changed the way you do money?
PocketSmith has helped me stay on budget and reassured me by showing me my financial habits. It’s like having someone oversee my finances, helping me budget for expected expenses in the future.
What are your favorite features?
My favorite features include the savings rate dashboard, bill reminders, recent transactions view, balance page, and spending forecast.
Got any tips?
Don’t create overly narrow categories; make them broader to reduce the number of rules you need. Also, nest labels within larger labels, such as having a “bills” label with sub-labels for “water,” “wifi,” and “electricity.”
What’s the best money decision you made in the past 12 months?
The best decision I made was to save a bit of money each week with the help of PocketSmith, allowing me to see what I would have left after forecasted or recurring purchases. This enabled me to save enough to buy headphones I had wanted for ages, which I didn’t think I could afford.
