Review: The Mint Manual – A Shortcut to Mastering and Saving Money with Mint.com

Amanda Abella — Mon, 17 Dec 2012 14:00:52 +0000

Although I am a total Mint fan girl I've been majorly slacking in that department. Actually, while I'm still sticking to my savings plan, and I've got my ImpulseSave up and running, it's safe to say I've been slacking in the money department period (thank you Holiday shopping). That's why I was ecstatic to stumble upon The Mint Manual by Tim Murphy.

(Tim Murphy may sound familiar to some of you guys. He's the genius behind ApplyMate, a free tool that helps you keep track of job applications. It's a very spiffy tool I'll definitely be using to make my next career moves.)

Most of you may already have Mint accounts, but do you really know how to use it? Like, do you know about all the cool features that are available to you like bill reminders, transaction categories and apps? Seriously, have you even taken the time to get into the nitty gritty of Mint?

Probably not. And if that's case don't worry, I hadn't either in the two years of having an account.

That's why The Mint Manual is so helpful. It teaches you the ins and outs of everything Mint - from the website to the mobile apps.

Below you'll find some of my favorite parts of the eguide:

Synchronization

While many big time banks offer online portfolios where you can sync all of your accounts, none of them are as fluid or as easy to use as Mint. (Believe me I ended up trying my hand at a couple with the bank switches earlier this year.)

The one thing that made me fall in love with Mint back in 2010 was the ability to see all of my accounts in one place. I’ve got my checking, savings, credit cards, Roth IRA, brokerage and so forth in one easy to use overview when I log in. For those of you have have student or car loans, you can add those in there as well.

This is really awesome because you’re probably using more than one institution for your financial stuff. For instance, I have my checking and savings with ING Direct but I have my Roth IRA with T. Rowe Price. Being able to see all of my accounts updated in one place is a huge time saver when I’m trying to figure out where I stand financially.

Granted, this is the easy part. All of the stuff Murphy talks about in his guide is what will really make your jaw drop at how amazing Mint really is as a financial tool. Below you’ll find some of my favorite parts of the guide that truly helped me organize and maintain my finances using Mint.

Upcoming Bills

While I was aware of this feature I never actually used it until I read The Mint Manual. Usually I’m pretty good about knowing when bills are due, but it’s nice to have an extra reminder.

In addition, Murphy brought up something I hadn’t even thought of:

“If you have your account set for ACH withdrawal (automatic bank deduction), an upcoming bill alert, can help prevent those automatic payments from overdrawing your account.”

Now that’s a way so save you from those nasty bank fees!

Murphy walks you through every step to setting up the bill reminders so that they are right for you. He even goes into tricks to keep in mind - like making sure to periodically sign into Mint in order to ensure that you actually keep receiving email reminders.

Categorization

I’m an organizational freak and as such I remember trying to categorize my Mint transactions nearly a year ago. It was kind of a tedious process so I completely gave up and forgot about it.

Thanks to Murphy’s manual I not only categorized ALL of my transactions, I also did it in a very time effective way. He goes into explicit detail on how to categorize, why you should categorize and how to save time doing it.

It’s a great way of seeing where your money goes on a daily, weekly and monthly basis. As such it’s stellar tool for creating budgets, seeing where you can make necessary spending cuts AND seeing how much you’re spending in bank fees.

It’s also a great way to see how much is money is actually coming in - for instance, I have separate sub categories for my regular paycheck, commissions or any freelance work. This is particularly handy for those of us who have fluctuation income because of commissions, bonuses or work we do on the side.

Favorite Tip: You can set “rules” for transactions so you don’t have to manually categorize reoccurring transactions. For instance, I set up a rule so that anything that says Walgreens, Navarro or CVS is categorized under Health > Pharmacy. Any transaction that says Prana Yoga is categorized under Yoga so I can track how much I spend on getting my “Om” on.

This was by far the most tedious task for me and was very grateful for The Mint Manual’s easy to follow break down of the process.

Budgets

Try as I may I’m pretty awful at sticking to a budget. I know how much my bills are going to be and I do manage to save half of what I make on most months, but I still end up spending more money than I would like.

By following Murphy’s guide I was able to create Mint budgets that worked for me. I was also able to organize them according to the necessary categories so Mint would be able to accurately track my budget.

Favorite Tip: There’s an "Everything Else" category under the Budgets section. This is all the stuff Mint wasn’t sure how to organize according to your budgets. Murphy’s guide walks you through how to set this up in a way that you can accurately see whether or not you’re sticking to your budget.

Investment Tracking

This is what truly makes Mint stand out from the crowd as other accounting software doesn’t even have this option. You can customize your investment performance based on how you want to view it and The Mint Manual teaches you how to do just that.

iPad App

Murphy walks you through the entire Mint iPad App so you get the most out of it. The Mint Manual shows you how to get all the information you’d get on the website by navigating through every detail of the App.

iPhone and Android App

The Mint Manual also goes into how to use the Mint App according to which phone you use. Additionally, it goes into the differences among all of the applications - whether it’s web, tablet or phone. It’s very handy when you’re checking your finances on the go.

Overall The Mint Manual is a fabulous tool for organizing and maintaining your finances with Mint. I suggest taking just one afternoon to sit with this manual and your Mint account. Since Mint is so great about recognizing and categorizing your patterns one afternoon is pretty much all you’ll need to customize it for your needs with The Mint Manual. Otherwise it may take you ages without this handy resource.

Best of all The Mint Manual basically pays for itself. At $29 just dodging one of those bank fees already covers the cost of this stellar financial resource.

Click on the banner below to purchase your own copy of this awesome resource! [affiliate link]

You can also spread the love with this Tweetable:

Just learned how to rock my finances with @Mint by using The Mint Manual! via @amandaabella @applymate Buffertweetable text

make sure you have van insurance that covers you against any accident.

Get organised

A move isn’t something you can simply prepare for over a weekend. You should always plan well ahead and never leave your packing till the day before you are supposed to move. You’ll probably find you have a lot more stuff than you initially thought, so it’s a good idea to prepare and package everything in a specific, organised way if you are to make the job as simple as possible. Label every box and write down what is contained in each. This way, you’ll know what needs to go where on the day and have an easier job of unpacking on your hands – and it will be easier to track if something has gone missing.

Donate your old junk

Are you a hoarder or a dumper? If you are in the process of packing, why not challenge yourself to get rid of all the things you no longer need, like, or have room for. You may well have grown tired of your old clothes or bored of your CDs and DVDs. If this is the case, don’t just toss these cumbersome items away – donate them to a worthy cause like Oxfam. Of course, if you want to raise a bit of extra pocket money, you could also sell them on eBay, just remember auctions take time and you’ll want to have sent them off to the winning buyer well in advance of moving day.

So here are some simple and easy steps to move out of your student halls or parents’ house to a new life. Moving out is never easy but it can be fun if you are organised, because it’s always exciting to start a fresh new life.

Guest post submitted by "James Whiteside – Small business entrepreneur and money saving expert. Follow him on Twitter @JamesKirkham21

definitely looking up for the class of 2012 there's still something we all have to learn at some point - getting your money in shape. Yes, you're new job may soon be met with bills, student loans and financial obligations you probably didn't have before.

Fortunately, you won't have to learn things the hard way (like I and so many others have) thanks to this week's awesome guest post. It is my pleasure to welcome Deborah Devenney from Impulse Save - that snazzy Boston financial startup that's helping people save for the things they care about while adding some fun social media flair to your finances. Seriously, Impulse Save has already helped me save up over $200.00 for my upcoming trip to New York in the Fall! This week she discusses her 5 steps for getting your finances in order after college. Whether you're just out college, just received your graduate degree or still need a little nudge, this post will definitely point you in the right direction. Enjoy!

5 Steps to Getting Your Finances In Order After College

Dear Recent College Graduates Everywhere,

“Congratulations!
Today is your day.
You’re off to Great Places!
You’re off and away!”
-Dr. Seuss, Oh, the Places You’ll Go!

Oh Dr. Seuss, you are always so encouraging! And he’s right, you know: you’ve made quite a journey so far, and the road is really just beginning.

When I graduated college, I was so excited to no longer be a broke college student. I got a job - and a paycheck! I was no longer putting every penny I earned towards tuition and I felt like the richest girl in the world!

However, soon after I saw my first paycheck, it hit me: no, I was no longer a broke college student - but now I was a recent grad in debt. I had to figure how to control my finances, and fast!

I knew that it was important to get on the right financial foot early; setting good habits and controlling my spending and saving now would only make things easier as time went on. I’ve been out of college for six months now, and here are a few tips I’ve picked up along the way that I thought you might find helpful.

Below is a list of 5 things you need to get your finances in order after college.

1. A place to call home
You need a place to live. If you are moving home, how do your parents expect you to contribute to the home? Will you be paying rent, or helping out with chores and errands around the house? If you are starting out on your own or with some roommates, what do you need in your new place? What DIY projects can help you feel at home on a small budget? Do you have a long-term job that can allow you to sign a lease, or should you stick with a month-to-month rent?

Everyone is different, and it’s important to have a very honest conversation with the others in your home about expectations for everyone involved. I decided it was best for me to move back home after graduation because I graduated in December so it would be difficult to find a roommate at that time of year. Also, I’m going to grad school in August, so I wanted to save towards the next stage of my education. My parents are very gracious and not expecting me to pay rent while I am a student; however, I do help cook, clean, and drive my younger siblings to their activities in exchange for free food and housing. Not a bad trade-off!

2. A budget to track your paycheck
That first paycheck feels so good in your hand - but before you head to the mall, plan carefully because that little check has a lot to do! Make a spreadsheet in Excel or Google Docs to put a percentage of each check towards different needs. For me, I get paid as a freelancer, so I even had to put money aside for taxes at the end of the year. I put 20% of my check to taxes, 10% to tithe (I think it’s very important to give a portion of each paycheck away), 30% to student loans, and the rest gets broken down into savings and living expenses (including the cell phone bill and gas).

When I got my first paycheck, it looked like so much money, I was so excited! But then I entered the numbers in my budget and realized it wasn’t quite as much as I thought. That new smart phone I just HAD TO HAVE was not going to happen for a few months. So I set up a long-term goal and kept going!

3. Planning Ahead

Don’t let yourself be surprised by what life throws at you. You are smart, and there are many things you can prepare for far in advance! I know you have a lot to save for already, but don’t forget that every little bit counts and that once you have a good savings cushion, you can spend a little more and treat yourself down the road!

Start saving right away for an emergency fund - stocked with enough to keep you going to 3-6 months should your income change. Set up a Roth IRA or other retirement fund - check out this post by Stumble Forward that shows you how much more you’ll have by the time you retire if you start saving now! Start repaying student loans right away (even before graduation). Even though most loans give you a grace period for six months after graduation, start saving and repaying early to be ahead for years! Just make sure there is no penalty on your loans for repaying early.

4. Special Expenses
Everyone has a few special things that can really drain your account if you don’t take them into consideration when building your budget. Don’t forget about specific medical expenses (eye care, allergy medicine, doctor copays), a new wardrobe for work or relocation, gifts and details for all your friends’ weddings, or an impending car or computer replacement.

Some of my special expenses include: buying contact lenses and glasses, buying new clothes when I lost weight after graduation (mixed blessing, I suppose), replacing my dying computer, and trav

el expenses and gifts for the many festivities after graduation (weddings, parties, get-togethers). By starting to save as soon as I started to earn, I was able to handle these expenses as they came with no problem!

5. Side hustle
So you’ve gotten your dream job - or in most cases, something a little lower down the totem pole. And that’s great, but don’t stop there! These are very important years of your life, where there are so many decisions to be made and adventures to take. Be on the lookout for side jobs to help you get ahead on your bills, save up for a great adventure, or just splurge every once in a while on something for you. Side jobs are also a great way to meet more people, especially in a new area, and gain new skills.

I hope these tips for recent college graduates are helpful to you. Just remember to keep your chin up and that although you may feel like you’re living on nothing at the moment, you are able to plan for great things down the road! So enjoy the most frugal years because they are great years. Someday we’ll look back and say, “Wow, look what we did!”

Yours in frugality and positivity,

Deborah Devenney

Author Bio:
Deborah Devenney is an online community manager for the financial start-up ImpulseSave. ImpulseSave is a free online tool and saving community that allows users to set up savings goals and then turn their impulse buys into impulsesaves. She truly believes that the little things add up! Deborah recently graduated college with $21,000 in debt and after law school that number will only grow. However, she is confident that with planning, hard work, and a positive attitude, she can pay it off soon and still have fun in the meantime!

recent trip and after figuring out my tuition for the life coaching certification, I had to kind of rework the bank accounts to get back on track.

That is to say, I needed to open up new high yield savings accounts (super easy with ING Direct. Email me for referrals and get some extra cash for opening an account) and get back to that savings plan I rave so much about. I also had to figure out a new budget with a cell phone bill that finally got sorted out and with some money that I am now giving my parents each month.

While reworking my budget I had to figure out what kind of money I could save (still aiming for 50% of my income) and what I had left over to spend. Now, we all like to buy nice things every once in a while, and like Ramit Sethi I don't believe you have to give up stuff you like in order to save money. I also like pretty things (I am a girl with a shoe obsession) and don't like to sacrifice quality, so I kind of made it my mission the last couple of weeks to find fabulous treats at a decent price.

Thanks to blogs like Frugal Beautiful, Careful Cents, Budgets are Sexy, The Budgetnista, The Frugal Travel Guy, Fantabulously Frugal and Super Frugalette I have found some pretty amazing stuff that will help me save money - from good quality clothing to travel!

E-Miles

Okay, this actually takes some dedication because you have to check the site everyday - but if done well you can find some pretty nifty stuff on E-Miles that will not only get you sweet deals but earn you bonus airline miles. For instance, I just got 12 issues of The Economist for a $1 each in addition to earning 700 bonus miles. So, not only did I get an awesome magazine at a freakin' steal I also didn't have to spend $700.00 to earn miles. You can also find stuff like free credit reports, free business cards, and countless other things - all of which can give you bonus airline miles.

The only thing is you have to keep your eye on the subscriptions and cancel them before they go up to full price. If you can keep up with it then it's a good way to save on stuff while earning travel points. All you need to do is hook it up to your frequent flyer account (no you don't need to take out the credit card, although it helps) and start signing up for deals.

Also, DO NOT take out a credit card unless you know how to handle having multiple cards. Simply put, the interest rate on these cards are RIDICULOUS so if you aren't good with credit this isn't something I recommend.

HauteLook

Holy shit I am obsessed with this site! Thanks to Shannyn at Frugal Beautiful I was able to sign up for this AMAZING site that helps you find name brand stuff at up to 75% off! Seriously, some of the dresses I have found are not only good quality but DIRT CHEAP. The same goes for shoes, furniture, jewelry and menswear!

To make it even better, HauteLook was getting so much attention that Nordstrom decided to acquire it - and anyone who knows me is well aware of the fact that I have a damn near obsession with Nordstrom.

HauteLook is definitely the first website I'm hitting up the next time I have to find a dress for a special occasion or some kick ass pumps.If you want in on the goods make sure to email me. I've got some pretty nifty referrals

BirchBox and Little Black Bag

Beauty products and accessories are EXPENSIVE. And the same goes whether your male or female. Seriously, have you taken a look at price tags lately? Enter two of my latest obsessions: BirchBox and Little Black Bag.

BirchBox is a beauty subscription service where you pay $10.00 a month to get beauty samples. And I'm not talking teeny weeny samples, I'm talking decent sized product that can easily burn a hole in your wallet at the department store. The REALLY cool thing is that this isn't just for women - there's a BirchBox Man too! (Note: BirchBox for men is $20.00 a month instead of $10.00. Still a great deal because male grooming can get pricy with all those razors.)

Little Black Bag is also a subscription service that mainly deals with accessories. It works a little something like this: you take a survey and then you are presented with a ton of accessories and beauty products. You then pick one product and stylists pick another 2 products for you. All these products total over $100.00 and you get it for around $50.00. But wait! It gets better! Thanks to my Klout score I was able to get an additional product for FREE and I got a 10% discount because I liked them on Facebook (buh bye shipping cost). You also have the opportunity to trade items with other users before your bag ships. The end result is that I ended up with a designer wallet (Item I chose because I actually needed one. Retail $55), a designer handbag (My free item that retailed at $78.00), organic lip balm ($8) a designer ring ($14.99), and designer earrings ($14.99) that totaled $170.00 for only fifty bucks. Hot damn!

The best part is that neither of these services require a contract so you can cancel at any time. Boy do I love a good deal

Coupon Cactus

Coupon Cactus is a free online service that scours the web for the best coupon codes and discounts with over 4,000 merchants so that you never pay full retail for anything. I've seen coupons and discounts for anything from some of my favorite stores to laptops and even phone and internet service!

To make it even better (because what could be better that not paying retail price, right?) you can also opt for getting cash back rewards for your purchases!

It's almost like Retail Me Not meets Ebates. Don't believe me? Read some reviews here , here, and here. Again, another website I definitely won't go shopping without. Email me for a referral and get in some sweet deals.

Klout Perks

I'm sure that those of you who measure your social media influence have already signed up for Klout. If you haven't, what the hell are you waiting for?

Klout allows you to see all your networks in once place, what you are influential about, what people who influence you are doing and how your score measures up over time. In addition, depending on your score you can get FREE STUFF! Thanks to my Klout score I've already cashed in on Moo Business cards, Moo mini cards, a $78.00 handbag and a week's supply of Eboost energy mix all for free! Join Klout, measure your social media influence and get in on the deals! Oh, and make sure to stop by my page and say hi

I should mention that although this stuff is better than sliced bread, it doesn't mean you should drown yourself in debt or spend all your cash. Keep in mind some basic shopping know-how and use it for things you actually need.

If you want in on any of the sweet deals that come from having a referral - whether it's extra cash from ING for opening up an account or discounts for all the others - make sure to shoot me an email. I love sharing the wealth

Photo via robinsonsmay

Upon checking my bank account I realized that I didn't spend all that much money on my latest trip. In fact, I barely spent anything at all!

Here I was worried that a trip would be a huge financial burden on the bank account when in reality all I really paid for was a plane ticket ($196 isn't even that bad), a day pass for DC public transit ($9) and some food here and there.

So how did I do it? The same way I always do it. Cheap lodging, having a kitchen handy, rewards cards and good planning.

Aside from using my savings plan to be able to afford a plane ticket, I also use some other techniques to ensure that a trip won't burn a hole in my wallet.

1. I couch surf. In fact, I'd say after Nicole (hilarious blogger!) I'm the queen of couch surfing. From gym floors to convents, I think I've slept almost everywhere. I don't need a hotel room, usually I just need an air mattress and a blanket.

2. I don't check baggage. I don't want the hassle and if it wasn't for my airline miles loyalty program I'd have to shell out some cash for checking. I was taught to travel light as a kid and I take it rather literally. Having to move all your shit (in addition to helping your roommates move all their shit) twice a year when you're in college also helps you realize the beauty of having less crap.

3. I love airline miles. Once I realized I would be taking a trip at least once a year I realized I needed to make it as cost effective as possible - or at least have it doing some work for me!

Although I haven't fully experienced the beauty of airline miles I did get a taste of it when I had priority boarding on my last trip. I also learned that in some airports I can go through security much faster because of said priority boarding. Oh and if I did ever have to check baggage I wouldn't be paying for it which is a nice chunk of cash when you consider that you're probably on a round trip. In addition, eventually you can cash these miles in for free flights and upgrades. Seriously, I have a couple of friends that just went to Japan using airline miles.

You can also rack up miles in ways that won't drown you in debt. For instance, I just got a boat load of extra miles for buying my mom flowers for Mother's Day, purchasing a dress from Nordstrom with a gift card I had leftover from my birthday and shipping a package with FedEx. Oh and this was in addition to the extra miles I got for my trip.

Usually I stay away from loyalty cards because of the ridiculous interest rates but I do believe you can benefit from airline miles. Now, for those of you who still need some convincing consider this - would you rather save 10% on some bra from Victoria's Secret when you can get a decent bra at Target or would you rather save 10% or more on a plane ticket to Europe? No brainer.

While I am an airline miles enthusiast, I am by no means an expert on this subject so I highly recommend checking out The Frugal Travel Guy and The Points Guy if you'd like to learn how to really make this stuff work for you.

4. I use public transit in the city. I use public transit everyday at home and it's no different when I'm on vacation. Or well, at least not if I'm in a city. If your destination offers safe public transit then I highly suggest using it. It's cheaper than renting a car that requires you to put gas in it.

On a related note, don't even think about filling up your tank near an airport! If $5.00 for Regular isn't price gauging then I don't know what is.

And those are my tips for traveling on the cheap. Since I have a trip to New York in the fall I plan on finding even more ways to travel light and cheap.

What are some of your travel tips?

I know many of you travel because of your jobs, businesses, personal development or even for leisure. Feel free to add any of your own tips in the comments section!

Grad Meets World » save money

Review: The Mint Manual – A Shortcut to Mastering and Saving Money with Mint.com

What are some of your travel tips?