Qapital
This user-friendly app lets you define your financial goals and automate savings to reach them. Qapital works in tandem with other platforms you may already use, like banking or fitness apps, to put aside money based on rules you set; you can make stormy days less gloomy by telling it to save $20 every time it rains, or charge yourself a $5 guilty pleasure tax each time you splurge on clothes.
Cost: Free.
The typical Qapital user saves $100 to $300 per month.
Ellevest
The brainchild of Wall Street veteran Sallie Krawcheck, Ellevest is a digital platform designed for women that creates customized investing plans based on personal goals (such as early retirement or starting a business). It takes into account women's longer life expectancy and that a woman's salary peaks earlier in her career.
Cost: Ellevest charges 0.5 percent of assets under management annually (e.g., $5 for every $1,000 in investments) and has no minimum investment balance.
Ninety-two percent of women want to learn more about financial planning, according to a 2015 study.
Tip Yourself
Finally quit smoking? Hit the gym early? Why not tip yourself? This app lets you do just that—simply tell it to deposit a few bucks from your bank account into the app's virtual Tip Jar (an FDIC-insured online bank account) for any job well done. You can transfer the cash back whenever you want. Cofounder Lukas Carvajal hopes the app helps change people's money mindset. "Rather than viewing saving as something we have to do, we should view it as a reward," he says.
Cost: Free.
