Chasing the Fionist Dream

It’s pretty cool that we have the entire world at our fingertips, isn’t it? We can learn about any subject under the sun, watch TV shows from our childhood, count our steps, control smart appliances in our homes, get into fights with strangers, order junk we never knew we needed from China, or… or…. the list is really endless.

So what do we Fionists use our phones for? Which apps do we find most useful on our Fionist journey? In this post, we’ll tell you all about 9 of our favorite apps that help us keep us get the most out of our shekels, keep our finances in order, and stay on track with our investments.

It should be of note that while these are the apps that WE use, there are many other financial and/or money-saving apps out there. Feel free to find others that help you and let us know in the comments.

1. Moovit. This app is a must-have for anyone who doesn’t have a car. Not only does it help us plan our public transportation routes, its real-time updates seem to be more accurate than Google Maps. As if that wasn’t enough, we also use it to pay for public transportation. And unlike Rav Kav, it retroactively finds the cheapest pass to cover your travels and charges you the lowest possible price at the end of the month. ❤ You can find it on Android and Apple.
   
   
2. Google Sheets. We use this to track our expenses in real time using our Fionist Expense Tracker. This way we can record our expenses while out and about, so we don’t forget. We also use it to track the value of our investment portfolio and where we are on our Fionist journey. Love Google Sheets! It’s available for both Android and Apple.
   
   
3. BuyMe App. As you know, we love BuyMe. This app keeps it organized for us and lets us know where we can use it. It’s available for both Android and Apple.
   
   
4. Financial apps (bank, credit card company, investment firm). Always good to be able to see money going in and out in real time, move things along, and see where we are at any given time.
   
   
5. Superpharm. Yes, yes. We know that Superpharm is expensive. But it also has great deals if you know how to look for them. They often have 1+1 sales on certain items, or second item for a shekel. Then we swoop in and stock up. We use the app to track sales and find and activate digital coupons that save us a lot of money. You can also use it to scan items in the store and see their price, if you are not sure. There is no need to get the Lifestyle credit card to reap the benefits of this app. You can get it on Android or Apple.
   
   
6. A car-sharing app. While this definitely can be addictive and requires self-control, car-sharing significantly upgrades our car-free lifestyle. We use it about once a month or every six weeks on average.
   
   
7. Shufersal (or other super supermarket app). Like Superpharm, shopping at Shufersal is a game that requires advance planning. While it is an expensive store, it also has great sales that we track and coupons that we activate on the app. You can also use the app to scan items and see their price if you are not sure. It also is the only major supermarket chain that accepts 10bis/Cibus. It’s available on Android and Apple. And as much as the cashiers over there try to push the store credit card on you, all of the benefits of this app are available without it.
   
   
8. Google Keep. This is where we keep all of our shopping and wish lists. We share the lists and check things off in real time, so we make sure to get what we need and avoid buying things we didn’t intend to buy.
   
   
9. Strauss. This one is last since it’s not lifechanging, but it’s more like a fun bonus. You use the app to take pictures of your grocery shopping receipts. You get points for any Strauss products you buy, and over time you can buy rewards with the points. We accumulate points incredibly slowly, since we buy the cheapest brands (which are usually store brand), but it doesn’t cost anything and we have gotten some prizes over the years. You can download it here.

Before we end this post, we want to remind you that some apps are designed to be addictive. They are time suckers and many are money suckers as well since it’s never been this easy to purchase something. For this reason, we have very very few apps that are connected to our credit cards. If you find that you overspend on apps, consider deleting the app or deleting your credit card from the app to make it harder for you to use.

What are your favorite finance-related apps?

Like what you see here? Subscribe so you never miss a post.