In 2014 I was lucky enough to be named The Money Dashboard Face of Finance 2015 for my work on Empty Pocket Guide.
But who and what is Money Dashboard I hear you ask. Money Dashboard is firstly, and most importantly, completely free. It is a personal money management system. You do need to put your trust in the website by filling in your login details for your banks and credit cards but rest assured it is secure.
Money Dashboard will quickly draw all your information together and will show you exactly what you are spending your money on. It will analyse your information and break down your spending. Personally I know that having a breakdown of what you are spending all your hard-earned cash on is not an easy thing to come to terms with but the sooner you do, the sooner you can work on improving your finances. It's like a virtual spring clean.
Having your complete financial overview in one place is invaluable to see exactly where your money is going and how you can save. The site analysed my phone bill as being too high and suggested that I use Billmonitor, an Ofcom-approved company, to save money. It actually came up with a deal that would suit my current usage that would save me £414 over two years.
On your Dashboard you get a report on what you have spent within the past seven days split into different categories including groceries, transport and shopping. Your Dashboard also shows your upcoming transactions, easy-to-view pie charts, monthly comparisons of spending and charts showing your current account balance.
You may get a shock at how much money you spend on eating out, that £2.50 you spend on coffee every morning certainly adds up in the long run and seeing the total spend may encourage you to buy a thermal mug, some fresh beans and make your own!
I genuinely think Money Dashboard is a fantastic website that you need in your life to be on top of your finances and make the most of your money. Money Dashboard is simply encouraging people to be good with money. It's FREE, quick and easy. You have nothing to lose. I highly recommend you try using this website to improve and organise your finances in 2015.
Posted by Lisa Raynsford, Money Dashboard Face of Finance 2015
