A single mum has explained how she saved £18,000 in three years by taking back control of her finances through two clever apps.
Nasreen Brittain, who lives in Maidenhead and works for the NHS as a PA, uses Snoop and Plum to monitor her spending.
Both apps are free to download and work by analysing your bank accounts.
Snoop will show you how much you’re spending at certain retailers each month, so you have a much better idea of where your money is going.
The app will also remind you when certain subscriptions are due for renewal, so you can remember when to search for a cheaper deal.
Nasreen, who is in her 50s, said she was horrified after Snoop showed her she spent £2,500 on Amazon in just one year - prompting her to reign in her spending.
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She also cancelled phone contracts and reduced her Netflix bill with the help of Snoop.
“My bills have dropped by thousands of pounds a year,” said Nasreen, who says Snoop has saved her £6,000 in total since she downloaded it in 2020.
“Snoop breaks my spending down into categories, which can be really surprising.
“I cancelled phone contracts. I was paying £79 a month and switched to a £10 a month SIM only deal.
“I cancelled Sky which was £105 a month - that’s over £1,200 a year that I was spending.
“I spent £2,500 on Amazon in one year. I thought this was disgraceful - how on earth have I spent that much?
“The other thing I have done is reduce my Netflix subscription. Snoop informed me that Netflix was upping my deal to £15.99, so I reduced this package to £6.99.”
The other app Nasreen uses to manage her finances is Plum.
Plum will recommend how much you can afford to set aside every few days based on your current earnings and outgoings.
Since downloading Plum three years ago, Nasreen says she has saved up more than £12,000.
Of course, the amount of cash you can save through an app depends on how much you're currently spending and how much you're able to save.
Nasreen says the cash she has saved will come in handy as the cost of living crisis continues to hammer the finances of UK households.
Supermarket inflation rose by almost 10% last month, pushing up the prices of the average weekly food shop.
Energy bills are also rocketing at an unprecedented rate - with experts predicting another steep rise in October when the Ofgem price cap could hit £3,600 in the winter.
This is up from the current price cap level of £1,971.
“I’ve gone from paying £70 to £207 for my gas and electricity. It is going up again to £325,” said Nasreen.
“I bought a brand new Fiat 500 in March and to fill it up then, was £35 - it now costs £80.”
Nasreen says she has had to make some lifestyle changes to help bring costs down.
“I take four minute showers. I saw that tip on Snoop, about how to reduce your costs,” she said.
“I’m getting ready quicker but it also means water and electricity is much less.
“In terms of car travel, I have thought more carefully about journeys. I’ve turned down going somewhere because of the petrol costs.
“I’ve always cooked but we don’t get takeaways anymore. I’ve knocked all that on the head. I went through my bank statements and I was spending £100 a month on takeaways.
“If I make a curry, I make a bigger portion so we can freeze it. It might take longer but you’re using less energy compared to cooking it all from scratch.
“I look out for yellow stickers as well and I buy more tinned stuff.”
The Mirror previously spoke to another mum who said ditching Amazon with the help of Snoop helped her clear £17,000 debt.
