A lot of personal finance applications only include one or two of these capabilities. The Albert app, however, aims to be your one-stop shop for all financial services and more. Albert App Review
There are a lot of apps that are comparable to Albert, such as Digit, Qapital, and Clarity Money. At first, the software was all about its ability to save money automatically. But today it has a lot of tools to help you get your finances in order. For example, it can give you advise from real people, help you negotiate payments, and even assist you get all the insurance policies you need.
If you need a little more help getting your finances in order, Albert could be a great app to download. Read our entire review below to find out more about what the app can do. Albert App Review
Who Is Albert?
College friends Yinon Ravid and Andrzej Baraniak founded The Albert Corporation in 2015. In 2016, it raised $2.5 million in seed funding shortly after the app launched earlier that summer. Since its launch, Albert has continued to expand its options including now offering micro-investing through its Albert Investments arm. Albert Investments, LLC is an SEC Registered Investment Advisor. Albert App Review
What Do They Offer?
Albert offers a robust suite of personal finance services and tools. These are some of the app’s core features.
Banking
Albert has steadily added new features to its app, and Albert Cash is its latest addition. Albert Cash users receive a World Debit MastercardⓇ and can do virtually anything that can be accomplished in a traditional bank account such as:
In addition, Albert Cash users can receive an instant cash advance of up to $100 with no fees or interest. Plus, they can save and invest their money automatically (more on those features later). Albert App Review
Cash Advances
As just mentioned, if you have a W-2 job where you receive a paycheck and you have an Albert Cash account, Albert will advance you up to $100 fee-free before your check arrives. However, even if you don’t want to bank with Albert, you can still receive a cash advance of up to $250 through Albert Instant. Albert App Review
Albert also offers loans up to $10,000.
If you can wait three business days to receive your advance, you won’t have to pay any delivery or repayment fees. However, if you choose instant delivery (arrives within 10 minutes), you’ll pay a $4.99 delivery fee that is taken out from your next paycheck along with the amount borrowed. Albert App Review
These no-fee or low-fee loans could be perfect for getting through the last few days before you get paid. That said, they could also reinforce bad financial habits. It’s ideal to keep around a $1,000 buffer in your checking account all the time (or the amount of your largest bill). That way if you forget about some major bill (annual insurance costs for example), you can handle it without running out of money. Albert App Review
Ask A Genius
Genius is Albert’s premium option. With this, you can send financial questions and receive financial advice. Individuals with questions about debt repayment, how to buy a car, where to save money, etc. can get advice from a human.
You can test out Genius risk-free for 30 days. After that, the service is $14.99 per month.
“Secret” And Automatic Savings
If you enable the “Smart Savings” option, Albert will use an algorithm to automatically save money for you when it recognizes that your income should outpace your expenses. It will transfer $25 to $100 per week out of your checking account to a savings account.
The total amount is usually spread across 2-5 transfers that each range from $5 to $30. You can transfer this money back to checking whenever you want. But the goal is to keep it growing. Albert App Review
Users can set up automatic transfers from checking accounts to savings accounts. And currently, Albert pays out annual cash bonuses to basic accounts of 0.10% and 0.25% for users who enable Genius.
Easy And Diversified Investing
Albert Investing offers commission-free buying and selling of stocks. It also offers managed portfolios for Genius subscribers. These investments are an after-tax brokerage account. That means they shouldn’t be your first choice for retirement savings. But they could be a great option for someone with 5-to-10-year savings goals. Albert App Review
Budgeting And Tracking
Like other budgeting and personal finance apps, Albert has a built-in budgeting feature, which was updated in 2024. Here’s a breakdown of the various components of the budgeting tool:
Accounts: Albert allows you to view all of your accounts in one area. You can also view your net worth. THis way, you can monitor any external accounts you’ve linked, along with your Albert account. Albert App Review
Spending: You can easily view your monthly cash flow, sort and filter by spending category, merchant, and date. This fine tuning of transaction categorization allows you to see where your money is going.
Budget: Albert not only delivers a 100% automatic budget, but it can analyze your spending and create a budget for you. Of course, you still have enough control to make any necessary modifications. Albert App Review
Bills and Subscriptions: Albert now has the capability to find your recurring expenses among your transactions, making them easier to monitor. Albert also includes a feature to help you lower your bills or cancel any unwanted subscriptions.
Transactions: In addition to advanced filtering options, you can also group your transactions to create a custom view. This can be helpful if you want to know how much money you’re spending at a specific merchant, such as Target or Amazon.
The Albert budgeting tool is included in its standard $9.99 monthly subscription.
Bill Trimming
Albert has also teamed up with BillShark to help users negotiate for lower rates on things like cable, internet, and insurance. According to Albert, BillShark helps its users to save an average of $250 per month. However, note that BillShark will take a 40% cut of the savings. Albert App Review
Insurance Planning
Albert Planning can help you find and purchase a few different types of insurance policies. Users can sign up for:
- Life insurance
- Car insurance
- Home insurance
- Renters insurance
Policies are provided Albert Insurance Services, LLC. It appears that this service works the same for everyone, regardless of whether they choose to upgrade to Genius.
What Is Albert Missing?
With so many features, Albert seems like it’s the personal finance assistant that can do it all. However, I noticed that Albert doesn’t currently offer many tools to help users address credit issues. It would be great for the app to direct those automated savings towards debt payoff goals rather than a savings account with a minimal yield. Albert App Review
Are There Any Fees?
The dramatic majority of Albert’s services are 100% free. However, Albert charges for its Genius platform (after its 30-day free trial). It lets you choose what you pay, but the minimum option is $4. The Genius platform gives you unlimited access to a human who can help answer questions tailored to your situation. Albert App Review
I’ve long believed that the human element of money and finance is critical. And I applaud Albert’s introduction of humans into the world of apps. I think the Genius service will give many people a gentle shove in the right direction towards financial wellness.
This isn’t a substitute for a comprehensive financial plan. But it’s a lot better than getting your advice from your neighbor’s best friend’s uncle. If you’re already paying for financial planning services, you won’t need to pay for Albert’s Genius feature. But other users who have specific financial questions may find that $4 per month is money well spent. Albert App Review
How Does Albert Compare?
Albert isn’t the only app that uses machine learning to automate saving and investing. But it’s one of the only ones that also offer support from human financial experts. Check out this quick comparison chart:
Is It Safe And Secure?
Yes, in addition to usernames and passwords, users can enable Face ID, Touch ID, or PIN code account logins. All deposits are FDIC-insured up to $250,000 through Sutton Bank. And investment accounts are SIPC-insured up $500,000 ($250,000 for cash). Albert App Review
How Do I Contact Albert?
If you’ve upgraded to a Genius membership, you can reach out to Albert’s team of experts at any time through the app. However, if you’re a basic user who simply needs technical assistance, there’s no phone number to call.
There is a very solid Help section that answers many FAQs. If your question remains unanswered, please send an email to support@albert.com.
Is It Worth It?
Albert has a ton of potential as a personal finance app. The convenient banking tools, free (or low cost) cash advances, secret savings, financial checkups from real humans are all helpful and motivating. I especially like it for people who are focusing on the first steps of financial management. Albert App Review
That said, Albert won’t be a great solution for everyone. The low yields on the savings accounts and the taxable investment accounts aren’t ideal for people trying to aggressively save or invest. Albert App Review
If you’re looking for a high-yield savings account, check out our list of the best options available today. And retirement savers should definitely read our recommendations for the best places to save for retirement. Finally, don’t forget to compare Albert with the other top money management apps of 2021. Albert App Review