Over four MILLION dollars – Isn’t that crazy?? From just linking up our accounts w/ Digit and literally doing nothing else?
Either we all suck with our money or we’re incredibly brilliant ;) And I’m going to go with the latter – hah.
[UPDATE: As of 10/15/17 the total saved from our community is now $7,472,406.78!]
It’s been a while since I’ve updated y’all on my savings with them, but after seeing this note from the founder I couldn’t help jump in and start writing. He had their tech guys track all the referrals attached to my name the past two years to see how much everyone’s saved in aggregate, and to say we were both surprised is an understatement. Not that we didn’t believe it, it’s a killer app!, but it’s just so wild to see how fast money can add up like that over the years. And even crazier to wonder about where it would have all gone had it *not* been saved??
Anyways, in my original review two years ago I stated “this is going to be big,” and I’m proud to say that for once I was right :) They’ve gone from 0 people saving $0.00 to GOBS of people saving over $350 million (!!!). That’s a lot of freakin’ savings.
Here’s a snapshot of my own accumulations so far:
This is after 24 months, and on top of everything else I’ve saved/invested over the years. So it’s not just for people who need help with saving money – it can be a great side pot too! One year I used it to help max out my Roth IRA :)
Here’s a look of the progression over time:
- Savings after month #1: $199.04
- Savings after month #3: $750.37
- Savings after month #7: $1,398.84
- Savings after month #12: $2,628.20
- Savings after month #15: $3,284.70
- Savings after month #18: $4,495.83
- Savings after month #21: $6,733.72
- Savings after month #24: $8,266.49
Perhaps what I like the most though is logging into my account and always seeing the $$$ go UP!! Unlike other accounts, haha… Even with the beloved Mints and Personal Capitals you never know what you’re going to see, and even then you still have to *take action* as they don’t do anything for you!
So What is This Digit Thing?
In a nutshell, it’s an app that analyzes your checking account, and then moves over small amounts of money every few days that it knows you won’t miss right into savings for you. Thereby helping you automatically save without having to lift a finger.
You can check them out here: Digit.co
Interactions with them are all through text messaging, and you’re able to check the balances of your savings anytime you want, as well as the balance of your *checking account* at all times (I actually have it set up for them to text me every morning so I always know what it is!), and a whole bunch of other things. Like speeding up the rate they save for you, or slowing it down, pausing it, getting recent bank transactions, and even one-time pushes when you want to save extra, say if you just saved $5.00 using a coupon somewhere and want to quickly FOR REAL save it ;)
You also have the option to withdraw your savings anytime you want via text ‘cuz IT’S ALL YOUR MONEY!, though hopefully you apply it to something *good* or else all that saving was for nothing.
Every now and then they surprise you with random gifs too:
(Note: You miss out on the gif goodness if you rock Republic Wireless like me, *tear*)
It’s all stored in an FDIC insured account, and the security and everything else involved with it are maxed for ultimate protection. Because obviously giving a robot access to your banking doesn’t come without concerns :)
So that’s it, really! I’ve been using them for two years straight now and have saved way more than I would have otherwise.
Jay, You Seem Biased? What’s The Deal?
Hell yeah I’m biased! And not just because I’m on their board of advisors now either (true story: I was asked to be on their board of advisors when they found out how obsessed I was with them :)).
I genuinely think what they’re doing is helping out so many people. Not everyone of course, they certainly have their list of haters (see below), but for those who *do* end up using them it’s like a world of a difference. And mainly because it takes the action right out of their hands because what most people *say* they’re going to do, and what they *actually* do are usually quite different. Digit was set up to help these people connect their wants with their doings.
Here’s a message I got from a “Lynn R” about her experience so far with ’em:
“I signed up for Digit several months ago and love it! I’m working in Japan and had trouble signing up with my Japanese cell phone number. They were quick to respond to my emails and helped me get set up. So far, I’ve saved over $1,200 without trying and didn’t even feel it! Even though I know I can withdraw money at any time, it’s easier for me to leave it in there since it’s separate from my normal checking and savings account with Navy Federal. For the first time in my life, I feel like I have the ability to build up an emergency fund. Oh, and I’m able to see my Digit balance in Mint just fine! I had no problem connecting the accounts.”
I get emails like this every single month. It’s awesome.
Okay I Get It, On With The Cons Please!
Okay, so the cons? There are a few of them, but actually a much smaller list than when I first reviewed them two years ago as they’ve been busy upgrading. Let’s start with that list first:
Old Con: Digit didn’t pay you any interest on your money. This was by far the biggest concern people had, though it was also pretty ironic that missing out on *pennies* were more important than actually SAVING HUNDREDS OF DOLLARS, haha… But hey, that’s the way our brains work :)
The fix: They started implementing “Savings Bonuses.” Every 3 months you will automatically receive a 0.20% bonus in your account based on your average balance over the last 3 months. It won’t make you rich of course, but at least now you don’t have to feel bad about “not getting any interest” any more!
The Con: They didn’t actually have any apps – it was all web and text based.
The Fix: They got apps! For both iPhone and Android now (*bows in thanks*)
The Con: They don’t work with every single bank in the U.S. or internationally – not even Canada.
The Fix: Oh wait… that’s still a problem (Come on guys!!! The world is waiting! ;))
Other Cons/Questions/Things to Consider:
Here’s a smattering of everything else I can think of before wrapping up…
You have to give out access to your checking account. No way around that if you want them to pull out money for you to save. They do have protections around it all, but if you’re uncomfortable with this – just like any other apps or services where this is required — then Digit is definitely not for you.
You have to be okay with them literally taking out your money for you and putting it elsewhere. It’s really weird in the beginning, not going to lie, and takes some getting used to. Once you learn that the robots don’t take off and never return though, you start feeling better about it all :)
***You have to have money to be saved!!!*** If there’s no money in your account, ain’t no one going to be able to help you out. No money = no savings.
It takes a business day to withdraw your savings. You text in “withdraw $100” and you have to wait a full biz day to see that $100 show back up in your checking account.
It’s TOO automated and might make you even lazier. But to which I always reply, what’s better: being lazy with no money or being lazy WITH money? :) But in all seriousness, yes – it’s always good to be *conscious* of where your money is at all time whether you’ve automated things or manually move things around yourself. Just like anything else you automate in your finances (bill pay, savings, investments) you need to have an eye on it all.
Digit is FREE to use.
Digit has a “no-overdraft guarantee” that will reimburse you if they ever bounce your account by accident. (Something they are VERY careful of, and constantly monitoring/tweaking their algorithms to make sure this is not a problem).
You can also do what I do and set a threshold for them to STOP pulling money from once it hits a certain amount – again, all via texting. I have mine at $1,000 which tells them to never go below that whenever my checking account hits $1,000 (I like always having a padding in there. And I know for others there’s sometimes a bare minimum you need to keep in your account so your bank doesn’t fine you (those bastards))
You don’t have to set up any accounts of your own – they automatically set up (and manage) your new account for you for all your savings. (This is how they make their money)
All savings are FDIC insured up to $250,000.
All personal info is anonymized, encrypted and securely stored using state of the art security measures.
Okay – Anything Else, Lay It on Me :)
In summary, Digit can save you a butt ton of money and is perfect for anyone really struggling to find a good way of doing so, as well as those others (like me) who are good at saving but want to amplify it even more. They are not for everyone – especially those who want to be 100% in control – and they don’t work with every bank or around the world (yet).
But I will tell you this. The savings part is only the beginning. Imagine once they move on to other things like bill pay or crushing debt or even investing for you? And the ability to have it all automated AND optimized??
I can’t go into it much more than that, but let’s just say I still stand firm with my original statement that they are “going to be big” :) And it’s a pretty cool thing to see when it means millions of people will be effected in a positive way like that.
If you want to try Digit out, you can do so here: Digit.co
Now where all my Digit users at? Let us know how much you’ve personally saved so far, and what you’ve been able to do with it! (Or tell us if you now hate it – it all helps future readers :))
*****
Yes, all links here are my refer-a-friend links which means I’ll get paid $5.00 for anyone who signs up to it through this blog.. Of which I will then owe you one beverage of your choice in the event we ever meet up in real-life :) But seriously – only sign up if you think it could help you! Never try something you’re uncomfortable with just because someone on the internet said it was a good idea.
Get blog posts automatically emailed to you!
I actually started using Digit a few months ago (and Acorns, I might add) based your suggestion, J! I absolutely love it -and the GIFs – I’m still hesitant to give up my iPhone. Interestingly, my bank was one of the ones they didn’t have in their files, so I submitted a request that they add it. They did! And they added it fast. Love it. Thanks again for suggesting these awesome little savings/investing tools. :)
Mrs. Mad Money Monster
Oh wow!! They’re always telling me they’re adding new banks, but didn’t realize they do it *that* fast haha… I’m so glad you’re enjoying all the apps! Isn’t it cool seeing them all working together in harmony? :)
You dont have to give up your iPhone to save $$. Just move to another service (Google MVNO and your current Carrier) and port your number and phone with you.
I started using Digit about 9 months ago and it has “saved” me almost $4,000 thus far. However, I say “saved” hesitantly because they just pulled money out of my checking account that I would have been moving over into my saving account anyways. For people that are truly conscious about how they spend their money and where it is going I didn’t think that it adds much value, it just turns into a separate saving account. But I can see this being a game changer for folks like my mother-in-law that live hand to mouth and don’t maintain a savings account because they have convinced themselves that they don’t have any wiggle room to save from.
Oh yeah – that’s the target audience right there.
Ok, J$, you’ve convinced me. I’ve seen you write about Digit a ton on the blog but haven’t taken the plunge yet, in part because of the fact that they didn’t pay interest – I just signed up. I put all my expenses on credit cards and then pay off the cards one or two times per month, so I’m hoping Digit isn’t too confused by that. Looking forward to seeing how it goes!
Cool! Let me know what you think after a while!
And yup – c/c stuff shoud be no problem as that’s what I currently do myself :)
4 mil in savings Is a huge accomplishment J Money – glad to hear your network has spread that far and people are using the service!
I haven’t tried Digit yet – mostly because I use auto transfers and run a pretty lean checking account. Sounds great for people having a hard time saving.
Being new to the blogging arena I hadn’t yet heard of Digit before, believe it or not. Thanks for introducing me it looks like its worth investigating and possibly trying it out. $4 mil as a community is quite impressive!
Thanks for the post!
i started using Digit last Spring and I love it! I have a “keep the change” savings account that rounds up my debit card purchases (that I use to pay my property taxes every year) and this is a “like” account for me that I’ve essentially been using for vacation spending; also used it for Christmas shopping as well. The daily texts are great, eliminating the need to log into to my banking app to check the balance. Sometimes I just use the text bot for fun if I’m bored! ;) Thus far though I’ve only been able to get one referral; my Facebook friends and family have not responded at all, sadly. I think some folks are still not confortable handing over account info.
Haha yeah – as much as Digit is popular here in the $$$ space, it’s still far from being a household name :) But that will change one day, I guarantee it.
In the meantime, we just keep rocking it ourselves and spreading the word to whoever will listen!
Congratulations to you and your network for reaching $4,000,000!
I haven’t tried Digit yet, but it seems like a cool app comparable to Acorns somewhat. Maybe I’ll try it someday!
Yup! There’s all in the same family :) And can even be used in combination, which makes it even cooler haha..
There’s also a new “debt” app that will round up and use your money towards paying off debt too which is great. It’s called “Qoins” and we reviewed them last month here on the site:
https://budgetsaresexy.com/2016/10/qoins-app-pays-off-debt/
I have to admit that I haven’t used Digit yet, mainly because I know where each dollar is going each month. With that said I will definitely be sharing this with some friends because they could definitely utilize this awesome tool.
Neato Toledo! I’ve wanted to use apps like Digit or Acorns, but Mr. Picky Pincher is a little skeeved out by them. Sigh. We’ll just stick to funneling our moolah into debt repayment and focus on investments once that’s taken care of.
Haha… Us men can’t be perfect ;)
Digit is pretty awesome. I didn’t know they have an app now. I will check it out. Text worked really well for me so I’m not sure if I’m going to change. Thanks for introducing Digit to me. It’s been great.
Oh nice, glad you’re liking it so far!
I love digit. I started about 5 months ago and have saved just under $3k. The daily text updates are great way to keep updated. No need to login to an app.
I could totally see where this can be worthwhile to many people. Since it is free, I wonder if there is a reasonable strategy where parents could use this tool to teach their kids about saving the money they get from birthdays, holidays, part time jobs, allowances, etc…
Yeah! Although on second thought, probably not good that they get savings automated before they learn to do it themselves :) It’s best *after* you learn or after you’ve tried and failed haha…
I do auto savings transfers and thought I had no room to save any more, but decided to try Digit…just to see. After 7 months, I have saved $1700 – painlessly. Apparently I actually could save more money. And I have plans for it too! GREAT savings tool, in my opinion!
Haha… beautiful.
I love Digit! It’s such a great service. And millions of dollars saved is so awesome!
$4.6 million in savings! Holy cow J$, your influence stretches far and wide. I will admit that I am leery of giving a company write access to my financial account (quite different from the read-only access that my tracking apps currently have). Their website has two sentences about security “Digit uses state-of-the-art security measures. Your personal information is anonymized, encrypted and securely stored.” As someone on their board of advisors maybe ask them to put a white paper or something out there? Or could they detail who double checks their security for them, or are they only testing it in-house?
I can surely pass it over to them :)
I believe their system is the same one that most other fintech apps have like the mints and personal capitals etc, but I’ve never really asked. Will pass over!
This sounds fantastic. The only hesitation I have is that I already have 4 different savings accounts and am not sure I want to add another. Also, though I’m sure automating would certainly end up putting away more money, I kind of do this on my own already. I check my account all the time and if my checking is at $453, I put $3 into savings (on top of my regular weekly contributions). Thanks for the great post though!
No shame in that! The point is to save $$$ at the end of the day, and it looks like you’re doing a great job of that :)
This may be a silly question and I saw it mentioned above but I just wanted to get some further clarification. I have wanted to try Digit for a while now but I thought I could not since I primarily use my credit card and pay it off few times a month. I know you mentioned that you do the same thing.. Could you please explain how it works? I am super excited now that I realize I can use it while still using my cc!
Not a silly question at all! And the answer is a fairly simple one: it just treats your c/c payments as a normal “expense” as it does anything else that goes out of your checking account. So whether it’s rent or utilities or chocolate or your credit card bill, it analyzes it all and if it knows you send $1,000 a month towards it, it won’t try and xfer out $1,000 :)
Does that make sense? You can always try it and then hit pause or even stop if you find it’s not for you. But no pressure either way :) If you like your current system then keep going!
Love this service. Had to switch banks and my new bank is not supported. I check on a regular basis but am always disappointed. Genuinely miss digit.
I’ve been so hesitant to use Digit, if only because I already track every penny in a spreadsheet and this would mess with that control. Basically, I decide ahead of time how much to devote to every category of spending & saving. Any additional saving would have to come from somewhere.
But those are some hard numbers to ignore. I wonder whether my hypothetical future self would do better with Digit or not…
Once I get over the part where Digit has checking access and removing money then transferring else where I’ll sign up. baby steps.
Those are some pretty impressive numbers J$. I think this is a great idea and will work well for some. For others, like me, who like to have more control and already have a good savings plan in place, then not so much. But it’s great for those just getting started. I think it will show newbies the power of putting aways a little bit at a time.
Holy cow, that’s an amazing aggregate! It’s cool that they took you on after fan-boying so hard. Hobbies can become lucrative.
I LOVE Digit! Turned a co-worker onto it and can’t stop singing it’s praises! Just did my first transfer from Digit to my checking account to max out a Roth IRA. Such an incredible tool and I hope everyone realizes how amazing it is!
NICE!!! That’s how I used my first chunk of Digit savings too – so beautiful.
OK, I love digit too. I’ve saved $2,832.00 since 11/3015 and love the automatic deposits without having to remember to do it. So easy!
Karen
Rock on – congrats!
Digit sounds cool, but its not for me, I keep a large chunk of my savings in my checking account at the credit union where it earns 3% interest.
I do know a few people that it makes sense for, so i have sent them the link.
Holy hell – nice find on that one!
It rocks. It does require auto deposit and 15 debit card transactions a month. but those are easy to get. Meet those two requirements and no fees are charged, you earn 3% interest on the first $15k in the account and if you get dinged for an ATM fee while traveling the fee is refunded. Tip of the day: remember to shop the credit unions when looking for a new financial institution.
Apparently so!
I feel like Digit would be really good for someone who wants to automate optimizing their account. It sounds like a good idea but I feel like I run too tight of a ship for digit to really shine in my account. I keep enough in there for bills + a minor buffer. Everything else goes to its designated home automatically.
No shame in that :)
So awesome! Imagine how many people you’ve influenced on saving money.
I always get so much energy from these kind a cool apps and tools, but as soon as I started reading I was also like: pls pls let it be used in EU… But no. I will just cry in a corner an wait… ;)
I know :( I don’t know why it’s so hard to have this type of stuff all over the world? Even if our companies here can’t figure it out, how come other startups in other countries aren’t coming up with things? Or maybe they are and they’re failing cuz not as big a need or something?
I do hope it turns around for everyone… this stuff is helping out so many people.
I’m looking forward to someday trying Digit. They don’t have my bank on there yet, but I’m patiently waiting and hoping. Heck, if Acorns can finally add my bank (I was shocked) then I’m positive Digit will get it done.
Yeah, that’s weird? I’m pretty sure all these fintech companies use the same types of routes/systems to bring on board new banks, but maybe they wait for X # of people to request it first before adding or something? Have you sent a note over to Digit to let them know/ask? I know sometimes they’ve gotten them on board within a week or two from requesting so never know :)
Digit is an awesome tool.
Takes some getting used to mentally, but starts to feel normal after a month or too.
Thanks for the Digit “talks”. I think I’m one that helped you get $5 recently. Lol
I’ll likely use this as a “fun money” type of account.
Question: I setup a goal for a certain amount for the year. Will digit distribute some money to the normal savings (default) AND the goals section? Or do I need to push money to the goals section?
Lastly, it appears you put a bit of info out there that Digit is possibly planning. I really like the sound of it. It would have been helpful in the past years to pay off debt with this app, and other items. Mostly debt free now… but I know it would be helpful to some others out there.
I lied… this is the last part:
LOYAL3 is a great app for buying stocks. Free. And the best part: you can buy portions of a stock. While I like RobinHood; I don’t like being forced to buy a whole stock at times. So I say all of that to say this: digit would become an absolute powerhouse if they can do like LOYAL3 (but allow purchases of ALL stocks). Especially in little bits and pieces like digit is doing now to save us money.
Agreed – that WOULD be cool!
I’ll pass this over to them too in case it sparks anything :)
RE: “Goals” – I’m just learning about them now, but yes – they Digit will auto save for those as well as regular savings. I started a goal for $100 for “beer money” and then forgot about it, and a week later it was topped off :) Kinda neat!
J$$$,
Well, I finally took the plunge, thanks to you. I’ve been waivering for almost 6 months and then, after very careful consideration and based on your history, said okay I’m in. Not a control freak, just a little timid about my erratic spending/saving habits.
I’ll give it 6 months and hopefully by then I’ll have gotten over my own crazy habits and will let digit do its thing.
I faithfully follow your site; don’t comment much but I’m out here, like I’m sure lots of other people are. I count on your wisdom, experience, and sense of humor to keep me moving towards my goals. Thanks for helping us all, whether we have big or small money!!!
Awwww, well thank you darlin’.
I do hope you really enjoy them! No shame in cutting the experiment out sooner than 6 months if you find out they’re not for you :) A lot of this stuff is just testing out different ideas and tools and strategies until you find the stuff that works the best for your situation/comfort levels. So good job taking action and giving things a try! and thanks for shooting me a note too! :)
J$
Does your opinion change now that Digit plans to charge $2.99 per month?
Nope!
If they’re helping you save hundreds/thousands of dollars extra in your life, then in my opinion whether it’s free or $2.99/mo it’s still more than worth it in the end.
Now if you’re a money nerd or were just using them for fun – like most of us $$ bloggers – then no, it’s probably not worth it as we’re all pretty good at doing it on our own.
Really just a matter of what section you fall in there, and how well you know yourself. But considering Digit is targeting all those people who suck with saving vs those who are good at it, their service is still going to help gobs of people every month :) So I’m still a fan!
My friends and I are pretty bummed about the $2.99. The “interest” earned is so minuscule that the charge feels like salt in the wound. I guess we fell in the Just Using it For Fun category, because we’re pretty much all out now.
Yeah, typically if you’re on $$$ blogs for fun you prob don’t have much trouble saving and doing it yourself ;)
I dropped it when they started charging. I use “Tip Yourself” now which has many of the same benefits, but requires you to make the move yourself. It works better for me.
Tip Yourself is a great app too – I agree :)