Copilot Money Full Walkthrough - Mint App Replacement

Mint App Shutdown and Co-Pilot App Introduction

The discussion begins with the announcement of the Mint app shutdown and the introduction of an alternative app called Co-Pilot.

Mint App Shutdown

• The Mint app, a popular budgeting app, will cease to exist after March 23rd, 2024.

• Intuit, the owner of both Mint and Credit Karma, is merging features from Mint into Credit Karma but excluding key budgeting functionalities.

• Users express confusion over the decision to shut down Mint without incorporating budgeting features into Credit Karma.

Reasons for Shutdown

• In 2021, Mint had 3.6 million active users; Intuit cites high operational costs as a reason for discontinuing both apps.

• Intuit's CEO mentions financial constraints as a primary factor in the decision to discontinue both apps.

Co-Pilot App Introduction

• Co-Pilot is highlighted as a paid alternative to Mint with robust features.

• The speaker expresses satisfaction with Co-Pilot's functionality compared to other apps.

Co-Pilot App Features Overview

A detailed exploration of the dashboard and transaction review features within the Co-Pilot app.

Dashboard Tab

• The dashboard provides an overview of monthly budgets and spending status, aiding users in tracking expenses effectively.

• Users can monitor their budget progress daily and receive insights on overspending or underspending.

Transaction Review Tab

• Transactions are categorized automatically by Co-Pilot but can be manually adjusted by users for accuracy.

• The "Year in Review" feature offers a comprehensive breakdown of financial activities over time for better analysis.

Transaction Management

• Users can customize transaction categories and details for accurate financial tracking.

Internal Transfers and Budgeting Overview

In this section, the speaker discusses internal transfers and provides an overview of budgeting within the platform.

Internal Transfers

• Internal transfers involve moving money between accounts without it being treated as a transaction.

• "Transferring money from one account to another account."

• It allows for investing funds without considering it as an expenditure.

• "Investing money without it being a transaction."

Budgeting Overview

• The platform offers insights into budget management by categorizing expenses.

• "Categorizing expenses for budget management."

• Users can monitor their spending across different categories to assess their financial status.

• "Tracking spending in various categories for financial assessment."

Detailed Budget Analysis

This part delves into a detailed analysis of budgets, including total spending, income tracking, and category breakdown.

Category Breakdown

• Categories tab displays total budget, current spending, and overall financial status.

• "Viewing total budget and current spending in categories."

• Connecting all accounts is crucial for accurate budget representation based on transactions.

• "Importance of connecting all accounts for accurate budget tracking."

Home Expenses Breakdown

• Detailed breakdown of home expenses showcases monthly allocations for rent and utilities.

• "Breakdown of home expenses including rent and utilities."

• Co-pilot app assists in creating personalized budgets based on transaction analysis.

• "Co-pilot app generates personalized budgets through transaction scanning."

Yearly Spending Analysis

This segment focuses on analyzing yearly expenditures, average monthly spending, and customizing categories.

Yearly Spending Insights

• The platform provides insights into yearly spending patterns across different categories.

• "Analyzing yearly spending trends in various categories."

• Users can customize categories to align with their specific financial goals or reimbursement needs.

Budgeting and Rebalancing

In this section, the speaker discusses budgeting options within the app, including creating budgets from scratch and adding emojis for personalization. Additionally, they touch on the flexibility of rebalancing budgets based on individual spending preferences.

Budget Creation and Personalization

• The app allows users to create budgets from scratch with personalized emojis for each category.

Rebalancing Options

• Users have the flexibility to rebalance their budgets as needed, either monthly or immediately based on their spending patterns.

Recurring Transactions Tracking

This part focuses on the recurring transactions tab in the app, highlighting its functionality in tracking and displaying recurring bills based on connected bank accounts.

Recurring Transactions Display

• The recurring tab showcases all recurring bills for the month derived from transaction data across linked bank accounts.

Transaction Details

• Users can view specific transactions such as Spotify subscription, rent payments, car installments, etc., along with scheduled payment dates.

Transaction Management

Here, the speaker delves into transaction management within the app, emphasizing features like filtering by account category and sorting options.

Transaction Overview

• The transactions tab displays all account transactions collectively from various banks for easy monitoring.

Customization Features

• Users can filter transactions by name (e.g., Target), amount, account category type, month review status, and sort them by date or amount.

Investment Monitoring

This segment explores investment tracking capabilities within the app, focusing on total balance display and benchmark comparison options.

Total Balance Display

• The Investments tab provides an overview of total balances across all connected investment accounts for a specified period.

Benchmark Comparison

• Users can compare their portfolio performance against benchmarks like Bitcoin or S&P 500 to gauge investment success over different time frames.

Detailed Overview of Financial Tracking Features

The speaker discusses the detailed financial tracking features available in an app, highlighting account information, investments breakdown, asset and debt comparison, net worth calculation, and account connection capabilities.

Account Information and Investments Breakdown

• Detailed account listings show invested assets and amounts.

• Timestamp: 904s

• Platforms like Robinhood and Coinbase offer insights into investments and allocations.

• Timestamp: 920s

• Breakdown of investments includes stocks, cryptocurrencies, ETFs (exchange-traded funds), and holdings details.

• Timestamp: 936s

Asset and Debt Comparison

• The accounts tab allows users to compare assets to debts for a comprehensive financial overview.

• Timestamp: 1003s

• Net worth calculation involves combining assets and debts over different time frames.

• Timestamp: 1028s

Account Connection Features

• Seamless account connection feature enables linking credit cards via Plaid for automated tracking.

• Timestamp: 1087s

• Integration with bank accounts facilitates monitoring money fluctuations and percentage changes over time.

Net Worth Tracking and App Features

In this section, the speaker discusses tracking net worth using gold chains and introduces features of a budgeting app.

Net Worth Tracking

• Net worth can be tracked by assigning value to assets like gold chains.

• "I have two, three gold chains they're worth like $1,000 each so that's $3,000."

• Selling assets like gold chains can reflect their estimated value in your net worth.

• "If I sold those gold chains they're probably valued for around that price."

Budgeting App Features

• The speaker plans to make update videos on the budgeting app.

• "I plan on making another update video and more budgeting app videos as time goes on."

• The income tab on the dashboard displays earnings comparison between the current period and the previous month.

• "Earned so far versus earned last month and you can see that net change."

Dashboard Customization and Alerts

This part covers customizing the dashboard layout and setting alerts within the budgeting app.

Dashboard Customization

• Users can rearrange elements on the dashboard by clicking on the cog icon.

• "You can rearrange things... completely up to you."

• Options include changing display modes (dark or light), altering logos, and setting alerts based on preferences.

• "You can set certain alerts... completely up to you."

Alert Settings

• Alerts such as bank fee notifications help users stay informed about financial activities.

• "You can set a bank fee alert... because they're always ridiculous."

• Other alerts cover credit utilization, income fluctuations, low balance warnings, and spending updates.

• "Low balance alert... completely however you want to curate your portfolio."

Advanced Features and Future Updates

This segment explores advanced features of rollovers in budgets, upcoming functionalities like cash flow tracking, and enhancements expected in future versions of the app.

Rollover Functionality

• Rollovers transfer unspent funds from one budget cycle to another for better financial planning.

• "Anything left over in a budget from last month would then roll over to the next budget."

Future Updates

• Anticipated features include cash flow monitoring monthly and goal tracking for financial objectives.

• "Cash flow option... track your financial goals."

Co-Pilot App Overview

In this section, the speaker provides an overview of the Co-Pilot app, discussing its functionality, sign-up process, platform availability, pricing, and future updates.

Sign-Up Process and Functionality

• The speaker recommends signing up for Co-Pilot on their website to experience how the app works. It is suggested to set up everything independently as it takes at most a day to sync everything.

Platform Availability

• Co-Pilot is currently only available on iPhone and Mac platforms. Android devices, Windows PCs, and iPads are not supported at present.

Future Updates and Pricing

• The founder mentioned plans to introduce support for Windows and Android platforms in 2024. The speaker emphasizes that signing up with their link offers the first two months free.

Pricing Options

• Co-Pilot is not a free platform; users can opt for either a monthly or annual membership. The annual membership is recommended due to cost-effectiveness.

Future Plans and Budgeting Apps Exploration

This section delves into the speaker's future plans regarding exploring more budgeting apps beyond Co-Pilot. They discuss the time-consuming process of understanding each app thoroughly before reviewing them.

Exploring Budgeting Platforms

• The speaker expresses intentions to try out various budgeting platforms in the future to find alternatives comparable to Mint or cheaper than Co-Pilot.

User Suggestions

• Audience participation is encouraged as viewers are invited to suggest budgeting apps they would like reviewed by dropping comments in the section below.