Things I’m not paid to endorse: Meet Cleo

Did anyone read Bangs latest blog post about how blogging has somehow become less about the writing and more about the hustle? Not her exact words, but the same train of thought. She’s right.

I started blogging at around the same time as BAAB and although my blog has gone through a few rebrands and taken a few different directions, one thing I’ve always tried to do is be truthful about the products I recommend. But I thought I’d start a new series where I share things I love because I think YOU will love them too and not just because there is some incentive.

So let me share with you my favourite thing this week (well not just this week…) Cleo!

Have you heard about it? It’s a virtual assistant for your money. It works via Facebook messenger and will give you a complete run down of your finances helping you keep on top of what money you have, what you don’t have and how much you’re spending. I particularly like the weekend spending feature which usually shames me into realising if I just saved a fraction of what I spent, I could be quids in.

Cleo links up to your bank accounts (and credit cards) and makes calculations about your finances, from creating a pie chart that shows where you’ve been spending your money (such as eating out, food shopping and transport) to sending messages about how much cash you should ration yourself to each day if you want to make it to pay day in tact.

One of my favourite features is being able to just send a quick facebook message to ask “whats my balance”, it saves the hassle of logging in to my banking app – especially as I’m a squirreler so have money tucked away in a few different accounts.

The only downside that I’ve noticed so far is that it does take a little while to update. So for instance, incomings and outgoings that I’ve made today, won’t show until tomorrow.

And for anyone whose worried about the safety aspect of using this app, they use bank-level encryption and security practices so you can be sure that your data (and cash) is secure. However, if you use Facebook on a public computer or you share your messenger account, maybe it’s something to consider.

But still, it’s a good tool and makes it easy to keep track of your cash. Plus, here’s the thing: as women we need to get over our fear of money. If we want to be happier and healthier then we have to make sure we have our shit together. Money blocks can cause an issue in all areas of your life.

So will you be trying cleo*? If you do, let me know how you get on!

*Note: The link shared above is unique to me. I’m not getting paid to share the service, it’s just the link that you get when you sign up. In case you think there’s any dodgy dealings going on.

Author: Rachael

I'm a journalist and creative consultant. I write about how busy women (just like you) can live, work and eat - better.

21 thoughts on “Things I’m not paid to endorse: Meet Cleo”

  1. This sounds really interesting, im such a big spender then i check in at the bank and get a fright lol, this sounds like something i need to keep me in line x

  2. Cleo sounds like an amazing app! I could definitely use something to help me manage my money!

  3. This app sounds like it is very handy to use, especially if you are trying to tighten up on your spending or stick to a certain budget. It would be very convenient to just send a FB message to check your balances and the weekend spending feature would be very helpful for not overspending on the weekend.

  4. This is a great idea, as a blogger I know a lot of things are affiliate or some sort of incentive. I’ll check it out

  5. Sounds interesting, but I don’t think it would work for me. I’m a freelancer and don’t have no pay day to start with, plus I’m not sure I’d like an app hosted on a server somewhere to know everything about my finance.
    Just me, being suspicious after being involved in programming and web development, I guess 😉

  6. Definitely nothing wrong with bloggers doing sponsored content if it fits with their brands. Blogging has evolved, it’s just one of those things.

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