Money October 2026

7 apps that quietly save you money

Most saving is not a budget — it is paying a bit less for things you were going to buy anyway, and noticing what you already have. These seven each work one small leak: the cheaper petrol station down the road, a line for every purchase so the month adds up, the bakery’s unsold bread at the end of the day, books you do not need to buy, this week’s flyers, clothes turned back into cash, and the receipt that would have gone in the bin.

The apps that quietly save you money are GasBuddy, Spend Pal, Too Good To Go, Libby, Flipp, Vinted and Fetch. I built Spend Pal; the other 6 are other developers’ apps.

MiaAppLog— an iOS developer who reviews other people’s apps
Published October 2026 · apps and prices last checked 13 October 2026

Four stars is my score for how well an app answers this moment. An app I built gets four and a half — that is a rule, not a comparison. The App Store’s own average is on each card beside it.

1. 

   GasBuddy

   ★★★★★★★★★★4.0 · Free · Travel · App Store 4.7 (447,909)

   Gas prices at every station near you, reported by other drivers.

   Official site ↗More lists with GasBuddy

   
2. 

   Spend Pal Editor’s pick

   ★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · Free · Finance · App Store 5.0 (1)

   Type tacos 11.40 and it's filed. By month's end you know where it went.

   App Store ↗More lists with Spend Pal

   
3. 

   Too Good To Go

   ★★★★★★★★★★4.0 · Free · Food & Drink · App Store 4.9 (587,556)

   Pick up unsold food from nearby bakeries and shops at a lower price.

   Skip it if you might miss the pickup window or have an allergy — missed pickups are not refunded, bags are a surprise with no allergy filter, and stores are sometimes closed or sold out when you arrive.

   Official site ↗More lists with Too Good To Go

   
4. 

   Libby

   ★★★★★★★★★★4.0 · Free · Book · App Store 4.9 (4,559,348)

   Your library card in an app: borrow ebooks and audiobooks for free.

   Skip it if you listen offline in the car — downloaded audiobooks refusing to play without a connection is the recurring report, and the waiting list is your library's, not the app's.

   Official site ↗More lists with Libby

   
5. 

   Flipp

   ★★★★★★★★★★4.0 · Free · Shopping · App Store 4.8 (533,202)

   This week's ads from over 2,000 stores, so you know where it's cheaper.

   Skip it if you rely on the list staying as you left it: items appearing that nobody added is the complaint that repeats, and features have gone away over time.

   Official site ↗More lists with Flipp

   
6. 

   Vinted

   ★★★★★★★★★★4.0 · Free · Shopping · App Store 4.9 (407,427)

   Sell the clothes you don't wear. Selling is free; you keep 100%.

   Skip it if you need a person to answer when something goes wrong — reviewers describe automated moderation that removes listings or bans sellers, and support that rarely gets past stock replies.

   Official site ↗More lists with Vinted

   
7. 

   Fetch

   ★★★★★★★★★★4.0 · Free · Shopping · App Store 4.9 (7,732,756)

   Snap any receipt for points, then trade them for gift cards.

   Official site ↗More lists with Fetch

   

Spend Pal is one of mine — everything else on this list is someone else’s app. How that works.