Managing personal finances is no longer just about budgeting with a spreadsheet or checking your bank balance. Thanks to artificial intelligence (AI), a new generation of financial tools is helping everyday Americans make smarter, faster, and more informed decisions about their money. From automatic investing and goal tracking to personalized retirement advice, AI is changing how we plan for the future. If you want to take control of your financial health, AI-powered tools are worth exploring.
1. Wealthfront: Smart Investing with Little Effort
Wealthfront is a popular robo-advisor that uses AI to build and manage investment portfolios based on your financial goals and risk tolerance. Once you set your preferences, the platform automatically rebalances your portfolio and reinvests dividends to keep your investment strategy on track. It also uses tax-loss harvesting to help reduce your tax bill without requiring you to monitor the market yourself.
What makes Wealthfront stand out is its ability to offer a full-picture view of your finances. It includes a “Path” planning tool that lets you model big life decisions—like buying a house or retiring early—so you can see how your goals align with your current savings rate. The AI works in the background to offer suggestions for improving your financial path, making this an ideal tool for hands-off investors who still want personalized guidance.
2. YNAB: AI-Assisted Budgeting That Teaches You How to Save
You Need a Budget (YNAB) isn’t just another budgeting app—it’s a financial behavior trainer that uses real-time AI feedback to help you give every dollar a job. YNAB’s system is rooted in four simple rules, and its AI helps by analyzing spending habits and making personalized suggestions to improve cash flow and build savings over time.
While many budgeting tools only track what you’ve spent, YNAB focuses on what you plan to spend next. The AI helps adjust categories based on recurring bills, overspending trends, or shifting priorities. For example, if you consistently spend more on groceries than budgeted, YNAB may recommend adjustments to other categories or help you set more realistic goals. Over time, the system learns how to guide you through spending decisions with greater confidence and control.
3. Empower: Real-Time Wealth Tracking with AI Insights
Empower is a powerful financial dashboard that combines budgeting, retirement planning, and investment analysis—all enhanced with AI. Its standout feature is the “Retirement Planner,” which uses your current assets, income, and projected expenses to simulate future outcomes. The AI behind the tool analyzes whether you’re on track for retirement and suggests personalized actions, like increasing contributions or diversifying investments.
Another useful feature is the “Investment Checkup,” which evaluates your portfolio’s performance and allocation. The AI compares your investments against target benchmarks and flags potential risks or underperformance. This makes Empower especially helpful for users who already have savings and investments but want to fine-tune their strategy without hiring a financial advisor.
4. Cleo: A Chat-Based AI That Makes Money Management Fun
Cleo offers a more casual and engaging way to manage finances. This AI chatbot connects to your bank accounts and interacts with you through text—kind of like having a friendly (but honest) financial assistant in your pocket. You can ask Cleo things like “How much can I spend this week?” or “Where did my money go?” and get straightforward answers.
Beyond simple tracking, Cleo provides suggestions for saving money based on your habits and even sets up auto-savings rules. You can activate “roasting” mode if you want some sarcastic motivation to cut back on bad spending. While it’s less formal than other tools, the underlying AI analyzes patterns and delivers smart recommendations in a way that’s easy to understand—and sometimes entertaining.
5. Tiller: Spreadsheet Power, Supercharged by AI
For users who still love spreadsheets but want more automation, Tiller offers a compelling hybrid. It links your financial accounts directly to Google Sheets or Microsoft Excel and uses AI to categorize spending, detect trends, and generate custom reports. This lets you maintain complete control over how your data is presented, while removing the need for manual updates.
The AI also flags unusual activity and helps build dynamic budgets that change in real time. It’s ideal for detail-oriented users who enjoy digging into the numbers but want AI’s help in reducing busywork. Tiller gives you the structure of a spreadsheet, enhanced with the intelligence of modern automation.
Bringing It All Together: Smarter Planning Starts Now
The rise of AI in financial planning isn’t just about automating tasks—it’s about giving people access to smarter, personalized insights that were once available only through expensive financial advisors. Whether you’re focused on saving more, investing better, or preparing for retirement, there’s an AI-powered tool designed to support your goals and simplify your strategy.
By choosing the right tools—like Wealthfront for investing, YNAB for budgeting, Empower for retirement tracking, Cleo for everyday cash flow, or Tiller for advanced customization—you can put technology to work for your future. These platforms combine intelligence and convenience, helping you make confident choices with less stress. As AI continues to improve, so too will the way we plan, spend, and grow our money.