Financial planning involves the interplay of multiple, often complex variables. Think: current and future savings and expenses, projected investment returns, evolving tax rates, debts, windfalls, hopes, dreams, the Social Security trust funds’ solvency and more.
Here’s where financial planning software sashays into the room for its hold-my-beer moment: Unlike piecemeal apps designed for budgeting, portfolio management and tax planning, these tools take into account the interaction between all aspects of your financial life at once with functionality that far exceeds what you get from even the most souped-up retirement calculators.
Actions have consequences, and financial planning software helps you see exactly how different decisions impact your future.
Top tools for financial planning
The best financial planning software allows you to track, analyze, project and play out what-if scenarios to chart a course of action to achieve your goals. The providers on this list were chosen based on reputation, cost, comprehensiveness, customizations and quality of analysis.
Each works well as a standalone solution for financial planning or in conjunction with working with a financial advisor. In fact, some offer the option to get hands-on help — in the form of guidance from a certified financial planner (CFP) or portfolio management — for an additional fee.
- Boldin — Best for comprehensive financial planning and those who want the option to get occasional advice from a pro
- MaxiFi — Best for DIY tinkerers, near- and long-term tax planning and those in the decumulation phase
- Empower — Best for portfolio tracking and management
Boldin
Best for: Comprehensive financial planning with access to coaching and classes for support
Offering what it describes as a “panoramic approach” to financial planning, Boldin (formerly NewRetirement) incorporates all aspects of your financial life to build a detailed plan that identifies vulnerabilities and areas for optimization. The result: An easy-on-the-eyes, comprehensive and customized report and action plan akin to what you’d get from a traditional financial advisor.
Standout features
Boldin’s basic financial planning program is free, but a $120 annual fee unlocks the full firepower of the modeling software, factoring in 250-plus inputs (versus 100 with the free planner), including taxes, real estate holdings, health care costs and more. Once you’ve provided details and set some goals, you can adjust assumptions and tinker with what-if scenarios (e.g., “Stop working three years earlier than planned” or “Convert $150k to a Roth”). Boldin clearly spells out specific actions and strategies to improve future outcomes.
Support
For an additional fee, you can have a Boldin CFP perform a comprehensive retirement plan checkup (for $2,100), review your investments (for $1,200), discuss a specific financial question (for $475 an hour) or provide ongoing on-demand advice (for a retainer based on level of service).
The human touch is the real differentiator between Boldin and MaxiFi, its closest competitor. Boldin offers ongoing introductory and advanced classes (both live on Zoom and pre-recorded) on tax planning, asset allocation, Social Security strategies, maximizing benefits and more. The schedule also includes weekly interactive classes that cover different aspects of the software. You can also run ideas by the hive mind and Boldin pros on the company’s private Facebook group or its new subreddit.
Cost
Boldin has a few different service levels with different capabilities, features and pricing.
| Level | Features | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Boldin Basic | 100 inputs, limited functionality | Free |
| PlannerPlus | 250+ inputs, detailed charting and analysis, access to classes | $120 per year, after 14-day free trial |
| Boldin Advisors | All PlannerPlus features, plus one-on-one coaching and/or flat-free services from fiduciary advisors | $1,650 per year on average, according to Boldin |
MaxiFi
Best for: DIY tinkerers (you’re an Excel jockey) and those in or approaching retirement
Like Boldin, MaxiFi offers a comprehensive picture of the state of your finances and forecasts how your income, spending, saving and life insurance needs are projected to evolve during your lifetime. It’s especially helpful for those eyeing retirement and wondering when to claim Social Security benefits, what order to draw from retirement accounts (Roth versus traditional), figuring out how much is safe to spend each year, and the impact of moving to a different state, paying off a mortgage, funding a family’s education and more. Users can download a PDF of results or export the data into Excel.
Standout features
MaxiFi uses an “economics planning approach” in its calculations rather than standard financial industry rules of thumb. The difference? Instead of starting with an assumption about how much you’re going to spend in retirement (e.g., 80 percent of your pre-retirement income) or relying on the user’s best guesstimate, MaxiFi calculates an allowable annual spending level based on what your household’s income and assets can support.
The economics-based approach is put into action via MaxiFi’s dynamic “Living Standard Monte Carlo” risk analysis, included with the premium-tier subscription, which costs an additional $40 a year. Instead of tying the assumptions behind the calculations to a set spending target, MaxiFi bases them on an evolving living standard that reflects things like changing investment returns for a more accurate assessment of risk and reward. It then recommends adjustments in discretionary spending for each year based on how your investments performed.
Also notable: MaxiFi’s ability to account for evolving federal tax laws, specifically different scenarios based on whether certain provisions under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 expire or not.
Support
Like Boldin, MaxiFi offers added levels of service for an additional fee, but the hands-on help is focused primarily on making the most of the product’s features. For $250, you can schedule a one-hour video consultation with a MaxiFi expert to provide added insights into the reports you generate or get help modeling different planning scenarios (e.g., downsizing or delaying Social Security). For $1,000, you can set up a two-hour video consultation with a MaxiFi co-pilot (a CFP) to guide you through the construction, interpretation and optimization of your plan.
The company’s YouTube channel features more than 100 videos on everything from MaxiFi tutorials to building TIPS ladders to interviews with economists, authors, academics and money managers.
Cost
MaxiFi charges $109 per year for MaxiFi Standard and $149 per year for MaxiFi Premium, which includes Living Standard Monte Carlo, a Roth conversion optimizer and life insurance contingency planning.
Empower
Best for: Portfolio management focus
Empower (formerly Personal Capital) is known for its portfolio tracking and analysis tools. This free app and web-based program is ideal for those who want to wrangle a collection of accounts amassed over the years — IRAs and taxable accounts at different brokerages, old and current workplace retirement plans — and keep tabs on specific goals. Budgeting and cash flow tools are also included if you want to make Empower your all-things-money command central.
Standout features
Empower’s Retirement Planner (also free) brings the whole picture into focus and lets you simulate different scenarios to see how they might impact your retirement plan. This tool allows a much higher level of customization than most free retirement calculators. You can adjust tax rates, inflation rates, assumptions about Social Security and account for big-ticket events (like paying for college), fluctuating income, and see how a scary event (recession!) affects the outcomes.
On the investing front, Empower analyzes your asset allocation, diversification and exposure to risk, as do Boldin and MaxiFi. Running an “Investment Checkup” compares your portfolio’s allocation to Empower’s recommended target allocation, suggesting ways to adjust holdings to achieve a given risk-adjusted return based on your goals. Empower also highlights how much you’re paying annually in fees and illustrates the impact these costs have on your wealth over time.
Support
Like Boldin and MaxiFi, Empower offers hands-on help via its Personal Strategy service. But in Empower’s case, access to one-on-one financial planning advice requires ceding portfolio management to the company, and it’s only available to those with $100,000 or more in investible assets.
Personal Strategy is essentially a high-touch robo-advisor that creates an algorithm-based ETF portfolio based on your goals and risk tolerance. The high 0.89 percent management fee for assets under $1 million (0.49-0.79 percent for higher balances) reflects the availability of unlimited access to Empower’s advisory team for financial and retirement planning guidance.
Cost
Empower is free for use of its tracking and forecasting tools. It charges a 0.49-0.89 percent management fee for asset management based on your account balance.
How to choose financial planning software
Here are some considerations to keep in mind when comparing your options:
| Account connectivity | Check if the program connects with your accounts or whether manual data input is required. |
| Fees | Calculate your all-in cost, including setup, monthly or annual subscription dues and any additional fees to access premium features. |
| Security and privacy | Prioritize providers that operate with high security standards and are transparent about what they do with your data. |
| Range and depth of inputs | For the most complete picture and accurate results, look for tools that allow you to factor in all aspects of your household’s finances. |
| Customization needs | Can you adjust underlying assumptions, create and save multiple plans using different scenarios, etc.? |
| Update frequency | How often is data updated on the backend? Do assumptions incorporate ever-evolving tax laws? |
| Report delivery format | Assess whether the analysis is delivered in a format you can use (e.g., downloadable PDF or Excel files). |
| Availability of ancillary planning services | Consider additional services you might need (portfolio management, tax advice, access to a CFP) and whether they are included or available for an added fee. |
| Customer service | In addition to technical help, are there credentialed pros like CFPs available to provide guidance? |
| Trial period | A hands-on test drive offers the chance to see if the software meets your needs. Also review the company’s refund policy. |
Good to know before you dive in
Fair warning: Using financial planning software in the way that it’s intended takes a commitment. But the rewards of putting in the elbow grease can pay huge dividends for your peace of mind. Here are a few things to know before you commit to a software program:
- Setup is a thing: You’ll need to be ready to hunker down and input a lot of information (possibly including permission for the software to access your accounts) so the tool has the data it needs to work its magic. Just know that the upfront work is worth it, even if you eventually decide to also consult a human financial advisor who will need the same aggregated account information to offer tailored advice.
- The output is only as good as the inputs: Most tools come with pre-populated assumptions for things like inflation, salary growth and investment returns. You can coast along using the default settings, but the more accurate your inputs, the more accurate the results. Also, be mindful of skewing the calculations by, say, underestimating how much you actually spend or overestimating your investing prowess.
- Ongoing adjustments are encouraged: Once you plug in your data, the fun can begin. Take time to explore the full functionality of the tool you choose. Be sure to update inputs after any major financial events (new job, paying off debts or incurring new ones, moving to a different state, etc.). No matter where your financial plan comes from — software or a human advisor — it behooves you to revisit it at least once a year to update goals and see how changes in your investment returns and other factors affect your plan.
- Be aware of shortcomings: User reviews can help identify where financial planning software falls short for actual customers. Real life finances are complex, and as sophisticated as these planning tools are, they can have blind spots.
Bottom line
You can think of financial planning software as a GPS for managing your money. The best tools help identify potential road blocks, suggest course adjustments and provide detailed turn-by-turn instructions to get you safely to your destination. Every tool requires upfront data entry work. Beyond that, the best choice depends on your needs, focus or desire to tinker under the hood like a pro.
Editorial Disclaimer: All investors are advised to conduct their own independent research into investment strategies before making an investment decision. In addition, investors are advised that past investment product performance is no guarantee of future price appreciation.
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