Thrift: Empowering Financial Wellness through Effective Money Management and Community Engagement

Money is something people from all walks of life need to manage daily. However, not everyone possesses equal financial management skills, and many may struggle to save money, especially if they are new to expense tracking. The aim of this study is to implement a money management system that assists individuals in becoming more vigilant about their spending habits. Literature reviews were conducted to identify feature aspects that is relevant to be included in the proposed system. Through a comparative analysis of existing systems in the market, the researcher identified several common features that could be incorporated into the proposed system. Additionally, a requirement study was conducted by gathering survey responses to determine the research’s alignment with actual user needs. The proposed system is being implemented using the Rapid Application Development (RAD) methodology. A total of 32 questionnaire responses were collected for in-depth analysis. Users consistently prioritize ease of navigation, as well as visual hierarchy and logical data grouping for comprehending dashboard application information. Additionally, users generally prefer a level of customizability in budget management. The study demonstrates that a well-designed money management system can effectively foster autonomous motivation for financial management. Therefore, attention to detail in the design of complex financial systems is recommended to facilitate users in deriving meaningful insights from displayed data. Based on the User Acceptance Testing (UAT) conducted with 3 individuals, positive feedback was received regarding the proposed system. This suggests that the system meets user needs.