Which is best for you?
Mint.com
Users: 1 million +
Social Networking: Forums are hard to find; it’s clear emphasis is not social support
Alerts: Yes
Mobile Access: Yes
Offers financial services/products: Yes
Savings goals: No
Geezeo.com
Users: 91,000 +
Social Networking: Groups organized by category. Includes a section called “confessions.”
Alerts: No
Mobile Access: Yes
Offers financial services/products: Yes
Savings goals: Yes
Wesabe.com
Users: 122,000 +
Social Networking: Groups organized alphabetically by title and topic; most active
Alerts: Yes
Mobile Access: Yes
Offers financial services/products: No
Savings goals: Yes
“For some of us, the best way to learn is to find like-minded people who are having problems like ours and to figure out solutions that way,” Wright says.Here’s how to get started.
Spend time on each site. Make note of the differences and your impressions. For example, Stephens likes the how-to information in the “Money 101” section on Geezeo, so she recommends it to her clients.
Lose the fear. These sites use more security precautions than the Secret Service. Ans because you don’t provide personal identifying information, it’s unlikely a hacker could drain your account.
Know your needs. If you like to learn from peers, Wesabe’s groups are the most active, but if your goal is to find the most cost-effective financial services options, try Mint instead.
This article originally appeared in the August 2009 issue of Black Enterprise magazine.