Is Albert Legit & Worth It? Our Honest Review

Albert is an all-in-one money app that helps you bank, save, and invest more effectively. And it's packed with features that help you make and save more money.

But is Albert legit? And is the app worth paying for?

Our Albert review is covering how this app works, its pricing structure, and how to ultimately decide if it's the right app for you.

Key Takeaways:

• Albert is a finance app that helps users save, invest, and spend money wisely
• Plans start at $9.99 per month and get as high as $19.99 per month
• Most features require the $14.99 per month plan
• Albert has cash-back rewards but doesn't pay interest

Is Albert Legit?

Albert is legit and is one of the most popular budgeting and banking apps on the market. It also has a 4.5 star rating on Trustpilot with over 4,000 reviews, and is highly rated on both the Google and Apple app store.

Most positive Albert reviews like the app's early payday feature, overdraft fee protection, and saving features. In contrast, a lot of negative reviews you see relate to slow customer service and difficulties with syncing your bank account to the app.

Overall, this is one of the most popular all-in-one money apps alongside competitors like Current, Varo, and Chime. And it could be worth using if you just want one app for managing your finances instead of juggling between numerous apps.

What Is Albert & What Does it Offer?

Albert is a FinTech app that began in 2016 that offers budgeting and banking features to over 10 million users. And its app is available on both Android and iOS devices.

Albert itself isn't a bank. Rather, it works with Sutton Bank, Member FDIC, to provide its various banking-related services to its members. It also has partnerships with financial institutions like Sutton Bank, Coastal Community Bank, and Wells Fargo, N.A. to provide checking and savings account features.

To get started, users must download the Albert app to their phone and register an account. Then, they can sync the app with all their banking accounts. Albert helps users with countless financial topics, such as setting savings goals, investing strategies, budgeting needs, bill reduction, fraud protection, even getting trusted financial advice from professionals.

Just note that not every feature is free, and many features require paying for Albert Genius, which costs $14.99 per month. But more on Albert's cost and fees down below. Let's dive into the main features first.

Albert Cash

Albert Cash is a debit card and checking account that you can use to make purchases in stores, online, and with Apple Pay or Google Pay.

Since Albert is not a bank itself, it partners with Sutton Bank to issue users a Mastercard to provide up to $250,000 in FDIC insurance. This card can be used like any other debit card where Mastercard is accepted.

Albert Cash also offers cash-back rewards on different purchases. This includes up to 10% at major gas stations like Chevron and Shell, fast food restaurants like McDonalds and Burger King, Uber, and up to 20% cash back at Whole Foods and Publix grocery stores, among others.

This is a nice way to make passive income and basically get paid to shop. However, you must activate the reward before the purchase to get cash back. Additionally, you can only have one merchant activated at a time, so it takes a bit of remembering.

This checking account has a few other notable perks. You can get your paycheck up to 2 days early. And there's also a network of 55,000+ fee-free ATMs.

Albert Instant

Albert Instant is the company’s popular overdraft protection feature, and is only available as an opt-in service for those who have signed up for an Albert Genius account. Even if you do have a Genius account, however, you may not be approved for this service.

Albert Instant can provide anywhere from $25 to $250 in overdraft protection for qualifying purchases, though the company states that the average protection amount for users is around $95. If approved, you are protected from overdraft fees for “debit card purchase transactions, ACH transfers, ATM withdrawals, and other electronic transfers from your Albert Cash account to an external account.”

To use this feature, you must have a Genius account in good standing, have an Albert Cash account, have a valid bank account linked to your Albert account, and enable the Smart Money feature. If you overspend on your account, the service covers the overdraft amount. You have a six-day grace period to deposit enough money into your account to cover the balance.

This feature is similar to top cash advance apps like EarnIn and Cleo. Except it only works to prevent overdraft fees rather than letting you borrow money to pay rent, bills, or other expenses.

💵 The Best Ways To Borrow $500 Instantly.

Albert Saving

Albert Savings is a savings account that’s run through partner banks Wells Fargo, N.A. or Coastal Community Bank.

Within this account, you can set and manage your financial goals and analyze your spending habits. You can also use the app’s Smart Money feature, which automates saving and investing based on your goals and spending habits.

When Smart Money is enabled, Albert analyzes your earnings and spending each week and diverts available funds into your savings or investing accounts automatically. You can pause or adjust these allocations at any time through the app. The company claims that users can expect to save and invest anywhere from $5 to $100 a day just by using Smart Money.

For automated investing, we prefer passive income apps like Acorns. But it's nice that Albert offers these kinds of tools to encourage saving and investing.

Additionally, it's worth noting Albert doesn't pay interest on its savings account. This is a massive downside. And it's why we prefer digital banking solutions like Current which pay 4% APY and even have a nice $50 bonus for new members.

Albert Investing

Another feature available to Genius users is Albert’s brokerage services.

Here you can choose to allocate money to invest in exchange-traded funds (ETFs), stocks, or fractional share trading at a risk level you feel comfortable with—either conservative, moderate, or aggressive. You can set this up to automatically invest money by using the Smart Money feature, or you can make trades on your own.

For standalone investing, we prefer apps like Stash. You can also check out newer brokerages like Moomoo which are packed with more investing tools and a great sign up bonus. But again, Albert offers a little bit of everything for its all-in-one service.

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Budgeting Tools

At its most basic level, Albert is a convenient and easy-to-use budgeting tool that lets users track their spending, lower their bills, set up automatic saving tools, and get personalized financial advice. With Albert’s budgeting tools you can:

• Sync your Albert account to all of your existing banking accounts
• Track your cash flow and spending
• Monitor your net worth
• Set up automatic budgeting and savings goals through the Smart Money feature
• Customize your budgeting dashboard with personalized charts that reflect your spending and goals
• Edit transactions to better reflect your spending habits
• Reduce bills like cable, TV, internet, and cell service by letting Albert’s experts negotiate on your behalf for a lower rate
• Get expert advice from financial professionals on setting budgets, creating debt repayment plans, and finding new ways to save and invest.

If you just want a budgeting app, options like Rocket Money and YNAB are likely superior since this is what they specialize in. But if you want to get tailored financial advice, Albert could be worth it.

💵 Pro Tip: Get a tailored investment plan and ongoing financial guidance with Fruitful. No investment minimums or expensive management fees to worry about.

Albert Protect

There are several ways that Albert helps protect your money and personal information:

• Financial protection like 24/7 fraud monitoring and credit report monitoring
• Dark web monitoring and data breach alerts
• Identity theft notifications and up to $1 million in ID theft insurance

This is one of Albert's lesser-known features, but it's a nice cherry on top for some peace of mind.

⚡ Maximize your finances with these 15 Ways to Get Free Money for Signing Up

How Much Does Albert Cost? – Subscription & Genius Pricing

There are three subscriber levels within the app: the basic Albert subscription for $9.99 per month, Albert Genius subscription for $14.99 per month, and Genius+ for $19.99 per month. There's no free plan available at this time.

Here's how all of Albert's plans compare:

Feature	Albert Basic	Albert Genius	Albert Geniu+
Monthly Price	$9.99	$14.99	$19.99
Budgeting Tools	Yes	Yes	Yes
Albert Cash	Yes	Yes	Yes
Albert Savings	Yes	Yes	Yes
Albert Investing	No	Yes	Yes
Identity Theft Protection	No	Yes	Yes
Credit Monitoring	No	Yes	Yes
Cash-Back Rewards	No	Yes	Yes
Albert Instant	No	Yes	Yes
Early Payday	No	Yes	Yes
55,000+ Free ATMs	No	Yes	Yes
Live Financial Advice	No	No	Yes

As you can see, you really have to upgrade to Genius to get the best features, like cash-back rewards or overdraft protection. And if you want to speak to a financial advisor for advice, you need to upgrade to Genius+ as well.

This could be worth doing for a few months, but Albert fees are on the high side.

Who Can Sign Up For Albert?

Nearly anyone can sign up for an Albert account and download the app. There are only a few minimum requirements:

• Be at least 18 years old
• Be a U.S. citizen
• Have a smartphone
• Have a bank account at a U.S. financial institution that can be connected to your Albert account

Is The Albert App Safe?

Yes, the Albert app is safe to use. The company uses Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) to transmit all financial information, and your bank password is never stored within the app. 

Furthermore, all bank information is encrypted when connecting to your financial institution, and the app itself is protected through your phone’s password, fingerprint, or face ID. If you use the Albert Savings or Cash services, your money will be FDIC insured up to $250,000, and your Albert Investments are protected up to $500,000.

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Albert Pros & Cons

Pros:

• Albert is an all-in-one money app so it keeps things simple
• High app store ratings
• There's a 30-day free trial to test out Albert
• Genius members unlock a lot of perks
• You can speak with a Certified Financial Planner for advice

Cons:

• Albert doesn't offer free plans and is a bit expensive
• Most features require Genius or Genius+
• Customer service is reportedly slow
• Albert doesn't pay interest on savings

The Best Apps Like Albert

Since Albert is an all-in-one app, it shares similarities with a lot of other financial apps. And we think some of them might be better alternatives to consider, especially if you're only interested in a few of Albert's features.

Some of the best apps like Albert include:

• Current (best for banking)
• EarnIn (best for cash advances)
• Possible Finance (best for loans)
• Chime (best for low fees)
• Brigit (best for building credit)
• Rocket Money (best for budgeting)
• Dave (best for side hustlers)

Current really is our number one alternative since it pays interest on savings, whereas Albert doesn't. And Current also offers investing, cash-back rewards, and cash advances. Plus, you don't pay expensive monthly fees like you do with Albert.

Other Albert App Reviews From Customers

Albert has an average rating of 4.5 stars from nearly 4,000 reviewers on Trustpilot, with nearly 80% of reviewers giving the app a five-star rating. The Better Business Bureau (BBB) has given Albert a B rating, and shows an average of 3.64 stars from more than 1,000 customer reviews. 

Positive reviews mention how easy it is to use and save money. And some users seem to really enjoy Albert's investing options and cash-back rewards. Most of the negative reviewers aren’t happy with the high monthly fees and how hard it can be to close your account.

💵 The Best $200 Cash Advance Apps.

Is There Customer Service?

Albert offers customer service via text or email, but does not have a way to call and speak directly to a representative. However, according to the company, customers who text Albert at 639-37 can expect a reply within two minutes, or you can email the company at [email protected]. You can call the company at (844) 891-9309, but you will only be able to listen to a list of options and leave a voicemail.

Is Albert Worth It?

Albert could be worth it if you want an all-in-one solution to budget, save, spend, and invest your money. However, we don't think it holds up well against its competitors due to its expensive monthly fees. The lack of an interest-bearing savings account is also a downside.

Albert has a number of positive reviews from real customers who claim the app has helped them save money, invest, and take advantage of valuable perks, like overdraft protection and bill reduction. For those who use all the available features or have previously struggled with their finances and need a reliable support system, the monthly fee of $9.99 or $14.99 may be well worth the investment.

On the other hand, some people find it hard to justify the monthly fee, especially when there are other budgeting apps available for free or much cheaper. If you're interested in the Albert app, but aren't sure about committing to an all-inclusive service, take advantage of the free 30-day trial to see if it's the right fit for you.

Want even more useful money guides? Checkout:

• How To Borrow Money Without A Job.
• The Best $100 Cash Advance Apps.
• How To Get $1,000 By Tomorrow.