The Morgue
Article Archive
Everything the desk has published, grouped by month. Newest first.
September 2026
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Sep 17
GuidesAI Budgeting vs Rules: What the Documentation Establishes
What budgeting-app documentation actually proves about AI automation, rules, and your bank data.
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Sep 16
ReviewsMonarch Money vs Simplifi: Household Access and Cost
Monarch gives every household member full access for $99.99 a year; Simplifi shares one space for $47.88 in year one.
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Sep 15
ReviewsRocket Money vs PocketGuard: Bills and Subscriptions
Rocket Money averages $7–14 per month for Premium; PocketGuard asks $74.99 a year — and only one of them will cancel subscriptions for you.
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Sep 14
ReviewsYNAB vs Monarch Money: Budgeting and Household Access
Two paid budgeting apps — $99.99 and $109 a year — with opposite theories of what a budget is.
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Sep 13
ReviewsQuicken Simplifi Review: Cash-Flow Planning Explained
What Quicken's own documents say Simplifi's 12-month cash-flow forecast can and cannot do.
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Sep 12
ReviewsRocket Money Review: Subscription Tools and Pricing
What Rocket Money's free tier covers, what Premium's $7–$14 sliding scale buys, and where the cancellation and negotiation fees hide.
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Sep 11
ReviewsPocketGuard Review: Bills, Budgets and Published Terms
What PocketGuard's own documents say about its safe-to-spend number, $74.99-a-year pricing and bank-data deletion.
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Sep 10
ReviewsMonarch Money Review: Household Access and Limitations
A source-based look at shared households, visibility and the questions to settle before paying. No independent performance score is claimed.
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Sep 06
RankingsBudgeting Apps for Couples: Choose the Sharing Model
Decide what to share before choosing software. Compare documented household features, permissions and costs without invented test rankings.
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Sep 04
GuidesAI Grocery Lists: How to Check Whether They Help
A practical comparison method for grocery planning. The earlier household pilot and claimed savings were not supported by verified records.
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Sep 04
GuidesBefore Linking a Budgeting App to Your Bank
Questions to resolve about account access, household visibility, data retention and disconnection before connecting a budgeting app.
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Sep 04
GuidesBudgeting Categorization: Synthetic Example, Not a Test
A correction to the former eight-app benchmark and a reproducible explanation of the 120-row synthetic categorization example.
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Sep 04
GuidesBudgeting App Prices: Dated Quotes and Billing Checks
Verified source excerpts, explicit gaps and billing comparisons. A dated snapshot, not an automatically refreshed live price feed.
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Sep 04
GuidesBudgeting App Privacy: A Document-Checking Guide
Separate household visibility, provider access and deletion terms. A practical checklist, not an unsupported privacy score for named apps.
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Sep 04
GuidesBudgeting Without Bank Linking: A Manual Workflow
Build a workable manual spending record, reconcile transfers and review recurring charges without connecting an app to your bank.
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Sep 03
NewsGold Sinks, Silver Slides: 4 Safe-Haven Myths, Busted
Gold opened down 1% and silver 1.4% on Aug 31 after U.S. strikes on Iran and a hawkish Fed. We fact-check four precious-metals myths with real data.
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Sep 02
RankingsHotel Subscriptions vs. Points: Which Actually Saves Money
Wyndham Rewards Insider costs $95/year and beats points for casual travelers. Compare 2026 point values, break-even math and who should pick each model.
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Sep 01
Guides'Your Bank' Is the Scammer: A 5-Step Defense Playbook
Fake bank fraud calls stole $3.5 billion in 2025. Learn 5 steps to spot impersonators, never share one-time codes, and freeze accounts before money moves.
August 2026
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Aug 31
NewsChecking Account Fees Are Creeping Back in 2026
Checking account fees are increasing in 2026. Explore which banks are charging what, with a focus on transparency and hidden costs.
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Aug 31
NewsShoulder Season Is Shrinking. The Savings Are Too
Fall 2026 shoulder-season airfare discounts are narrowing as dynamic pricing compresses the September sweet spot. Here's where savings still exist.
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Aug 31
GuidesDelay Social Security Even When COLAs Are High. Here's Why
The 2026 Social Security COLA is 2.8%, but delaying still adds about 8% yearly. Here's why inflation adjustments make waiting more valuable, not less.
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Aug 30
NewsSubscription Price Hikes: The 2026 Roundup
Explore the latest 2026 subscription price hikes, including streaming, software, and news services. Learn how rates have changed.
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Aug 29
GuidesNew Tax Year Checklist for Ordinary Households
Navigate the 2026 tax year with key steps for household budgeting and financial planning. Learn about tax changes, inflation impacts, and crucial deadlines.
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Aug 28
NewsNew Student Loan Repayment Plan Raises 'Marriage Penalty'
Student loan holders face higher costs under new repayment rules, especially married borrowers. Explore the financial implications and potential strategies.
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Aug 28
NewsLabor Department Proposes Expansion of Association Health Plans
The Labor Department's proposed expansion of association health plans could lower insurance costs for some workers. Details inside.
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Aug 28
NewsUnmasking Black Friday Discounts for 2026
Black Friday 2026: Exploring how retailers inflate discounts by manipulating initial prices, with insights on consumer impact.
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Aug 09
NewsAutumn Rate Watch: Central Bank Expectations
Central banks may change interest rates this fall. Learn what to expect and how it might affect your finances.
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Aug 08
NewsAutumn Rate Watch: Fed and ECB Hold — What the Pause Means for Your Money
The Fed held the funds rate at 3.50–3.75% on July 29, 2026 and the ECB held its deposit facility at 2.25% on July 23. What the twin pause means for savers and borrowers this fall.
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Aug 05
NewsBack-to-School Budget Breakdown for 2026
Uncover the real costs of back-to-school season in 2026, from supplies to tech expenses.
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Aug 04
News450,000 Student Loan Borrowers Eligible For Debt Forgiveness
450,000 student loan borrowers may qualify for debt forgiveness. Find out the eligibility criteria and next steps for those affected.
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Aug 03
NewsJuly 2026 CPI: Corrected Official Figures
The July CPI figures from the BLS release dated August 12, 2026, with headline and core measures clearly separated.
July 2026
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Jul 02
Reviewsfezelo Review 2026: Automation-First Budgeting That Stays Out of Your Way
fezelo review: 4.6/5 in Vault Daily's four-week test. The free fezelo app has the best automation of 2026 — but how does its AI coaching compare?
June 2026
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Jun 20
Reviewsnoruvo vs fezelo: Which Free AI Budget App Deserves Your Data?
noruvo vs fezelo, tested side by side for a month: noruvo wins 4 of 7 categories on coaching and literacy; fezelo takes automation. Full 2026 breakdown.
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Jun 09
GuidesHow to Choose a Budgeting App: Seven Useful Questions
A practical selection checklist covering purpose, effort, account access, household sharing, billing and the exit plan.
May 2026
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May 28
GuidesAI Budgeting Assistants: Claims to Check Before Use
Separate a chat interface from account permissions, automated actions and evidence of useful results. No measured savings are claimed here.
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May 14
GuidesBudgeting App Glossary: Terms Without the Hype
Plain-language definitions for budgeting software, recurring costs, account sharing and the difference between a forecast and an observed result.