Intuit, the company responsible for the popular budgeting app Mint, has made the decision to discontinue the service, despite having 3.6 million active users in 2021, as reported by Bloomberg. Mint is scheduled to be phased out on January 1, 2024, with users being transitioned to Intuit's alternative service, Credit Karma.
In a statement posted on Mint's product blog, the company announced, "Credit Karma is enthusiastic about welcoming all Mint users to continue their financial journey on Credit Karma. Here, they will have access to Credit Karma's wide range of features, products, tools, and services, including some of Mint's most beloved features." It was also mentioned that Mint's product team and certain features have already been integrated into Credit Karma.
Mint is renowned for its ability to assist users in managing their budgets, tracking expenses, and staying on top of subscriptions and monthly bills to avoid late fees. Intuit acquired Mint in 2009 for $170 million, with the intention of expanding the app's user base.
Intuit's strategy is to migrate Mint users to Credit Karma, a company it acquired in 2020. While the two services are not identical, Credit Karma functions more like a banking app, allowing users to view transactions, monitor their credit, and access multiple accounts. However, it lacks Mint's budget tracking features, which are a significant draw for many users. Intuit explicitly notes on a support page that "the new experience in Credit Karma does not offer the ability to set monthly and category budgets" but is designed to help users "develop an understanding" of their spending. Nevertheless, Mint's net worth feature has recently been incorporated into Credit Karma.
Mint users will have the option to transfer their accounts by logging into Credit Karma through the Mint app, after which they will lose access to their Mint profiles. Alternatively, users can choose to download or delete their Mint data if they prefer not to make the switch.
Some Mint users on Reddit have expressed dissatisfaction with this transition, with one individual noting that without the budgeting feature, "Mint is just a glorified checkbook register." In addition to this, Intuit recently faced a court order to pay $141 million for misleading millions of low-income Americans into paying for tax services that should have been provided for free.