Cleo

Cleo is a consumer-focused AI financial assistant delivered as a mobile app. It’s built for individuals who want help with day-to-day money management: tracking spending, sticking to budgets, and saving more without having to think about it constantly. The app positions itself as an alternative to traditional banks’ basic tools, layering AI coaching and automation on top of your existing accounts.

You get started by downloading the Cleo app from the App Store or Google Play and creating an account, which the company says takes about two minutes. Cleo connects to your bank via Plaid in read-only mode so it can analyze your income, bills, and everyday purchases. Within the app, you can set spending budgets, create savings goals with target dates, and opt into automated savings features and challenges. High-yield savings is provided via Thread Bank, with funds spread across program banks for FDIC insurance, while Cleo itself remains a financial technology company, not a bank.

Cleo leans into automation and behavior change more than many basic budgeting apps. According to their site, it runs continuously in the background to identify trends, predict what’s coming up, and suggest new ways for you to save. Automated “save hacks,” roundups, and savings challenges can move money into a high-yield savings account for you, as long as you’ve enabled them. The experience is framed as conversational: you can ask Cleo questions like how much you can safely spend or how to cut subscription costs, and it responds using insights from your transaction history.

On the flip side, this is not a full-service financial planning or investing platform. There’s no evidence of support for things like portfolio management, tax optimization, or business finances—it’s aimed squarely at personal budgeting and short- to medium-term savings. The website doesn’t specify which AI models power the assistant or provide detailed documentation on its decision logic, so you’re largely trusting Cleo’s recommendations and automation rules. It also requires linking your bank accounts via Plaid, which won’t suit users who are uncomfortable sharing transaction data with third-party apps, even though Cleo emphasizes 256-bit encryption, read-only access, and a policy of not selling personal data.

Pricing details and tiers are not clearly disclosed on the public pages provided, beyond an invitation to “try Cleo for free,” so it’s unclear how the free experience compares to any paid subscription. If you need business finance tools, advanced investing features, or a fully transparent AI model stack, this likely isn’t the right fit. But if you’re an individual looking for an app that actively nudges you, automates small savings, and keeps you on track for concrete goals like vacations or emergency funds, Cleo is designed for that use case.