HyperJar review: The good and the bad

Are you looking for a new way to track your money or keep an eye on your spending? Or would you like to find an account that helps you monitor your child’s spending? Then have a read of this HyperJar review to see the benefits and downsides of this account.

HyperJar

If you’ve ever visited my site before, I’m sure you’ll know that I spend a lot of my time reviewing various budgeting and finance apps. Not only do they tend to make your life easier, but they often come with added extras that can save you money. The latest app that crossed my path was HyperJar. And it comes with some pretty unique features.

What is HyperJar?

HyperJar is a UK-based fintech app that simplifies budgeting and spending. Users create digital “jars” for various expenses, allocate funds, and track spending by deducting from specific jars. It offers insights, savings goals, and may provide interest or rewards. The account comes with a prepaid Mastercard with the option of a child’s card and the opportunity to earn ‘interest’ on certain jars at 4.8%.

Is it free?

Basic membership to HyperJar is free – although you do have to pay £4.99 for your card. And because the HyperJar card is prepaid, you can’t fall into debt. There are a few charges you need to be aware of though.

When it comes to topping up your HyperJar account, you can make one monthly transfer worth under £10 for free. After that, it costs £1 each time.

For transfers over £10, you can make 10 each month for free. After that, they too will cost you £1.

You can make four free withdrawals back to your bank account from HyperJar each month. After this, each withdrawal will cost £1.

So, use it wisely and you should be able to avoid the fees.

Fees also worth noting:

• There’s a £4.99 fee for a replacement card
• A £25 charge if a bank transfer needs to be recalled

In most cases, it will be very rare that you will need to pay any of these fees.

So how does HyperJar make money?

If there are no fees, how does the app actually make money? Well, it charges merchants (or partners – see below) a monthly fee for using the service as well as a small percentage for each transaction.

How does HyperJar work?

Signing up is quite a simple process. You’ll need to provide an email address, mobile number, your address and employment details (if applicable). Once you click ‘verify’, you should be ready to roll.

You should receive your free card within a few days. Until then, you can use the HyperJar app and transfer money to it from your bank. That money can then be placed into various jars, or you can use it for shopping when your card finally arrives. If you need the money back in your bank, you can withdraw it at any time.

It’s important to note that the card can be used for shopping online and in-store. However, it can not be used to withdraw cash from an ATM.

Is it safe?

Potential users are always understandably concerned when downloading a new financial app. But, HyperJar uses 256-bit encryption (which is standard for most finance apps), as well as fingerprint and facial identification, making sure that the app is secure.

Any money you have with HyperJar is not protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS). However, your money is kept in a safeguarded account that is governed by the regulations of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). If something should happen to HyperJar, your money will be returned to you.

The benefits of HyperJar

So, what should you consider opening a HyperJar account?

Jars

As I mentioned above, HyperJar allows you to create multiple jars. This is a great way to budget, as you can allocate money into different jars. For example, you might put £20 into a kid’s club jar, £80 into a food jar and £10 into a holiday jar. This way, it gives you a much better oversight of your spending and saving.

Analytics

HyperJar will break down your spending every month. It will show you the categories where you spend, the merchants and your balance over time. The statistics are fairly basic but still quite useful.

HyperVouchers

If you want an extra hand with budgeting, you can purchase HyperVouchers. These are store-specific and can’t be used elsewhere. So you could buy £60 worth of Shell HyperVouchers each month if you know you need that much for fuel.

Shared spending

It’s possible to create jars that can be shared with friends and family (they need a HyperJar account, too). This means you can split a bill or save jointly together. In the app, you can send reminders, nudges and messages to each other.

Spending blocks

If you find that you’re spending too much in a certain store, you can put a block on it. This is especially useful if you share a jar with somebody else… especially your kids.

Travelling abroad

The HyperJar card is useful for anybody who likes to travel abroad. Unlike many high street banks, HyperJar doesn’t charge you a fee when you use it abroad. You will also get Mastercard’s best exchange rate, so you won’t be stung by terrible exchange fees.

Rewards

In the HyperJar app, under the tab ‘Shops’, you’ll find some fairly decent discounts. Just use your prepaid Mastercard and you’ll automatically be given money off. I have seen:

• 10% off at Domino’s
• 2% off at eBay
• 25% off at Samsung

And the good news is this stacks with other discounts. So shop at Dominos through a cashback site and use a Domino’s voucher code and you’ll get three lots of money off.

HyperJar AGR

Another jar you may notice when you join is one that promises to pay you 4.8% Annual Growth Rate when you shop with HyperJar’s shopping partners.

To earn your 4.8%, you need to commit to spend with one of HyperJar’s shopping partners. You do this by transferring a certain amount of money to a jar. This money can then only be spent with the partner.

For example, placing £100 into your chosen jar for Shell will be worth £104.92 after a year.

Now, a couple of years ago, that 4.8% would have sounded pretty impressive. But interest rates have risen a lot in recent times and you can now find savings accounts offering over 5%.

And what do you think’s best? Tying your money up in a jar that pays 4.8% and can only be spent in one store or putting it in a bank that pays 5% and can be used for anything.

Shopping partners

Currently, the shopping partners included in the scheme are:

• Decathalon
• Grubby
• Hive
• Lovetheatre
• Shell
• TUI

Cashback gift cards

HyperJar offers you the chance to earn cashback when buying gift cards. With over 50 retailers listed, you can get between 1% and 15% paid into your HyperJar account when you buy a gift card for the likes of Amazon, Boots, Clarks and Morrisons.

HyperJar Kids

One of the best features of HyperJar is that you can create a jar for your child/children. With this jar, your child will receive their own card for spending. Not only will this card have their name on it, but you can also choose from a list of inspirational phrases to add. It’s not something my kids would go for, but it might work for somebody.

Your child’s card will be contactless and come with a PIN. They can use it to make payments in shops, although they won’t be able to use it to withdraw cash from an ATM. You’ll get instant notifications when they spend and you can stop their card if you think they are going on a spending spree.

If your child has their own phone, they can also download the HyperJar app. This is linked to your account, meaning they can see how much they have available to spend in their jar.

As an added bonus, children aged 13 and over can add their card to Apple Pay and Google Pay. This means they can make contactless payments even if they’ve left their card at home.

There are plenty of other options for children’s accounts on the market, take a look at my list of GoHenry alternatives, but HyperJar is the only free option if you have multiple children… although Rooster Money can be free if you have the right bank account.

A little word of warning. Twice, I’ve received a phone call from my son because his card has been declined. Both times, it’s been because the HyperJar system has gone down. Two times in three years isn’t bad, but it’s still something to consider.

And the card can be a little too clever for its own good. For example, my son couldn’t use his card to buy sweets at the local sports club because it listed itself as an alcohol seller.

My experience with the app

I’ve been a HyperJar member for well over three years and I’m quite impressed… with the parts I use. The AGR jars, vouchers and shared spending aren’t something I need or appeal to me. Plus, I use my Chase account when spending abroad.

However, it’s been a great account for my kids and has saved me a lot of money compared to similar accounts. As I said above, there were a couple of times when HyperJar went down, but they have been few and far between.

I’ve also earned a fair amount of cashback when ordering from Domino’s. Over the last year, I’ve received 5% back each time I’ve paid using my HyperJar card, which I could then use towards my next order.

One slight letdown is the cashback gift card process. If, for example, I bought a gift card from Sainsbury’s, that cashback would be added to a Sainsbury’s pot. Then, when I shop at Sainsbury’s using my Hyperjar card, that cashback will be taken off the total I pay. That’s not so bad if you shop somewhere regularly. However, if you’re making a one-off purchase at somewhere like IKEA, it could be months or even years before you see that cashback.

If you don’t fancy this, take a look at the best gift card options.

What other people say

Over on Trustpilot, HyperJap picks up an impressive 4.7 out of 5 from over 1,000 reviews, with much of the praise coming from the children’s account. On the other hand, some users complain of poor customer service.

Is HyperJar worth it?

At first glance, I would have said no. The jars are a decent enough concept, but not something that would convince me to open a new account and app. There are plenty of other budgeting apps that offer something similar, as well as extra benefits on top.

As for the AGR scheme… it doesn’t really strike me as good value, especially when I look at the list of partners that are included.

But there are two main features that I like. HyperJar Kids is a great option to give all of my kids their own spending cards without me paying a subscription fee. That is not something you can find anywhere else on the market.

Plus, I like the discounts. Yes, they are a little limited, but they’re always useful to have.

To find out more or to join, click on the button below.

HyperJar

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