Even when we intend to cut back, it seems like holiday shopping lists get longer and longer every year. It’s hard to keep track of who wants what, how much you’re spending, which stores you need to go to and what you still have left to buy. This year, make things easy on yourself by using an app on your smartphone that does all the hard work for you.

Check out 7 free Christmas shopping apps to help organize your gift giving.

1. Free Christmas List (Android only) : Organize gifts by person, track your budget and create a cost summary. The app has a Pro version that you can upgrade to, which gets rid of the ads and provides password protection options.

2. Target: This mobile app has a lot of useful features. Stay organized by creating lists, receive and redeem coupons and use the barcode scanner to check prices and availability of items. Read product reviews and make purchases directly from your device. Target’s app is available for both iPhone and Android.

3. RedLaser: This app is incredibly helpful. When you are out and about, use the RedLaser barcode scanner to scan any product. The app pulls up current deals at local stores or tells you if a better price is close by. It also compares prices between thousands of online and offline retailers, so you will know you are getting the best deal. You can buy directly from your device and either have it shipped to your home or local retail store for pickup. The app is available for both iPhone and Android.

4. BFAds.net (iPhone only): The biggest shopping day of the year — Black Friday — is almost here. With the BFAds.net Black Friday app, you can stay on top of the various hot sales from major retailers. The BFAds.net Black Friday app lets you plan your day-after-Thanksgiving shopping trip ahead of time, so you can be a saavy buyer!

5. Christmas Gift List for Android: Manage gift ideas as you receive them from friends and family by quickly entering them in the app. Set a budget for each person and mark the gift as purchased as you do your shopping! Send your lists via Evernote, Twitter and email, keep track of your spending and write reminder notes.

6. Wunderlist: While Wunderlist isn’t an app designed specifically for Hanukkah gift giving or shopping, it’s a great task tool that syncs across multiple devices. Create a list for 8 nights of gifts, and then enter gifts and recipients as tasks. Each task would consist of a name and a gift, and can be set with a due date, a reminder, and a priority level. Once you’ve made your purchase, click on the task to “check it off the list”. You can share lists via email, or give someone access to your list so you can collaborate. A cool feature is that you can update Wunderlist while offline and the data will be synced once you’re connected. Available for IOS, Windows, Android, Kindle and the Web.

7. Santa’s Bag for iPhone: Import Facebook and phone contacts and photos, add gifts and preferences and email customizable, checkable lists. You can keep track of your budget, purchase history and archive past year’s lists with the upgraded Pro version. This is a fun, user friendly app that even gives you a countdown to the big day, so you know how long you’ve been procrastinating!

 

Does your family exchange holiday gift lists?