Truffler
A gamified finance app for people who don't know where to start with money. It teaches you how finances and taxes work, and turns your mistakes into lessons instead of making you feel bad.
Overview
Truffler is a personal finance app for beginners: people who don't know how to manage their money yet. It's both a tool and a teacher. It helps users manage their finances while teaching them how taxes work and everything else they need to know about money.
This was a client project. The client wanted Truffler to feel like a gamified finance app that teaches you through the mistakes you make along the way.
The problem
Most finance apps are scary. You open them, see how far behind you are, and never want to open them again. For beginners, that fear is exactly what stops them from learning to manage their money.
The solution: learning, not judging
Truffler takes the fear out of finance. Instead of only showing users their numbers, it guides them, explains what's happening, and treats mistakes as part of learning. Gamification makes managing money feel approachable, even fun, so users keep coming back.
My role
I was the only designer, covering the whole product:
- The Truffler mobile app
- The Truffler marketing website
Key features
Subscription tracker.
One of the features I'm most proud of. We took a different approach from how other apps handle subscription tracking. The details are under wraps until launch.
Gamified learning.
The app teaches users how finances and taxes work, and turns their mistakes into lessons rather than red numbers.
Challenges
The biggest challenge was finding the right UI and design direction. Finance apps tend to look either serious and intimidating or playful in a way that doesn't feel trustworthy. Finding the balance between gamified and fun, but still credible with money, took 2–3 months of exploration with the client. That time shaped everything that came after.
Status
The design work took about 5 months, covering both the app and the marketing site. The project is currently paused because the client had other things to take care of. We're still on good terms.
What I learned
Design direction is worth taking time on. The 2–3 months we spent exploring gave the whole product a clear identity, and everything after went faster because of it. Truffler also taught me how design can change how people feel about a topic: finance doesn't have to be scary, and the right tone can turn something people avoid into something they want to learn.
Let's build something
Tell me a little about your project and I'll get back to you.
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