That Bitter Taste In My Mouth Is Mint.com

Over the last few months I've gotten a taste of what happens when you get something for free and the company that manages that free service doesn't do a good job: no recourse.  I've entrusted my financial data to Mint.com for two years now, but for the last several months, it's become difficult, if not impossible, to get proper updates on transactions, particularly the ones from American Express.

Mint.com's forums are filled with hundreds of complaints on this topic, but there's been no fix.  And as people enjoying a free service, we have no recourse for complaint.  And while Quicken has recently purchased Mint and there may be hope for the future (common back end for integration to banks) in the meantime, free might just be too cheap for mission-critical.

That's not always true.  Google, Microsoft, and Yahoo all operate e-mail services that every bit as reliable as any corporate or paid system I have ever used, but they operate in a fiercely competitive market and have backing from very advanced technology.  The same cannot be said, it seems, for online financial planning.

The online variety leaves a bad aftertaste.  Photo by Steven DePolo