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Oportun has launched Smart Bills for users of its Set & Save savings product, introducing a feature designed to help members set aside money for recurring household expenses.
Smart Bills uses artificial intelligence to identify regular bills and set aside what Oportun calls "safe-to-save" amounts ahead of payment deadlines. Members can set savings limits, pause savings and withdraw funds at any time.
The San Mateo-based financial services group said the tool is intended to cover routine costs such as rent, utilities, insurance and subscriptions. It can also identify recurring expenses that members may want to add.
Early users have already saved more than USD $14 million through Smart Bills, according to Oportun. Members using Smart Bills have also saved 48% more per month on average than those using Set & Save alone.
How it works
Users select a bill or expense and enter its due date, after which the app sets aside smaller amounts over time. Oportun said the money saved for a bill is sent to a connected bank account five business days before the due date, and the cycle then repeats automatically for the next payment.
The feature is designed to handle a range of payment schedules, not just monthly bills. Users can create repeating goals every two weeks, every month, every three or six months, or once a year, covering expenses from childcare and rent to car insurance and taxes.
Oportun said the most common recurring monthly bills added by initial users were car payments, rent and utilities. That offers an indication of the household costs members are prioritising as they try to smooth spending across the month.
Oportun is positioning the update as part of a broader effort to tie automated saving more closely to everyday budgeting. Set & Save already allows members to create multiple savings goals and automatically transfer money into a separate savings account based on income and spending patterns.
According to the company, Set & Save users have saved more than USD $12.8 billion in total since 2015. Oportun said average annual savings per member stand at USD $1,800.
Annie Ma, Head of Savings at Oportun, described the addition as a way to connect automated savings with predictable expenses.
"Set & Save makes it easier for people to build healthy financial habits in a way that works for their everyday lives," said Annie Ma, Head of Savings at Oportun. "With Smart Bills, we're helping members connect their savings to recurring priority expenses, so they can better budget, plan ahead, and feel more prepared for the moments when bills are due."
Broader push
The launch adds to Oportun's broader suite of consumer finance tools, including borrowing, savings and budgeting products. The company said it has provided more than USD $22.2 billion in credit since its inception and helped members save more than USD $2.5 billion in interest and fees.
For digital finance groups, products tied to bill management and automated savings have become an increasingly important way to encourage regular engagement. Recurring costs such as housing, transport, insurance and subscriptions can strain household cash flow, especially when payment dates do not align neatly with income schedules.
Smart Bills is designed to address that pressure by breaking larger payments into smaller savings steps over time. Oportun said the app is built to work in the background, aiming to reduce the need for large one-off transfers that can disrupt day-to-day finances.
The company has previously emphasised smaller, steady contributions rather than larger cash movements from current accounts. In that context, Smart Bills extends the logic of automated saving into bill preparation, giving members a separate planning tool for predictable expenses.
Set & Save was named Bankrate's top savings app for 2024 and 2025, according to Oportun. The company said the product supports an unlimited number of savings goals, with users able to adjust or pause them as their finances change.
Members can also withdraw funds whenever needed, a point Oportun stressed alongside the launch of Smart Bills. Users will receive updates on their progress as money is set aside toward each goal.
The early adoption figures suggest Oportun sees room to expand the service among members looking for more structure around recurring payments. The company said the first Smart Bills users have already directed more than USD $14 million into savings for those expenses.