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Providers is an app developed by Propel Inc. that allows users to take control of their household finances. It was formerly known as Fresh EBT, and EBT stands for Electronic Benefits Transfer Card. People who participate in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program receive government benefits through such an electronic card. In the past, people needed to call the government’s hotline to receive food stamps. But now with Fresh EBT, they can check to see if their food stamps are in place right from their phone. Not only that, but they can check recent transactions directly on their mobile phones, see which stores accept SNAP, and make corresponding shopping lists according to their needs.

Next, the app provides three major functions to create a brand new electronic welfare transfer system. Firstly, the app allows users to view EBT account balances and transaction history. Initially, EBT account users could only check their balance through the SNAP hotlines of each state or go to the EBT office of each state. Fresh EBT establishes contact with the EBT committee, and users submit information through the app. After registration, they can query EBT information in real time.

Secondly, the app provides store promotions. Users can check the promotional information provided by cooperative merchants online, and prompt them in the selected column on the homepage, thereby helping users save money. Finally, food stamps are accepted in only a few stores, and some of them don’t have clear signs in the U.S. Propel collects store information offline and uses mobile phone real-time positioning to clearly know the grocery stores, corner stores and farmers’ markets that can consume food stamps within a three-mile radius, thereby reducing the time spent searching for stores.

On the whole, the app makes everything so much easier. Now, check balances, upcoming deposits and track spending all right at your fingertips. And this app is absolutely necessary if you receive SNAP or Cash aid.

On iOS App Store, the rating of Providers is 4.8 out of 5.0, with 218,000 user reviews. On Google Play, its rating is 3.8 out of 5.0, with 322, 000 user reviews and more than 50,000,000 installs. Based on the above data, we can find that this app has relatively high scores and ranks high in App Store.

In the latest update, the application has mainly made efforts in two aspects of bug fixes and performance improvements, and some details have also been resolved.

From the functional design point of view, Providers has no special features, just a few simple and commonly used account functions, but it is such a very basic software that has benefited many low-income people who use EBT. At the same time, the app does a great job of tracking purchases and showing you where your card has been used. It’s convenient no matter where you go, especially the grocery store, and you can know your balance right away. It will even tell you the amount and date of your next deposit, not to mention all the coupons and extras this app offers. So, I definitely recommend this app to all of you.

Pros

1. The app is easy to sign up, balance is generally accurate.

2. It automatically refreshes when opened to show the current EBT balance, as well as the date, amount and store of the last transaction.

3. The app makes checking balance so much more convenient.

4. It is great for tracking purchases and shows you everywhere you’ve used your card.

Cons

Occasionally there was a crash that prevented connecting to the EBT card to find recent transactions.