An App Built on a Foundation of Trust and Dedicated to Putting You in Control of Your Financial Future

In a Nutshell: H&R Block is one of the most trusted names in the tax industry. Decades of experience have led it to recognize that the future for many Americans hinges on their ability to build better money skills and higher credit scores. Spruce is H&R Block’s spending and savings app designed to help achieve those goals. H&R Block encourages hundreds of thousands to achieve greater financial heights through Spruce’s high-yield savings and results-focused budgeting, tracking, and goal-setting tools.

The notable tax preparation service H&R Block has seen a lot since its founding in 1955. Back then, only the most prescient could see the entirely manual, paper-based tax system moving online.

But H&R Block was there to assist every step of the way. Unfortunately, what it learned as more consumers took advantage of the efficiencies of digital transformation wasn’t always positive.

For example, the tax preparation company helped pioneer the delivery of prepaid debit cards loaded with tax-refund money in the early 2000s partly to serve customers without traditional bank accounts. Its prepaid debit card product — the Emerald Card — is still very successful and widely used at tax time.

But H&R Block has increasingly seen problems among its customer base that prepaid debit cards can’t solve. Total credit card debt among Americans, for example, has steadily risen since the COVID-19 pandemic to reach a new height of $1.14 trillion.

Articles across the web trumpet that millions lack the cash to fix a flat tire or deal with some other emergency. FICO, the company behind FICO credit scores, reported in the spring of 2024 that the average score had begun to decrease after more than a decade of steady improvement.

In short, although digital transformation has made financial services more inclusive overall, significant numbers of consumers remain disadvantaged. Spruce is H&R Block’s response: a comprehensive saving and spending app with high-yield savings, no monthly fees, and budget tracking. In Spruce, consumers gain a partner with deep market awareness to help them negotiate modern financial challenges.

VP of Financial Services John Thompson said that consumers who can solve their spending, saving, borrowing, and planning challenges position themselves to transcend today’s dismal stats and earn real and lasting financial benefits. Spruce embodies H&R Block’s philosophy that financial products should be accessible, straightforward, and beneficial for all.

“It’s a strong asset for our team to connect to the tax professionals and offices of H&R Block,” Thompson said. “If you’ve got a customer-centric lens like we have, you can make some transformations that are pretty powerful.”

That association with the parent company distinguishes Spruce from many fintech rivals with less tradition and accomplishment behind them. Thompson said H&R Block’s success over generations of transformation leads customers to believe they can count on Spruce to stick around.

“Customers tell us they may not be as comfortable depositing their funds with a newer fintech as they are with a company with decades of service behind it,” Thompson said. “They love that almost every feature we’ve built has a dimension of savings around it.”

In fact, the value of savings in generating household asset growth is the core belief behind Spruce. Turning belief into action is Spruce’s high-yield savings account, which pays a 3.5% APY at presstime with no transfer limits between savings and spending, no monthly fees, and no minimum balance required.

“The customer earns interest from the first dollar they save,” Thompson said. “And then all of the other behaviors we encourage actually contribute to savings.”

For example, cash from the roundup feature in Spruce’s spending account goes directly into savings, no questions asked. The same is valid for cash back from spending with select retailers that partner with Spruce.

Other tools include budget tracking features that ensure users can monitor and control what they have coming in and going out. Thompson said Spruce’s expense tracking, categorization, and target-setting features help users stay engaged and committed.

Thompson said even more flexible and granular budgeting tools powered by artificial intelligence and machine learning are in Spruce’s near-term future as the team strives to expand the app’s capabilities.

AI may have a big future in financial services, but Thompson said Spruce’s direct and uncomplicated approach has hit a nerve with customers. Many develop more positive financial behaviors under the app’s influence.

It just goes to show that people want to do the right thing financially. Consistent encouragement through Spruce can help people manage their money better.

“When customers try our budget features, not only are they telling us they’re getting better at managing their money, they also use Spruce immensely more,” Thompson said.

Thompson worked for the nonprofit Financial Health Network before transitioning to his role at H&R Block. That’s where he learned that just having the basics of a plan in place and someone to watch over you can make the difference between taking one step forward or two steps back.

“Having a plan is actually more predictive of financial health than how much money you make,” Thompson said. “Although we have much bigger visions for what our budgeting tools can be with the advent of new technology, providing visibility to someone who maybe doesn’t naturally bring that to the table is a big first step.”

The connection to H&R Block means many Spruce customers use the app’s high-yield savings account to park their tax refund. Others learn about the app through interactions with H&R Block tax professionals and partners.

Others find it organically and stick with it because it does what it says. Given the near crisis we’re experiencing regarding credit scores, helping users up those numbers is a prominent feature.

“Customers want and need our help — we can see it manifested in their credit scores,” Thompson said. “With 850 being the highest possible FICO score, we definitely see the full spectrum in our customer base, all the way down to the 500s and even the 400s.”

In keeping with its H&R Block-inspired philosophy, Spruce’s first remedy is visibility. Through a partnership with Experian, one of the three major U.S. credit bureaus responsible for calculating FICO scores, Spruce brings the user’s score front and center in the app.

Users report a refreshing change from other apps and sites ostensibly offering free credit score visibility: no intrusive marketing or upselling. Instead, Spruce provides a deep dive into the factors making your score what it is and points to products and solutions to help.

“We’ve developed all sorts of interesting ways to present information in easy-to-understand terms,” Thompson said. “The more we can allow customers to ask us questions in everyday language, the better.”

Other Spruce benefits include an early payday feature that puts cash from your paycheck in your Spruce spending account up to two days early. That comes in handy when a couple of days is the difference between paying the rent on time or getting charged a late fee.

Thompson remembers from his days in the nonprofit sector the pain people who couldn’t pay their bills experienced. Spruce’s early payday feature helps alleviate that for many consumers and is a significant driver of engagement with the app.

Spruce’s connection to tax preparation means it can extend early payday benefits into an “early tax return” benefit. In other words, Spruce can put your tax refund in your account up to five days early. Many who rely on their tax refunds for a significant income boost going into summer appreciate the extra help.

“We can make it happen, so we do,” Thompson said. “And it’s worth it.”

Meanwhile, the Spruce team understands that the logistics of modern bill paying — the complexities of websites, apps, usernames, passwords, and account details — is also ripe for reform.

In partnership with the payroll connectivity provider Atomic, it launched its PayLink Switch feature to make changing payment card information possible within the Spruce app.

“You can switch the cards you’ve got in your Amazon account, your Netflix subscription, your utility company, and all your other vendors directly over to Spruce,” Thompson said. “You’re not having to go to every single website to figure out exactly how they do it.”

We think that’s a game changer for anyone dedicated to online life who needs Spruce’s extra boost of financial discipline and commitment. With the advent of the AI age in mind, the Spruce team continues to look for ways to add value on behalf of its dedicated customer base.

“Getting better at paying your bills on time and in full boosts your credit score,” Thompson said. “It also boosts your confidence that you can accomplish more in the future.”