Home energy monitoring apps are programs that link to your utility account and lay out all your electricity and gas usage in one place. One example is Manitoba-based WattWise, which pulls three years of readings from your power and heating accounts and serves them up in tidy, colour-coded charts. "WattWise opened my eyes," says customer Deepa Ravel. "It showed me how much I was spending on standby appliances and late-night heating.

It helped me trim my bills, stick to a budget, and put a little aside each month." But consumer columnist Mireille Cardoso counsels caution. "Read your utility service agreement," she says. "Linking one of these apps means handing your account login to a third party, which puts you in breach of the very terms you signed.