Google launches app to help Android users avoid extra mobile data charges

Google's answer to your data usage woes, but it is only available for Android. Photo / Getty

If you are one of those people who frequently goes over their data cap, Google has released a free app which might help you better manage your mobile data and save money.

Android users can download Google's new Datally app to more easily keep track of usage and take control of where their data goes.

"With one switch, you can control which apps get data and which don't," the company says.

The app shows your data usage in real-time for each application inside a little bubble icon and gives you an easy way to cap the amount each app can use, news.com.au reports.

Being able to prioritise your data usage means you can make sure you have enough for the more important things and don't blow through it all by watching mindless videos on Facebook.

The app also constantly searches for local wi-fi connections to move on to.

Some of the features are already available on Android phones but Datally — which is the latest offering from Google's Next Billion Users division, aimed at consumers in developing nations — brings them all to one convenient place.

Do more with your data: introducing Datally, a new way to understand, control and save mobile data → https://t.co/njtvglcJBn pic.twitter.com/81e9mf62Nu

— Google (@Google) November 30, 2017

Google group product manager Josh Woodward said the company hopes "the visibility gives users more confidence" to use the apps they need without getting stung with extra charges.

While the app was created with the intention to help consumers in countries where technology infrastructure isn't as fast or affordable as countries like Australia, it would certainly benefit Aussie mobile users.

Recent data from comparison website finder.com.au found there has been a big jump in how much Australians were being slugged for going over their monthly mobile data allowance.

The company surveyed more than 2000 consumers and estimates that Australians coughed up about $259 million (NZ$286 million) in excess mobile data fees in the last year.

According to the website's data, that is $113 million (NZ$124 million) more than the previous year, or a 78 per cent increase.

Nearly one in five (19.6 per cent) adults regularly exceeded their data allowance, up from 13.4 per cent in 2016 and 5.6 per cent in 2015.