Comparison

YNAB vs Budget app

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

YNAB

This app helps users gain control of their finances by creating flexible spending plans, tracking expenses, and managing debt. It aims to reduce financial stress and empower users to reach their goals. Features include account linking, manual transaction entry, and collaborative planning for multiple users.

Highlights
  • Create and share unlimited spending plans
  • Automatically import transactions
  • Manually add transactions
  • Loan Planner for debt paydown
  • Visualize progress towards goals
  • Real-time updates for shared plans
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

Have you ever worried about money? You are not alone. Download YNAB, get good at money, and never worry about money again. “We started YNAB January 1st with $37 saved and ended the year with $42,000. Plus we paid $14,000 cash for a new roof.” -Kyle, YNAB user since 2020 Start your free 30-day trial and stop feeling like you’re bad at money. “YNAB has removed the stress of money from my life and in doing so has helped make me a better husband. It's like I got to remove a personal flaw I had never been able to fix." -Kyle, again. We didn’t even pay him to say this, but maybe we should. Why YNAB? -92% of YNAB users report feeling less stressed about money since starting. -The average user saves $600 in the first month, and $6,000 in the first year. “A year of YNAB costs less than a massage and is a heck of a lot better for reducing stress.” -Kat, YNAB user since 2016 Benefits and Features STOP ARGUING ABOUT MONEY …and start planning your life, together -Create and share unlimited plans with up to six people with one subscription -Real time updates between devices make it easy to keep everyone informed -Cheaper than couples counseling STOP DROWNING IN DEBT …and start seeing progress with your paydown -Make a plan to pay down debt by calculating time and interest saved with the Loan Planner -Avoid new credit card debt with YNAB’s clever built-in spending categorization feature STOP FEELING DISORGANIZED …and start feeling totally in control -Securely link financial accounts to automatically import transactions -Easily add transactions manually, if you prefer -Ask Siri to update your plan or provide expense category balances on the go START REACHING MORE GOALS …and stop thinking your future is limited -Keep your priorities and goals in focus -Visualize progress as you go -Watch your net worth climb START SPENDING CONFIDENTLY …and stop feeling guilt, doubt, and regret -Calculate your “Cost to Be Me” -Make a flexible, proactive spending plan -Always know how much you have to spend START FEELING SUPPORTED …and stop feeling like you’re alone in this -Talk to our “freakishly nice” award-winning support team (don’t tell them we called them freakish) -Become part of our community of genuine, amazingly supportive people who get it -Attend one of our live events to learn, share, play, and grow with like-minded getting-good-at-money people The first step of never worrying about money again is starting a free 30-day trial. Are you ready to get good at money? (You seem ready! And we already really like you, so please join us.) Free for 30 Days, then Monthly/Annual Subscriptions Available Subscription Details -YNAB is a one-year auto-renewable subscription, billed monthly or annually. -Payment will be charged to your Apple Account at confirmation of purchase. -Subscription automatically renews unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24-hours before the end of the current period. -Account will be charged for renewal within 24-hours prior to the end of the current period. -Subscriptions may be managed by the user and auto-renewal may be turned off by going to the user's Account Settings after purchase. -Any unused portion of a free trial period, if offered, will be forfeited when the user purchases a subscription to that publication, where applicable. YNAB is an agent of Plaid Financial Ltd., an authorised payment institution regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority under the Payment Services Regulations 2017 (Firm Reference Number: 804718). Plaid provides you with regulated account information services through YNAB as its agent. Terms of Use: https://www.ynab.com/terms/?isolated Privacy Policy: https://www.ynab.com/privacy-policy/?isolated U.S. State Privacy Notice: https://www.ynab.com/privacy-policy/state-privacy-notice?isolated

About

Budget app

This personal finance app helps you track spending, plan budgets, and save money to achieve financial freedom. It offers features like AI-powered tracking, shared budgeting, and detailed stats to understand your financial habits.

Highlights
  • Budget Planner
  • Spending Tracker
  • Money Management
  • Recurring Transactions
  • Shared Budgeting
  • AI Tracking
  • Stats & Charts
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

Budget App is a personal finance app for spending tracking, budget planning and money saving. It will help you reduce expenses, increase savings, and achieve greater financial freedom. Budget App, the only personal finance app you need: your BUDGET PLANNER, SPENDING TRACKER, and FINANCE TRACKER. It is free to use, no ads, no privacy peeping. 「MAIN FEATURES」 • Budget Planner – Set budget for categories & sub-categories on a weekly, monthly, or custom basis • Money Manage – Manage credit, debit, mutual funds, and stock accounts in one place • Recurring Transactions – Set recurring transactions on a daily, weekly, monthly, or custom basis • Subscription Manager – Track and manage your subscriptions, find hidden • Shared Budgeting – Collaborate with others to track and manage together • AI Tracking – Smarter tracking with: AI Importing, AI Voice Input & AI Receipt Scan • Widget App – Record transactions, view stats & charts — right from your widget • Shortcut Integration - Using shortcut to record transactions with one click • Budget Calendar – Visualize your day-to-day spending on a calendar view. • Stats & Charts – Understand your spending patterns with insightful visuals. • Shared Ledger – Collaborate with others to track and manage shared budget. • Cloud Sync – Access your data across all your iPhones and iPads seamlessly. • Export & Import – Export your data as CSV or import from other CSV files. More features for Budget App is coming~ What people say about Budget App: "This budget app has completely changed the way I manage my money! The budget planner and expense tracker features are super easy to use. I can finally stick to my monthly budget and see where my money goes each week." "As someone who struggles with personal finance, this financial manager has been a lifesaver. The spending tracker gives me real-time insights, and the money tracker helps me avoid unnecessary expenses. Highly recommend!" "I've tried a few budget trackers before, but this one is by far the most intuitive. The monthly budget breakdown is clear, and the expense tracker helps me stay accountable. Great for anyone serious about budgeting." "Finally, a budget app that does it all! Whether you're looking for a budget planner or a money tracker, this app covers it. It's like having a personal financial manager in your pocket." "What I love most about this budget tracker is how easy it is to customize. I set up my categories, track my spending, and monitor my progress toward financial goals. The app makes personal finance feel manageable!" Take control of your finances today—download the ultimate budget tracker app and start building the future you deserve! You can subscribe or buy out to use all premium features. * Subscription payments will be charged to your iTunes account at confirmation of your purchase. * Subscriptions will automatically renew and payment will be charged to your iTunes account unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24 hours prior to the end of the current period. The cost of the renewal depends on your Subscription Plan. Our standard Subscription Plans are: * 1-year Subscription For other currencies, the price corresponds to the same price tier on the App Store Pricing Matrix. Subscription with a free trial period will automatically renew to a paid subscription. You can cancel or manage your free trial's auto-renewal in your Account Settings after purchase. The cancellation will take effect 24-hours after the last day of the current subscription period and you will be downgraded to the free service. * Please note: any unused portion of a free trial period (if offered) will be forfeited when you purchase a premium subscription during the free trial period. If you have any questions or suggestions on how we can improve the application, please do not hesitate to contact us at davetech.app@gmail.com Privacy Policy: http://intuitive.studio/budget/privacy/ Terms of Use: http://intuitive.studio/budget/terms/

Screenshots

YNAB4 screens
Budget app4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is monetization model: Budget app at free with in-app purchases against YNAB's subscription. Budget app also leads on review sentiment (79% vs 51%) and iOS requirement (16.0 vs 18.0). YNAB's advantage is chart position (#5 vs #74) and ratings volume (62K vs 16K). On price, rating, update cadence and ads there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. YNAB sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $14.99 per month and Budget app sells 8 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.8 for YNAB against 4.7 for Budget app. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 62K and 16K respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 51% of YNAB's written reviews are positive against 79% of Budget app's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

YNAB ships an update weekly, Budget app every 9 days. Both last shipped on October 18, 2026.

Scorecard5 real differences · 6 level
YNAB versus Budget app: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterYNABBudget app
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.8 (62K ratings) — better4.7 (16K ratings)
Positive reviews50.9% of reviews79.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings62K — better16K
Update frequencyWeekly — betterEvery 9 days
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationSubscriptionFree with in-app purchases — better
Best chart rank#5 — better#74
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Apple WatchiPhone, iPad, Apple Watch
Requires iOS18.016.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size156 MB241 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperYou Need A Budget LLCInnerGrow

Customer experience

YNAB

All ratings61,872 ratings
Positive95.1%
Neutral1.4%
Negative3.5%
Written reviews1,671 reviews
Positive50.9%
Neutral9.5%
Negative39.7%

Budget app

All ratings16,183 ratings
Positive93.3%
Neutral2.6%
Negative4.1%
Written reviews1,259 reviews
Positive79.0%
Neutral5.3%
Negative15.7%

User reviews

YNAB

From 62K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 💰 Helps save money
  • 👍 Intuitive and easy to use
  • 🚀 Efficient budgeting system
  • 🤝 Helpful for couples/families
  • 🧠 Changes financial mindset

Room to improve

  • 🔍 Steep learning curve
  • 🔌 Connectivity issues with some banks
  • 💰 Expensive subscription
  • 🕰️ Reconciliation process could be improved
  • 📱 Mobile app lacks some features of web version

Budget app

From 16K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 User-friendly interface
  • 🚀 Straightforward and intuitive
  • 💰 Affordable one-time purchase
  • 🎨 Customizable categories and colors
  • 🗓️ Helpful calendar and transaction views

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Recurring bills/payments not working as expected
  • 🔍 Lack of advanced reporting and analytics
  • 🤝 Sharing/collaboration features not reliable
  • 🇨🇦 Limited support for Canadian banks/accounts
  • 🔀 Difficulty moving money between budgets

Bugs and requests

YNAB

Reported bugs

2 issues
  • Frequent disconnections from bank accounts
  • Syncing issues between mobile and web versions

Requested features

5 requests
  • Fortnightly budgeting options
  • Improved reporting and analytics
  • Ability to upload files/documents
  • Undo/redo functionality
  • Biometric login for mobile app

Budget app

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Syncing issues between devices
  • Transactions not always loading correctly
  • Upgrade/premium features not working as expected

Requested features

6 requests
  • Ability to carry over surplus/deficit between months
  • Option to view remaining budget instead of just spent
  • Multiple savings account/ledger support
  • Automatic recurring bill/subscription tracking
  • Web/desktop app version for easier data entry
Show 1 more
  • Customizable icons for expense categories

In-app purchases

4 purchases

YNAB

Subscriptions4
  • YNAB Subscription1 Month trial$14.991 Month
  • YNAB Subscription$14.991 Month
  • YNAB Subscription1 Month trial$109.001 Year
Show 1 more
  • YNAB Subscription$109.001 Year
8 purchases

Budget app

Subscriptions3
  • Budget Premium Monthly$2.991 Month
  • Financial Empowerment3 Days trial$5.991 Year
  • Yearly Premium$6.991 Year
One-time5
  • Lifetime Premium Sale$4.99
  • lifetime member sale$6.99
  • Budget Lifetime Member$8.99
Show 2 more
  • Lifetime Premium Global$8.99
  • Family Premium$14.99

Questions

Is YNAB free?
YNAB is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Budget app free?
Budget app is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, YNAB or Budget app?
YNAB is rated higher. YNAB averages 4.8 out of 5 from 62K ratings, while Budget app averages 4.7 from 16K ratings.
Do YNAB or Budget app have ads?
Neither YNAB nor Budget app shows ads.
Which is updated more often, YNAB or Budget app?
YNAB ships an update weekly, and Budget app every 9 days. Most recently, YNAB was updated on October 18, 2026 and Budget app on October 18, 2026.
Which is more popular, YNAB or Budget app?
YNAB currently peaks at #5 in the App Store charts, and Budget app at #74. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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