# Simple Budget Planner vs Wave Budget

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Wave Budget at 100% against Simple Budget Planner's 60%. Wave Budget also leads on rating (4.8 vs 4.4) and iOS requirement (12.0 vs 17.0). Simple Budget Planner's advantage is ratings volume (283 vs 13). On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Simple Budget Planner sells 5 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per 7 days and Wave Budget sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Wave Budget holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.4. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Simple Budget Planner has 283 ratings behind it against 13, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 60% of Simple Budget Planner's written reviews are positive against 100% of Wave Budget's.

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 26, 2026 and October 30, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Simple Budget Planner | Wave Budget |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.4 (283 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/simple-budget-planner/id1370056290/reviews) | **[4.8 (13 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/wave-budget/id1597718926/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **283** | 13 |
| Positive reviews | 59.6% of reviews | **100.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Fortnightly | Fortnightly |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Freemium |
| Size | 24 MB | 55 MB |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | **12.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Mehmet Cetin](https://appshunter.io/developer/1370056289) | [Stefan Galler](https://appshunter.io/developer/1466600641) |

## What reviewers say

### Simple Budget Planner

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/simple-budget-planner/id1370056290)

Manage your money effortlessly with this intuitive app. Track income and expenses, utilize the envelope system for category budgeting, and set savings goals. Automate recurring transactions and gain insights into your spending habits.

**Highlights:** Expense and income tracking, Envelope budgeting system, Savings goal setting, Scheduled transactions, Income and expense statistics, Customizable budgets and categories

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Family Sharing, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (5)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Unlimited Weekly | $1.99 | per 7 days |
| Unlimited Monthly | $4.99 | per month |
| Unlimited Annually | $17.99 | per year |
| Unlimited Semiannually | $24.99 | per 6 months |
| Remove Ads | $9.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Simple and easy to use
- 👍 User-friendly interface
- 👍 Good for manual tracking
- 👍 Customizable categories
- 👍 No bank account connection needed

**What reviewers complain about**

- 👎 Not free, hidden costs
- 👎 Limited free version
- 👎 Forces purchase before trial
- 👎 Lacks advanced budgeting features
- 👎 Inconsistent transaction recording

**Reported bugs**

- Periodic transactions not recorded automatically
- App freezes or becomes unusable after declining to rate
- Glitching UI elements
- Data export errors
- Subscription sharing/family plan issues

**Requested features**

- Add dark mode option
- Allow sorting expenses by due date
- Add bi-weekly pay period option
- Add weekly budget option
- Improve screen resolution and UI scaling


### Wave Budget

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/wave-budget/id1597718926)

Easily set up a monthly budget and monitor your spending to understand your remaining funds. Its minimalist design ensures quick and efficient financial management. Connect with your Apple ID for seamless cross-device synchronization.

**Highlights:** Monthly budget setup, Expense tracking, Minimalist design, Cross-device sync via Apple ID, No login required

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (2)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Monthly Subscription | $0.99 | per month |
| Yearly Subscription | $9.49 | per year |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Simple Budget Planner free?

Simple Budget Planner is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Wave Budget free?

Wave Budget is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Simple Budget Planner or Wave Budget?

Wave Budget is rated higher. Simple Budget Planner averages 4.4 out of 5 from 283 ratings, while Wave Budget averages 4.8 from 13 ratings.

### Do Simple Budget Planner or Wave Budget have ads?

Neither Simple Budget Planner nor Wave Budget shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Simple Budget Planner or Wave Budget?

Simple Budget Planner ships an update fortnightly, and Wave Budget fortnightly. Most recently, Simple Budget Planner was updated on October 26, 2026 and Wave Budget on October 30, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*