Comparison

Gem vs Spending & Expense Tracker

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

Head to head
About

Gem

Track your spending, manage budgets, and organize your finances with this comprehensive money management tool. It offers detailed budgeting options, expense organization by category, and bill tracking. Automate entries with Apple Pay and import/export data for a complete financial overview.

Highlights
  • Budgeting (daily, weekly, monthly, yearly)
  • Expense organization by category
  • Bill tracking and reminders
  • Savings goals and income tracking
  • Apple Pay integration for instant recording
  • CSV import/export
  • Customizable categories with icons
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

Log expenses and stay on budget. No subscription. In-app purchases are tips :) BUDGET - Daily, weekly, monthly and yearly - Average & daily spending, breakdown by category - Compare against same day last month - Rearrange your budgets, and other lists - Explore your costs and salary over time ORGANIZE - By category, budget, wallet, account, tag… - Customize category colors & icons (500+ from Apple) - Favorite accounts, custom sorting, merge categories - Add attachments and receipts BILLS - Repeat: day, week, month, year - View paid & upcoming subscriptions MONEY TOOLS - Savings goals, income, transfers, balance - Multiple currencies, exchange rates - Calculator & journal view WALLET SYNC & AUTOMATIONS - Instant recording when paying in store with Apple Pay (requires setup) - Auto-organize expensesbased on merchant names - App shortcuts and “Send to Gem” in share sheet - Import CSV files, sub-categories, notes. Import into specific wallet. Skip duplicates when importing - Export everything MORE - Customize the way your create entries - Widgets. Lock Screen shortcut - Daily iCloud backup - Daily reminders - Custom main screen, list layouts, app menu and theme - Insights in search results PREVIEW FEATURES May not work as expected :) - Type “Rent” → it’s categorized in “Household” - Detect receipt prices from attachments Need help? Have a suggestion? Email me at human@shelftwo.com. Terms & privacy: shelftwo.com/gem/terms

About

Spending & Expense Tracker

Manage your money with this personal finance manager. Plan budgets, track income and expenses, and grow savings with smart tools. Achieve financial freedom with easy-to-use budgeting and expense tracking.

Highlights
  • Monthly budgeting tools
  • Income and expense tracking
  • Savings growth features
  • Income calculator
  • Expense calendar
  • Financial insights
Features
Read full description

Take control of your finances with Spending & Expense Tracker, your ultimate money bestie! Effortlessly plan your monthly budget, track your income and expenses, and watch your savings grow. With powerful tools like an income calculator, budgeting organizer, and expense calendar, staying on top of your finances has never been easier. Features: Smart income & expense tracking to manage your money like a pro. Easy-to-use monthly budgeting tools to reach your financial goals. Insights to help you save smarter and spend wiser. Start your journey to financial freedom today with your new personal finance manager. You may purchase an auto-renewing subscription through an In-App Purchase. - Auto-renewable subscription - 1 year ($29.99) with 3 days trial durations Terms of Use: https://hmarat.github.io/webpages/terms.htm Privacy Policy: https://hmarat.github.io/webpages/privacy.html

Screenshots

Gem4 screens
Spending & Expense Tracker4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Spending & Expense Tracker at Free against Gem's $0.49. Spending & Expense Tracker also leads on update cadence (every 5 days vs every 4 weeks) and iOS requirement (12.0 vs 26.0). Gem's advantage is review sentiment (88% vs 72%) and chart position (#157 vs unranked). On rating, ratings volume, ads and in-app purchases 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

Spending & Expense Tracker is free to download; Gem costs $0.49 up front. Gem sells 4 one-off in-app purchases and Spending & Expense Tracker sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $19.99 per year. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Gem holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.6. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 89 and 37 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 88% of Gem's written reviews are positive against 72% of Spending & Expense Tracker's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Gem ships an update every 4 weeks, Spending & Expense Tracker every 5 days. The most recent releases landed on October 29, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 5 level
Gem versus Spending & Expense Tracker: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterGemSpending & Expense Tracker
Price$0.49Free — better
Rating4.8 (89 ratings) — better4.6 (37 ratings)
Positive reviews87.9% of reviews — better72.2% of reviews
Number of ratings89 — better37
Update frequencyEvery 4 weeksEvery 5 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases — betterSubscription
Best chart rank#157 — better—
DevicesiPhoneiPhone, iPod — better
Requires iOS26.012.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size46 MB77 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperOz PinhasVage Alaverdian

Customer experience

Gem

All ratings89 ratings
Positive93.3%
Neutral2.2%
Negative4.5%
Written reviews141 reviews
Positive87.9%
Neutral4.3%
Negative7.8%

Spending & Expense Tracker

All ratings41 ratings
Positive92.7%
Neutral0.0%
Negative7.3%
Written reviews18 reviews
Positive72.2%
Neutral0.0%
Negative27.8%

Bugs and requests

Gem

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

Spending & Expense Tracker

Reported bugs

2 issues
  • Disappearing income categories
  • Inability to move categories between expense and income

Requested features

3 requests
  • Add more currency options
  • Ability to convert currencies to USD
  • Suggest new functionalities and features

In-app purchases

4 purchases

Gem

One-time4
  • Gem PowerpackFree
  • Thanks tip$0.99
  • Amazing tip$2.99
Show 1 more
  • Spectacular tip$4.99
4 purchases

Spending & Expense Tracker

Subscriptions2
  • Annual Premium$19.991 Year
  • Annual Premium, 3 days Trial3 Days trial$29.991 Year
One-time2
  • Lifetime Premium2 variantsFree
  • Lifetime Premium2 variants$79.99

Questions

Is Gem free?
Gem costs $0.49, and also offers in-app purchases.
Is Spending & Expense Tracker free?
Spending & Expense Tracker is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Gem or Spending & Expense Tracker?
Gem is rated higher. Gem averages 4.8 out of 5 from 89 ratings, while Spending & Expense Tracker averages 4.6 from 37 ratings.
Do Gem or Spending & Expense Tracker have ads?
Neither Gem nor Spending & Expense Tracker shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Gem or Spending & Expense Tracker?
Gem ships an update every 4 weeks, and Spending & Expense Tracker every 5 days. Most recently, Gem was updated on October 29, 2026 and Spending & Expense Tracker on October 24, 2026.

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