# Budget app vs Cashew

The clearest difference is ratings volume: Budget app at 16K against Cashew's 508. Budget app also leads on chart position (#64 vs unranked) and device support (4 vs 2). Cashew's advantage is review sentiment (97% vs 79%) and rating (4.9 vs 4.7). On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Budget app sells 8 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month and Cashew sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $1.49 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Cashew holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Budget app has 16K ratings behind it against 508, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 79% of Budget app's written reviews are positive against 97% of Cashew's.

Budget app ships an update every 9 days, Cashew every 3 weeks. Both last shipped on September 24, 2026.

## The numbers

| Metric | Budget app | Cashew |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.7 (16K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/budget-app-spending-tracker/id1525179720/reviews) | **[4.9 (508 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/cashewexpense-budget-tracker/id6463662930/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **16K** | 508 |
| Positive reviews | 79.2% of reviews | **97.5% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Every 9 days** | Every 3 weeks |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Best chart rank | **#64** | — |
| Size | 231 MB | 100 MB |
| Requires iOS | **13.0** | 18.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple Watch** | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [InnerGrow](https://appshunter.io/developer/1828382777) | [James Kokoska](https://appshunter.io/developer/1704737685) |

## What reviewers say

### Budget app

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/budget-app-spending-tracker/id1525179720)

**Currently charting:** #64 Top Grossing · Finance, #177 Top Free · Finance (US App Store)

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:** macOS Compatibility, Family Sharing, Apple Watch app, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (8)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Budget Premium Monthly | $2.99 | per month |
| Financial Empowerment | $5.99 | per year |
| Yearly Premium | $6.99 | per year |
| Lifetime Premium Sale | $4.99 | one-time |
| lifetime member sale | $6.99 | one-time |
| Budget Lifetime Member | $8.99 | one-time |
| Lifetime Premium Global | $8.99 | one-time |
| Family Premium | $14.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

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

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 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

**Reported bugs**

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

**Requested features**

- 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


### Cashew

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/cashewexpense-budget-tracker/id6463662930)

This app helps you understand your spending habits by allowing you to set flexible budgets and visualize your financial progress with charts. Track subscriptions, recurring transactions, and manage finances across different currencies with a personalized interface.

**Highlights:** Flexible budgeting (monthly, weekly, custom), Visual spending reports (pie charts, bar graphs), Subscription and recurring transaction tracking, Personalized interface (dark mode, accent colors), Multi-currency support with conversion rates, Timely reminders for transactions

**In-app purchases (3)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Cashew Pro Monthly | $1.49 | per month |
| Cashew Pro Yearly | $11.99 | per year |
| Cashew Pro Lifetime | $19.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Easy to use
- 👍 Sleek and intuitive interface
- 💡 Customizable budgets and categories
- 🚀 Smooth performance
- 👍 Helpful visualizations and analytics

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Occasional sync issues between devices
- 💡 Lack of bank/account integration
- 💡 Missing calendar view
- 🐛 Laggy animations when adding transactions

**Reported bugs**

- Recurring transactions not generating properly
- Inconsistent behavior when configuring past installments

**Requested features**

- Add widgets for quick access
- Implement shared budgets and family access
- Improve recurring transaction management
- Export data to Excel/CSV


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Budget app free?

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

### Is Cashew free?

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

### Which has better reviews, Budget app or Cashew?

Cashew is rated higher. Budget app averages 4.7 out of 5 from 16K ratings, while Cashew averages 4.9 from 508 ratings.

### Do Budget app or Cashew have ads?

Neither Budget app nor Cashew shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Budget app or Cashew?

Budget app ships an update every 9 days, and Cashew every 3 weeks. Most recently, Budget app was updated on September 24, 2026 and Cashew on September 24, 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.*