Comparison

Envy vs Left

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

Head to head
About

Envy

Digitize your cash envelope budgeting system with this simple expense tracker. Organize your spending into unlimited digital envelopes, easily move transactions, and track your budget without linking bank accounts. Export your data and manage your money effectively.

Highlights
  • Unlimited digital envelopes
  • Quick deposit refills
  • Move transactions between envelopes
  • Start envelopes with negative balances
  • Export transactions as CSV
  • Manual transaction entry under 5 seconds
Features
Read full description

================== Recent 5-Star Reviews ================== "Love the simplicity of this app. We don't want to carry cash around but wanted to still utilize the envelope system. This is the best app so far." "I've gone through all the budgeting apps literally at least 30. All of them wanted my bank information, didn't offer digital envelopes, or was just over complicated! I needed an app that I could have 5-10 categories on that was easy to use and didn't require me to put in all my bills and total salary." "Good for people who want a simple way to track and control their spending. Very effective way of seeing what is left to spend. Clean and user-friendly interface." ================== Envy ================== After trying all the popular budgeting apps for years and running into the same issues over and over again.... • Ridiculous subscription models • Continually recategorizing transactions • Security concerns over linking cards and accounts • Complicated graphs and features • Long latency to update recent transactions • Creating login accounts over and over again • Verifying credentials repeatedly ...I created Envy. Simplistic budgeting that digitizes the cash envelope system and puts you back in the driver seat. Sure, it's manual but it's your money after all. • Create unlimited envelopes to organize your budget and manage your money easily* • Sync across your iPhone and iPad through your own iCloud. No accounts, no passwords, no servers in the middle. • Share a budget with a partner. Both sides see the same envelopes update in real time. • Set savings goals with target amounts and deadlines. See how much to set aside per day to hit every goal on time. • Track debts and money set aside separately, so they don't muddle your spendable total. • Quick deposit refills all of your envelopes in one click (you can choose whether to exclude envelopes from this feature) • Rename envelopes and update their budget without losing transactions. • Move transactions easily from one envelope to another • Start envelopes with negative balances if you're carrying a debt or an overspend • See all your transactions in one place outside of each category • Enter and edit transactions in under 5 seconds • Editorial Insights show where your money goes, month over month • Export your transactions as a CSV • Custom sorting or sort by date, transaction, amount, name, deposit and color • Based on your local currency • Light and dark mode that follow your system • Dedicated solo developer that responds to emails :) ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ****TRY BEFORE YOU BUY • Free version provides limited envelopes and viewable transactions that demonstrate the functionality and ease of use.

About

Left

This app simplifies daily budgeting by focusing on a single number: what's left to spend after setting aside essential bills. It offers a minimalist approach to personal finance, ideal for those overwhelmed by complex budgeting tools.

Highlights
  • Single daily spending number
  • Envelope for big bills
  • Customizable spending periods
  • Minimalist interface
  • No bank syncing
  • No categories
Features
Read full description

One number tells you what's left to spend today. One envelope holds the big bills — rent, subs, loans. That's it. — — — Left. is a daily budget tracker for people who tried YNAB and gave up, tried spreadsheets and got bored on day three, tried mental math and lost track on day one. It works on a single, honest idea: pour everything you have into a period, set aside the big bills into an envelope, and what remains is yours to spend, divided by days. One screen. One number. No charts. No categories. No streaks, no badges, no nudges. Nothing to maintain. When you need to dip into the reserve — hold the envelope. The envelope breaks open. You take what you need. It seals back. — — — How it works: 01 Pick a period — a month, a week, three days, a trip. 02 Pour in the amount — everything you have for that period. 03 Set the envelope aside — the big bills that have to wait. 04 See what's left — one number on the home screen, every day. — — — What's not in here: — No syncing with banks. — No machine learning categorisation. — No social feed of how friends spend. — No subscription, no upsell, no premium tier. What is in here: — A blank page that opens on a number. — A reserve sealed in an envelope, opened with a long press. — A ledger that remembers every tap. — One hand. One thumb. One number a day. — — — Left. by Koodalabs

Screenshots

Envy4 screens
Left3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Left at none against Envy's 1. Left also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.8). Envy's advantage is ratings volume (835 vs 1) and update cadence (every 6 days vs every 2 weeks). On price 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. Envy sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Left asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Left holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Envy has 835 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Envy ships an update every 6 days, Left every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 4, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level
Envy versus Left: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterEnvyLeft
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.8 (835 ratings)5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Positive reviews77.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings835 — better1
Update frequencyEvery 6 days — betterEvery 2 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone
Requires iOS15.0 — better18.0
Further details — not scored
Size11 MB3 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperChimpanzee, LLCKoodalabs LLC

Customer experience

Envy

All ratings833 ratings
Positive94.2%
Neutral2.8%
Negative3.0%
Written reviews161 reviews
Positive77.0%
Neutral13.0%
Negative9.9%

Left

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

Envy

Reported bugs

2 issues
  • Inconsistent behavior when adding/editing transactions
  • Screen size/layout issues on some devices

Requested features

5 requests
  • Ability to sort/reorder envelopes
  • Option to track cents/pennies
  • Multi-device sync and sharing
  • Recurring transaction scheduling
  • Envelope budgeting templates or presets

Left

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Envy

One-time1
  • Envy All Access$9.99
None

Left

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Envy free?
Envy is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Left free?
Left is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Envy or Left?
Left is rated higher. Envy averages 4.8 out of 5 from 835 ratings, while Left averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.
Do Envy or Left have ads?
Neither Envy nor Left shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Envy or Left?
Envy ships an update every 6 days, and Left every 2 weeks. Most recently, Envy was updated on November 4, 2026 and Left on October 31, 2026.

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