Budget Flow | Expense Tracker vs Tael
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Budget Flow | Expense Tracker
Effortlessly track income and expenses with this modern, user-friendly expense tracker. It offers secure offline use, customizable dashboards, and robust budget planning tools to help you achieve your financial goals.
- Track income and expenses
- Customizable dashboard
- Multiple accounts and categories
- Budget planning
- Shared budgeting
- Secure data storage
- Offline use
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Budget Flow lets you keep track of your income and expenses and manage them effortlessly. This modern and user-friendly expense tracking app is quick to set up, requires no registration and can even be used offline. Budget Flow is the app for anyone who wants to manage their finances efficiently while maintaining a high level of data security. Download Budget Flow today and achieve your financial goals! HIGHLIGHTS: Clear financial management: - Keep track of your accounts, balances and transactions - Configurable dashboard with numerous widgets - Multiple sorting, search and filtering options - Customizable time period for the entire app Create accounts and categories: - Create multiple accounts and categories - Customizable with icons, emojis and colors - Organize categories into folders Easy transaction management: - One-time and recurring transactions - Integrated calculator for accurate entries - Automatic conversion to over 150 currencies - Add photos, locations and notes - Scan receipts with automatic data recognition - Reminders for planned transactions Budget planning: - Plan budgets for your categories - Choose different recurrence intervals Shared budgeting: - Supports multiple budget books and users - Share data via iCloud to collaborate with multiple people Data security: - Secure data storage - No login required - Face ID / Touch ID / Passcode support Other features: - Apple Watch app incl. complications - Mac app incl. keyboard support & shortcuts - Home & Lock Screen widgets - Siri Shortcuts support - Import and export data via CSV file - Numerous personalization options - Seamless iCloud synchronization - Responsive design incl. dark mode - Dynamic text size - ...and much more! IN-APP PURCHASES: Budget Flow is free to download. Some features require an optional subscription or one-time purchase of the full version. LEGAL: Privacy policy: https://budget-flow.app/privacy-policy Terms of use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula
Tael
Effortlessly track expenses from Apple Pay and other sources. Automatically log transactions, create custom rules for recurring entries, and categorize spending by projects or events. Analyze your finances privately on your device.
- Automatic logging from Apple Pay
- Customizable spending rules
- Categorize by trips, projects, or events
- Offline functionality
- Multi-currency support
- Export to CSV/Excel
- Privacy-focused, no cloud syncing
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Every tap, already logged. Pay with Apple Pay and the charge is in Tael before your phone is back in your pocket. The merchant, the amount, the card. You did not open the app. In Hong Kong that includes Octopus — the MTR, the 7-Eleven counter, the ferry. No bank login. No account. No setup evening. Two minutes once, then it runs without you. For money Tael cannot see — cash, a market stall, a transfer — one press of the Action button, Siri or a widget logs it. YOU TEACH IT ONCE, IT STOPS ASKING Label a shop one time and a rule is written. Every later charge from it files itself. Rules are rules, not guesses. You can read every one in plain language, and nothing runs until you say yes. You could do all this in a spreadsheet. People do, for about three weeks. This is the version that survives a busy fortnight. IT TRACKS WHAT YOU ACTUALLY THINK ABOUT Not Shopping. Not Miscellaneous. The Japan trip. The kitchen renovation. Sundays with your dad. How good it felt. One purchase can belong to several at once — that supermarket run was part groceries, part the dinner party, part the trip — so you never have to pick. SO YOU CAN FINALLY ANSWER - What the whole trip cost, flights to the 1am souvenir - Whether this client is worth it, once the lunches and the software are in - What the hobby actually costs over a year, and whether you'd miss it - Which purchases you're still glad about Not after a weekend of reconciling. On a Tuesday, in four seconds. NOBODY SEES THIS BUT YOU Your transactions, merchants, amounts, cards, notes and rules never leave your iPhone. No server holds your ledger and no cloud model reads it. Backup goes to your own iCloud, and only if you turn it on. Tael fetches exchange rates and sends anonymous usage counts — never an amount, a merchant or a card. Which is why you'll actually record that the dinner was a 3 out of 10, or that you're still annoyed about the jacket. That's the honest version, and it's the one worth having. WHAT'S IN IT - Automatic logging from Apple Pay, and Octopus in Hong Kong - Quick logs from the Action button, Siri, widgets and Shortcuts - Rules suggested from your corrections, or written by you - Dimensions: your own lenses, as many as a purchase needs - Budgets, splits, and repeats that log themselves - Pay in yen, log in yen: 159 currencies, one ledger - Export to Excel, CSV, or Markdown written for an AI assistant - App lock, privacy screen, optional iCloud backup - Works offline, always WHO IT'S FOR People who tap to pay many times a day and want to know where the money went without doing bookkeeping. Not for people who want an app to drain a bank feed and budget for them with no involvement. Tael asks a little of you early on, and gives a lot back later. Tael is free, with no ads. Tael Pro is one payment, for life — there is no subscription. See the app for what it unlocks. Requires iPhone, iOS 18.4 or later. Automatic logging depends on Apple Wallet and Shortcuts. Apple Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Tael Terms of Use: https://usetael.com/terms Privacy Policy: https://usetael.com/privacy
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is ratings volume: Budget Flow | Expense Tracker at 341 against Tael's 6. Budget Flow | Expense Tracker also leads on device support (4 vs 1) and iOS requirement (16.0 vs 18.4). Tael's advantage is update cadence (every 4 days vs every 2 weeks) and rating (5.0 vs 4.8). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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
Both are free to download. Budget Flow | Expense Tracker sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month and Tael sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Tael holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Budget Flow | Expense Tracker has 341 ratings behind it against 6, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 90% of Budget Flow | Expense Tracker's written reviews are positive against 100% of Tael's.
Budget Flow | Expense Tracker ships an update every 2 weeks, Tael every 4 days. The most recent releases landed on November 3, 2026 and November 5, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Budget Flow | Expense Tracker | Tael |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.8 (341 ratings) | 5.0 (6 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 90.3% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 341 — better | 6 |
| Update frequency | Every 2 weeks | Every 4 days — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch — better | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 16.0 — better | 18.4 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 215 MB | 43 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Fabian Hasse | Tael Technology, LLC |
Customer experience
Budget Flow | Expense Tracker
Tael
Bugs and requests
Budget Flow | Expense Tracker
Reported bugs
3 issues- Transactions disappearing from accounts
- Inconsistent data display in reports
- Rounding issues with decimal amounts
Requested features
5 requests- Add monthly recurring reminders
- Improve search functionality
- Provide more detailed budgeting options
- Integrate receipt scanning and OCR
- Allow custom currency support
Tael
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Budget Flow | Expense Tracker
- Full Version (1 Month)$4.991 Month
- Full Version (1 Year)7 Days trial$29.991 Year
- Full Version (Discounted)$49.99
- Full Version (Lifetime)$69.99
Tael
- Tael Pro Monthly$2.991 Month
- Tael Pro Annual$29.991 Year
- Tael Pro$14.99
Questions
Is Budget Flow | Expense Tracker free?
Is Tael free?
Which has better reviews, Budget Flow | Expense Tracker or Tael?
Do Budget Flow | Expense Tracker or Tael have ads?
Which is updated more often, Budget Flow | Expense Tracker or Tael?
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