# Goodbudget Budget Planner vs SUM+= Simple Expense Tracker

The clearest difference is review sentiment: SUM+= Simple Expense Tracker at 100% against Goodbudget Budget Planner's 58%. SUM+= Simple Expense Tracker also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.6) and update cadence (every 4 days vs every 3 weeks). Goodbudget Budget Planner's advantage is ratings volume (14K vs 2) and chart position (#84 vs unranked). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Goodbudget Budget Planner sells 8 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per month and SUM+= Simple Expense Tracker sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

SUM+= Simple Expense Tracker holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Goodbudget Budget Planner has 14K ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 58% of Goodbudget Budget Planner's written reviews are positive against 100% of SUM+= Simple Expense Tracker's.

Goodbudget Budget Planner ships an update every 3 weeks, SUM+= Simple Expense Tracker every 4 days. The most recent releases landed on November 11, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Goodbudget Budget Planner | SUM+= Simple Expense Tracker |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.6 (14K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/goodbudget-budget-planner/id471112395/reviews) | **[5.0 (2 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/sum-plus-simple-expense-tracker/id6757820811/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **14K** | 2 |
| Positive reviews | 58.2% of reviews | **100.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks | **Every 4 days** |
| Monetization | Freemium | Freemium |
| Best chart rank | **#84** | — |
| Size | 23 MB | 28 MB |
| Requires iOS | **15.0** | 26.2 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPod** | iPhone |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Dayspring Technologies](https://appshunter.io/developer/471112398) | [Jonas Zimmermann](https://appshunter.io/developer/1869111182) |

## What reviewers say

### Goodbudget Budget Planner

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/goodbudget-budget-planner/id471112395)

**Currently charting:** #84 Top Grossing · Finance (US App Store)

This personal finance app helps you plan your budget, track expenses, and manage debt using a virtual envelope system. Share your financial data with others across multiple devices and access insightful reports to understand your spending habits.

**Highlights:** Virtual envelope budgeting system, Shared budgets for couples and families, Cross-device synchronization (iOS, Android, Web), Insightful spending and debt reports, Transaction scheduling, CSV transaction export

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (8)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Monthly Plus Plan | $5.99 | per month |
| Monthly Plus Plan | $6.99 | per month |
| Monthly Plus Plan | $7.99 | per month |
| Monthly Premium Plan | $9.99 | per month |
| Annual Plus Plan | $49.99 | per year |
| Annual Plus Plan | $59.99 | per year |
| Annual Plus Plan | $69.99 | per year |
| Annual Premium Plan | $79.99 | per year |

**What reviewers like**

- 💻 Excellent app for tracking and managing finances
- 🤝 Great for couples and families to manage budgets together
- 📈 Helpful envelope system and budgeting tools
- 🕰️ Ability to schedule recurring payments and income
- 🗓️ Useful for budgeting by pay period instead of monthly

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🔍 Confusing or unintuitive interface for some users
- 💰 Paid subscription seen as too expensive by some
- 🐛 Occasional bugs, crashes, and syncing issues reported
- 🔢 Limited free version with only 10 envelopes
- 🔍 Difficulty making changes to existing budgets

**Reported bugs**

- Transactions not saving properly
- Envelopes resetting or losing balances
- Recurring income/payments not working as expected
- Syncing issues between devices

**Requested features**

- Ability to group/organize envelopes
- Option to reconcile transactions and mark as cleared
- Transaction search functionality within the app
- Customizable envelope colors or themes
- Automatic transaction syncing from bank accounts


### SUM+= Simple Expense Tracker

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/sum-plus-simple-expense-tracker/id6757820811)

This finance app simplifies expense tracking with AI assistance, allowing for quick data entry and powerful analysis through large language models. It prioritizes user control and privacy with local data storage and a minimalist design.

**Highlights:** AI-assisted data entry, LLM analysis and forecasting, Minimalist and beautiful design, Local data storage and privacy, User-controlled database, Subscription options with free trial

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

**In-app purchases (4)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| SUM Pro | $3.99 | per month |
| SUM Pro | $22.99 | per year |
| 7-day Trial | Free | one-time |
| Sum Premium | $6.99 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Goodbudget Budget Planner free?

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

### Is SUM+= Simple Expense Tracker free?

SUM+= Simple Expense Tracker is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Goodbudget Budget Planner or SUM+= Simple Expense Tracker?

SUM+= Simple Expense Tracker is rated higher. Goodbudget Budget Planner averages 4.6 out of 5 from 14K ratings, while SUM+= Simple Expense Tracker averages 5.0 from 2 ratings.

### Do Goodbudget Budget Planner or SUM+= Simple Expense Tracker have ads?

Neither Goodbudget Budget Planner nor SUM+= Simple Expense Tracker shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Goodbudget Budget Planner or SUM+= Simple Expense Tracker?

Goodbudget Budget Planner ships an update every 3 weeks, and SUM+= Simple Expense Tracker every 4 days. Most recently, Goodbudget Budget Planner was updated on November 11, 2026 and SUM+= Simple Expense Tracker on October 31, 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.*