Comparison

Goodbudget Budget Planner vs SimpleSpend

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

Head to head
About

Goodbudget Budget Planner

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
Currently charting
Read full description

Goodbudget is a personal finance app perfect for budget planning, debt tracking, and money management. Share your budget and data across multiple phones (and the web!). MANAGE MONEY WITH PEOPLE YOU LOVE Goodbudget is perfect for sharing a budget with a spouse, family member, or friend because your budget is backed up. Share your budget across multiple devices including iPhones, other smartphones, and the web. * Transactions get backed up to the cloud and are accessible from other devices, including Goodbudget's web app! * Stay on the same page about finances with those close to you * Your data is automatically and securely backed up to Goodbudget's website * Download transactions to CSV (on website) INSIGHTFUL REPORTS Goodbudget helps you make sense of your budgeting and spending with in-app reports. * Know how to modify your budget after analyzing reports * Spending by envelope report (cool-looking pie chart!) * Income vs spending report * Debt progress report (track your payoff!) * Even more reports on the web A PROVEN SYSTEM Goodbudget is based on the envelope budgeting method. But with no physical envelopes...only virtual envelopes! * Check envelopes balances (aka how much you have left to spend) while you're on-the-go * Add transactions and track expenses easily on the go * Use the proven cash envelope budgeting method * Track your bank balances in addition to envelope balances * Pay off debt and manage payments * Live within your means * Schedule transactions and automatically fill envelopes Ad-free, Free Forever version includes 10 regular envelopes & 10 annual envelopes. Use envelope budgeting to plan your spending, not just track it! ================================ SUBSCRIBERS GET MORE FEATURES! ================================ * Unlimited Envelopes AND Accounts * Automatic Bank Sync * 5 devices for sharing * 7 years of transaction history * Personal and friendly email support Subscription automatically renews unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24-hours before the end of the current period. Payment will be charged to iTunes Account at confirmation of purchase. Account will be charged for renewal within 24-hours prior to the end of the current period, and identify the cost of the renewal. Subscriptions may be managed by the user and auto-renewal may be turned off by going to the user's Account Settings after purchase. If you're looking to track where your money goes, plan your spending, or create a budget that works, try us out! Goodbudget: Budget well. Live life. Do Good. Features, bugs? Please email us at support@goodbudget.com! We're happy to help! ** Leading personal finance app downloaded over 2,000,000 times AND previously featured by Apple, The New York Times, Forbes, CNET, LifeTime TV, The Boston Globe, and Lifehacker **

About

SimpleSpend

Features
Read full description

Tracking your money should feel simple. SimpleSpend is a fast, focused, ad-free expense tracker. Log a transaction in seconds—no sign-up or unnecessary distractions. Build a clear picture of your personal finances without turning every entry into a chore. FAST, FLEXIBLE TRACKING • Enter the amount, category, account, and note • Hold "+" to log by voice: Say the amount, date, category and more, then release to fill in the transaction form. • Review before saving: Check or edit the details filled in from your voice input to help avoid mistakes. • Create custom categories, subcategories, and accounts • Use Siri and Shortcuts to log expenses or income by voice RECURRING TRANSACTIONS FOR RENT AND BILLS Rent, phone bills, gym memberships, loan payments, and more—set them up once on a daily, weekly, monthly, yearly, or custom schedule. When a transaction is due, SimpleSpend adds it the next time you open the app. SEE WHAT SUBSCRIPTIONS COST Mark an expense as a subscription to see your estimated annual total and projected charges for the next 12 months. Quickly decide what is worth keeping and what you may want to reconsider. TRACK MONEY TOGETHER Invite your partner or family to one shared ledger. Up to 6 people can log income and expenses and view budgets and insights. Personal and shared ledgers stay separate, so everything remains clear. BUDGETS AND SPENDING INSIGHTS • See income, expenses, net balance, and spending by category • Filter by day, week, month, year, or a custom date range • Set monthly budgets to stay on track MULTIPLE LEDGERS AND CURRENCIES • Separate family, travel, shared expenses, and more into their own ledgers • Fetch exchange rates automatically and view converted totals in your chosen currency YOUR DATA, YOUR CHOICE • Keep data on your device by default • Turn on iCloud sync between your iPhone and iPad • Shared ledgers are shared only with invited members; personal ledgers stay separate • Export your data to CSV anytime • Enjoy an ad-free experience—we do not sell your data Core tracking is free. Upgrade to Pro for unlimited recurring rules, batch editing, category merging, and more. Download SimpleSpend and see your spending more clearly. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://castorstudio.xyz/apps/simplespend/privacy/ Log an expense on Apple Watch, see today’s and this month’s spending on the watch face, and sync that entry back to your iPhone.

Screenshots

Goodbudget Budget Planner4 screens
SimpleSpend4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: SimpleSpend at every 8 days against Goodbudget Budget Planner's every 3 weeks. Goodbudget Budget Planner's advantage is chart position (#86 vs unranked) and iOS requirement (15.0 vs 18.0). On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support 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. Goodbudget Budget Planner sells 8 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per month and SimpleSpend sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $1.29 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Goodbudget Budget Planner ships an update every 3 weeks, SimpleSpend every 8 days. The most recent releases landed on November 11, 2026 and November 9, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 8 level
Goodbudget Budget Planner versus SimpleSpend: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterGoodbudget Budget PlannerSimpleSpend
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.6 (14K ratings) — better—
Positive reviews58.2% of reviews—
Number of ratings14K — better—
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeksEvery 8 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFreemium—
Best chart rank#86 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPodiPhone, iPad, Apple Watch — better
Requires iOS15.0 — better18.0
Further details — not scored
Size23 MB42 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperDayspring Technologies杭 李

Bugs and requests

Goodbudget Budget Planner

Reported bugs

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

Requested features

6 requests
  • 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
Show 1 more
  • More detailed reporting and analytics features

SimpleSpend

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

8 purchases

Goodbudget Budget Planner

Subscriptions8
  • Monthly Plus Plan$5.991 Month
  • Monthly Plus Plan2 variants$6.991 Month
  • Monthly Plus Plan$7.991 Month
Show 5 more
  • Monthly Premium Plan$9.991 Month
  • Annual Plus Plan$49.991 Year
  • Annual Plus Plan2 variants$59.991 Year
  • Annual Plus Plan$69.991 Year
  • Annual Premium Plan$79.991 Year
3 purchases

SimpleSpend

Subscriptions2
  • SimpleSpend Pro$1.291 Month
  • SimpleSpend Pro14 Days trial$7.991 Year
One-time1
  • SimpleSpend Pro$26.90

Questions

Is Goodbudget Budget Planner free?
Goodbudget Budget Planner is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is SimpleSpend free?
SimpleSpend is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Goodbudget Budget Planner or SimpleSpend have ads?
Neither Goodbudget Budget Planner nor SimpleSpend shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Goodbudget Budget Planner or SimpleSpend?
Goodbudget Budget Planner ships an update every 3 weeks, and SimpleSpend every 8 days. Most recently, Goodbudget Budget Planner was updated on November 11, 2026 and SimpleSpend on November 9, 2026.

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