Comparison

Pico Spend vs Cliff Journal

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

Head to head
About

Pico Spend

Easily track your daily expenses with a calculator-like interface and detailed reports. Analyze spending by category, view summaries, and export data. Includes an Apple Watch app for on-the-go tracking.

Highlights
  • Quick expense entry
  • Detailed spending reports
  • Category-based analysis
  • Apple Watch app
  • iCloud backup
  • Passcode protection
Features
Read full description

Pico Spend is a simple, intuitive expense tracker with robust reporting and drill-down capabilities for everyday spending analysis. Pico Spend is a private expense tracker that stores all spending data on your iPhone. It doesn’t require external servers, account creation, or any helper apps. Data connection is unnecessary for expense entry and reporting, as Pico Spend works completely offline. There are no subscriptions or in-app purchases with Pico Spend. It comes as a one-time purchase with an Apple Watch app included. You can also try Pico Spend Lite - a free version with limited functionality. FEATURES • Track your expenses right after the app launch - no servers or accounts needed • Calculator-like screen for quick expense entry • Expense categories are pre-populated, but fully customizable • Dashboard with up to four configurable periods for quick spending overview • List of your expenses day by day, searchable and editable • Summary reports of your data - daily, weekly, monthly, or by expense category • Option to define a comparison period for parallel analysis with the current reporting period • Reports can be presented in drill-down tables, bar graphs, pie charts, or PDF documents • Print, email, or share PDF reports directly from within the app • Spending data can be exported in CSV format, which is convenient for use in various spreadsheet programs • Backup and restore all spending data to iCloud • Optional passcode protection upon launch • Foreign currency conversion • Bundled Apple Watch app for a quick overview of your spending for the current day

About

Cliff Journal

Features
Read full description

Record transactions, track accounts, and generate financial statements with double-entry bookkeeping. Cliff Journal is for freelancers, small business owners, and anyone who knows a debit from a credit. Private by design All data stays on your device. No account required. No ads. No subscriptions — buy once, use forever. Complete Bookkeeping Five accounting elements, a hierarchical chart of accounts, and a balanced debit and credit on every entry. Correct a mistake with a reversing entry so the audit trail stays intact. Quick Fill Save the accounts you pay from. When an entry is short on the credit side, tap a chip to fill the remainder. Mark one account as primary. The equals button fills an empty credit line with the amount still needed. Financial Statements Generate a Trial Balance, Income Statement, Balance Sheet, Statement of Owner's Equity, and Cash Flow Statement. Periods follow the owner's calendar: daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly, or yearly. Multiple Owners Keep separate books for different businesses. Each owner has their own database, currency, fiscal year, and accounting cycles. Templates and Reminders Save a recurring transaction as a template. Schedule a reminder so you record it on time. Home Screen Widgets See expenses, income, cash flow, or an account balance without opening the app. Small, medium, and large sizes. Periods follow your accounting calendar. Hide amounts when you want the numbers kept private. Export and Import Back up as CSV. Export a snapshot or a periodic archive, and import it on another device. Feedback welcome Any suggestions or feedback are highly appreciated.

Screenshots

Pico Spend4 screens
Cliff Journal4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Pico Spend at $1.99 against Cliff Journal's $9.99. Cliff Journal's advantage is update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 7 months). On ads, in-app purchases, device support and iOS requirement 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

Pico Spend costs $1.99 and Cliff Journal $9.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Pico Spend ships an update every 7 months, Cliff Journal every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 6, 2026 and October 19, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
Pico Spend versus Cliff Journal: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPico SpendCliff Journal
Price$1.99 — better$9.99
Rating4.3 (3 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews81.8% of reviews—
Number of ratings3 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 7 monthsEvery 2 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationPaid—
DevicesiPhone, Apple Watch — betteriPhone
Requires iOS17.016.6 — better
Further details — not scored
Size2 MB9 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperDejan Petrovski林淮 刘

In-app purchases

None

Pico Spend

No in-app purchases

None

Cliff Journal

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Pico Spend free?
Pico Spend costs $1.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Cliff Journal free?
Cliff Journal costs $9.99, with no in-app purchases.
Do Pico Spend or Cliff Journal have ads?
Neither Pico Spend nor Cliff Journal shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Pico Spend or Cliff Journal?
Pico Spend ships an update every 7 months, and Cliff Journal every 2 weeks. Most recently, Pico Spend was updated on October 6, 2026 and Cliff Journal on October 19, 2026.

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