# iSpending vs DarkBook

The clearest difference is ads: DarkBook at none against iSpending's shown. DarkBook also leads on update cadence (weekly vs every 6 months) and review sentiment (89% vs 69%). iSpending's advantage is ratings volume (634 vs 4) and iOS requirement (12.0 vs 15.0). On price, rating, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. iSpending sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month and DarkBook sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $1.49 per year. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.4 for iSpending against 4.5 for DarkBook. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: iSpending has 634 ratings behind it against 4, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 69% of iSpending's written reviews are positive against 89% of DarkBook's.

iSpending ships an update every 6 months, DarkBook weekly. The most recent releases landed on November 6, 2026 and November 3, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | iSpending | DarkBook |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.4 (634 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ispending-expense-tracker/id484100875/reviews) | **[4.5 (4 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/darkbooklite-spending-tracker/id1521821145/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **634** | 4 |
| Positive reviews | 68.9% of reviews | **88.9% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | Yes | **No** |
| Update frequency | Every 6 months | **Weekly** |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Size | 19 MB | 26 MB |
| Requires iOS | **12.0** | 15.0 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Hana Mobile](https://appshunter.io/developer/306576922) | [Chongqing Zhouhu Technology Co.,Ltd](https://appshunter.io/developer/1469907105) |

## What reviewers say

### iSpending

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ispending-expense-tracker/id484100875)

Track your income and expenses with this free personal finance app. Organize transactions by category, view instant summaries, and analyze spending patterns with detailed graphs. Secure your data with passcode and Face ID.

**Highlights:** Categorize income and expenses, Customizable spending categories, Instant daily, weekly, monthly, yearly summaries, Detailed graph reports, Transaction search, Passcode and Face ID lock, iCloud sync

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

**In-app purchases (2)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| iSpending Premium | $2.99 | per month |
| iSpending Premium | $29.99 | per year |

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Easy to use
- 💰 Helps organize finances
- 📊 Provides good visibility into spending
- 🚀 Simple and straightforward

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🔒 Limited functionality without paid upgrade
- 🐛 Crashes and bugs reported
- 🗓️ Lack of customization options (categories, date range)
- 💻 No cross-device sync or backup

**Reported bugs**

- Transactions not displaying properly
- Data loss after app updates
- Inability to access past year's data

**Requested features**

- Recurring transaction options
- Ability to edit/delete past entries
- More detailed reporting and analytics
- Multi-currency support
- Sync across devices


### DarkBook

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/darkbooklite-spending-tracker/id1521821145)

A minimalist budget tracker with a focus on a dark, eye-friendly interface. It offers fast, simplified bookkeeping with multi-ledger, multi-account, and multi-member support. Analyze your spending and asset trends with clear visualizations.

**Highlights:** Optimized dark theme, Local data storage, Fast bookkeeping with gestures, Multi-ledger support, Multi-account management, Revenue and expenditure analysis, Asset trend tracking

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

**In-app purchases (2)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Pay per year | $1.49 | per year |
| Life member | $3.99 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is iSpending free?

iSpending is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is DarkBook free?

DarkBook is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, iSpending or DarkBook?

DarkBook is rated higher. iSpending averages 4.4 out of 5 from 634 ratings, while DarkBook averages 4.5 from 4 ratings.

### Do iSpending or DarkBook have ads?

iSpending shows ads; DarkBook does not.

### Which is updated more often, iSpending or DarkBook?

iSpending ships an update every 6 months, and DarkBook weekly. Most recently, iSpending was updated on November 6, 2026 and DarkBook on November 3, 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.*