# Spending Tracker vs Simple Budget

The clearest difference is update cadence: Simple Budget at weekly against Spending Tracker's every 2 months. Simple Budget also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.8). Spending Tracker's advantage is review sentiment (95% vs 67%) and ratings volume (19K vs 1). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Spending Tracker sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Simple Budget sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Simple Budget holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Spending Tracker has 19K ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 95% of Spending Tracker's written reviews are positive against 67% of Simple Budget's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

Spending Tracker ships an update every 2 months, Simple Budget weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 17, 2026 and October 7, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Spending Tracker | Simple Budget |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.8 (19K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/spending-tracker/id548615579/reviews) | **[5.0 (1 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/simple-budget-expense-manager/id6746043320/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **19K** | 1 |
| Positive reviews | **94.5% of reviews** | 66.7% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | Yes | Yes |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | **Weekly** |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Size | 50 MB | 70 MB |
| Requires iOS | **15.5** | 15.6 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac, Apple Watch** | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [MH Riley Ltd](https://appshunter.io/developer/409695800) | [Waheed Nazir](https://appshunter.io/developer/1612955852) |

## What reviewers say

### Spending Tracker

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/spending-tracker/id548615579)

Easily track your expenses and income to gain control over your finances. Set budgets, view spending summaries, and generate reports with interactive charts. Take the first step towards saving money by understanding where your money goes.

**Highlights:** Simple and intuitive interface, Flexible time period tracking (Weekly, Monthly, Yearly), Budget mode with carry-over, Summary view of spending progress, Log expenses and income, Editable spending and income categories, Interactive charts and reports

**Features:** Family Sharing, Apple Watch app

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Pro Upgrade | $2.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Easy to use
- 📊 Helpful reports and charts
- 💰 One-time fee for premium features
- 🔁 Recurring transactions
- 🗂️ Multiple accounts and categories

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Occasional syncing issues
- 🔢 Lack of fortnightly budget option
- 🗂️ Difficulty deleting unused categories
- 💰 Paid upgrade required for some features
- 📈 Limited budget tracking within categories

**Reported bugs**

- Transactions sometimes entered in wrong order
- Backup and restore functionality not always reliable

**Requested features**

- Add ability to split transactions into multiple categories
- Incorporate currency conversion and exchange rates
- Allow family/shared account access and updates
- Implement a 'Debt' category to track loan payments
- Add option to take photos of receipts and attach to transactions


### Simple Budget

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/simple-budget-expense-manager/id6746043320)

Manage your personal finances with this straightforward expense tracker. Monitor spending, set savings goals, and track bills and debt. Offers offline access, automatic cloud backup, and customizable reports to help you stay on top of your money.

**Highlights:** Expense and income tracking, Budget planning and savings goals, Debt and bill management, Offline finance management, Automatic cloud backup, Customizable expense categories, Forecasting future expenses

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Family Sharing

**In-app purchases (2)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Monthly Subscription | $4.99 | per month |
| Lifetime | $69.99 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Spending Tracker free?

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

### Is Simple Budget free?

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

### Which has better reviews, Spending Tracker or Simple Budget?

Simple Budget is rated higher. Spending Tracker averages 4.8 out of 5 from 19K ratings, while Simple Budget averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.

### Do Spending Tracker or Simple Budget have ads?

Both Spending Tracker and Simple Budget show ads.

### Which is updated more often, Spending Tracker or Simple Budget?

Spending Tracker ships an update every 2 months, and Simple Budget weekly. Most recently, Spending Tracker was updated on October 17, 2026 and Simple Budget on October 7, 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.*