Budget Zero vs Envelopes
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Budget Zero
This app helps you manage your money privately using a zero-based envelope budgeting system. It allows manual transaction logging without linking bank accounts, offering a distraction-free interface and offline functionality.
- Zero-based envelope budgeting
- Private, no bank linking
- Manual transaction logging
- Offline functionality
- Budget rollover
- iCloud sync
- Dark mode support
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The budgeting app that respects your wallet AND your privacy. Budget Zero uses zero-based envelope budgeting to give every dollar a job, without linking your bank account or tracking your data. Try Budget Zero Pro free for a month, or pay once with Lifetime and skip the subscription. WHY BUDGET ZERO? • Affordable - A fraction of the cost of other budgeting apps. • Private - No bank linking. No data selling. Your finances stay yours. • Simple - Manual entry keeps you mindful of every transaction • Powerful - Full envelope budgeting, with leftover money that rolls into next month HOW IT WORKS 1. Add your accounts (checking, savings, credit cards, cash) 2. Create budget categories and organize them into groups 3. Assign dollars to each category every month 4. Log transactions and watch your budget update in real time 5. Reach zero - every dollar has a job FEATURES • Zero-based envelope budgeting system • Import your budget from YNAB: accounts, categories, transactions and balances • Multiple account support (checking, savings, credit, cash) • Monthly budget periods with easy month-to-month navigation • Rollover: unspent money carries into the next month, and you can move it to another budget • Budget groups for organized category management • Transaction tracking with payee, date, and category, plus transfers between accounts • Budgets filled in from each payee's last transaction • Credit card payment budgets that keep card spending covered • iCloud-synced across your devices • Works offline - no internet required to budget • Clean, distraction-free interface • Dark mode support BUDGET ZERO PRO Pro unlocks unlimited budgets, accounts and transactions. Start with a free month on the monthly or yearly plan, or buy Lifetime once and keep Pro forever. Either way, it costs a fraction of what other budgeting apps charge. Take control of your money. Download Budget Zero today. About Subscriptions: • Subscription Name: Budget Zero Pro • Subscription Length: 1 Month or 1 Year (Auto-renewable) • Subscription Price: shown in your local currency on the App Store before purchase • Free Trial: the monthly and yearly plans start with a 1-month free trial for eligible new subscribers. Unless you cancel at least 24 hours before the trial ends, the subscription starts and renews automatically. • Lifetime: a one-time purchase that unlocks Budget Zero Pro permanently. It does not renew. Price shown in your local currency on the App Store before purchase. • Payment will be charged to your Apple Account at confirmation of purchase. • Subscription automatically renews unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. • Your account will be charged for renewal within 24 hours prior to the end of the current period. • You can manage or turn off auto-renew in your Apple Account Settings at any time after purchase. Links: • Privacy Policy: https://budgetzeroapp.com/privacy • Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Envelopes
This app helps you manage your money by allocating funds into different spending categories, or "envelopes." You can quickly log expenses to track where your money goes and then refill your envelopes as needed to reach your financial goals.
- Envelope budgeting system
- Expense logging
- Financial goal tracking
- Money allocation
- Spending mindfulness
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The Envelopes app empowers you to gain control over your finances. Allocate money to "Envelopes", different buckets of your spending. As you spend money, quickly log your expenses and be mindful where your money goes. At the end of the week, month, or when you pay check comes in, refill the envelopes and celebrate your steps towards wealth. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Envelopes at 5.0 against Budget Zero's 4.3. Envelopes also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 75%). Budget Zero's advantage is update cadence (every 3 days vs every 2 weeks). On price, ratings volume, ads and in-app purchases 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
Both are free to download. Budget Zero sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month and Envelopes sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Envelopes holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.3. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 6 and 7 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 75% of Budget Zero's written reviews are positive against 100% of Envelopes's.
Budget Zero ships an update every 3 days, Envelopes every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 5, 2026 and November 4, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Budget Zero | Envelopes |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.3 (6 ratings) | 5.0 (7 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 75.0% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 6 | 7 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 3 days — better | Every 2 weeks |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Freemium | Freemium |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 18.0 | 18.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 21 MB | 9 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Grey Park, LLC | JOSCHUA GLAU |
Customer experience
Budget Zero
Envelopes
In-app purchases
Budget Zero
- Monthly Subscription1 Month trial$3.991 Month
- Yearly Subscription1 Month trial$29.991 Year
- Lifetime Access$79.99
Envelopes
- Monthly$0.991 Month
- Yearly7 Days trial$4.991 Year









