Mona vs Envelope Lite
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Mona
This AI-powered app simplifies personal finance by helping you track daily expenses, create budgets, and gain insights into your spending habits. Log transactions effortlessly with natural language input and organize your finances with clear reports and summaries.
- AI expense tracking with natural language input
- Real-time budget planning and progress monitoring
- Spending analysis with finance reports and charts
- Multi-account and wallet management
- Bill and recurring payment awareness
- Savings goal tracking
- Privacy-first, offline-first design
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Mona answers the one question a money app should: how much can I actually spend? Not your balance. Not what is left in the account. What is genuinely yours to spend today — once this month's budget and the bills already on their way out have been counted. Free — every feature, no subscription, no ads. SAFE TO SPEND One number, at the top of the screen. Your budget, minus what you have spent, minus the rent and subscriptions Mona has found in your own history and set aside before showing you the figure. No app should tell you the rent is available to spend. AN ANSWER FOR TODAY Mona divides what is left across the days remaining, so every day has a number. Stay near it and you land inside your budget. SEE WHERE THE MONTH LANDS One bar carries two things at once: how much you have spent, and how much of the month has gone. Fill behind the marker means you are pacing well. Mona projects where you will finish while there is still time to change it. ADD AN EXPENSE IN SECONDS • A purpose-built keypad — no menus to scroll • Or describe it: type "coffee 5" and Mona files it • Or say it out loud • Your most-used categories sit one tap away EVERYTHING ELSE • Cash, bank accounts and cards in one place • Budgets by month, week, quarter or year — and by category • Transfers between your own accounts, which never count as spending • Recurring charges found in your own history • A weekly read on your spending, and a quiet word when something is unusual • Home Screen and Lock Screen widgets • An evening reminder, if you want one FREE, YOURS, AND PRIVATE • Free — every feature, for everyone, with nothing locked • No subscription, no ads, no upsell • No account to create • Works offline • Your data stays on your device and in your own iCloud • Encrypted backups you keep yourself • Export everything as a spreadsheet, whenever you like IN YOUR LANGUAGE English, Vietnamese, German, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Japanese, Korean and Simplified Chinese — with every amount, date and number written the way your country writes it. Know what you can spend. Privacy Policy: https://get-mona.app/privacy/ Terms of Use: https://get-mona.app/terms/
Envelope Lite
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Take control of your money with Envelope Lite - a simple, privacy-first budget tracker. Divide your income into different envelopes, log expenses in seconds, and see exactly where your money goes. Local-first - your financial data stays on your device. Ad-supported with consent controls. How it works: Divide your monthly income into different budget envelopes - Food & Dining, Bills & Utilities, Family & Personal, Savings Fund, and Emergency/Debt. Every time you spend money, log it in the right envelope. See instantly how much you have left. Key Features: - Envelope Budgeting - different budget envelopes with adjustable amounts. See spent vs budget at a glance with color-coded progress bars. - Quick Expense Logging - Built-in calculator with quick keys for fast amount entry. Log an expense in under 15 seconds. - Sub-Categories - Classify expenses within each envelope (e.g., Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner under Food & Dining) for detailed spending insights. - Payment Tracking - Record how you paid: Cash, Bank Account, E-wallet (Momo, ZaloPay, GrabPay, VNPay), or Card (Credit, Debit, Prepaid). - Discount & Voucher Tracking - Record original price and discount separately. Know what you actually paid vs what you saved. - Spending Reports - Visual reports with charts showing budget vs actual, spending by category, and payment source breakdown. - Smart Reminders - Daily notification that adapts to your activity. Already logged your expenses? The reminder stays quiet. - Tags - Add freeform tags like store names or people for quick context on any transaction. - Local-First - All your financial data stays on your device. No account required. No cloud sync. The app works fully offline once installed. Privacy First: Your financial data never leaves your device - no transactions, budgets, or notes are uploaded anywhere. Envelope Lite is ad-supported (Google AdMob); you can choose personalised or non-personalised ads at first launch and change your mind any time in Settings -> Privacy & Data. See the privacy policy for what AdMob handles. Designed for daily use: The app is built around one habit: spend money, open app, log expense, close app. Everything is optimised for this 15-second daily action. Perfect for: - Anyone starting their budgeting journey - People who prefer cash-based or envelope-style budgeting - Users who value privacy and want no cloud dependency - Southeast Asian markets with VND-optimised amount input
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Envelope Lite at none against Mona's 4. Mona's advantage is ads (none vs shown). On price, update cadence, 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
Both are free to download. Mona sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. Envelope Lite asks for nothing beyond the download.
Mona ships an update every 3 weeks, Envelope Lite fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 10, 2026 and October 8, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Mona | Envelope Lite |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.3 (3 ratings) — better | — |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 3 — better | — |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks | Fortnightly — better |
| Ads | No — better | Yes |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Freemium | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 18.2 | 17 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 29 MB | 28 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Anh Nguyen | ALASTS |
In-app purchases
Mona
- Mona Pro (Monthly)$2.991 Month
- Mona Pro (Yearly)$9.991 Year
- Mona Pro (Lifetime)$12.99
- Mona Pro (Lifetime)$19.99
Envelope Lite
No in-app purchases









