# Lunch Money vs Curl Budget

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Curl Budget at 100% against Lunch Money's 61%. Curl Budget also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.8) and update cadence (weekly vs every 2 weeks). Lunch Money's advantage is monetization model (free vs free with in-app purchases) and ratings volume (58 vs 1). On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Lunch Money sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $150.00 per year and Curl Budget sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Curl Budget holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Lunch Money has 58 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 61% of Lunch Money's written reviews are positive against 100% of Curl Budget's.

Lunch Money ships an update every 2 weeks, Curl Budget weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 7, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Lunch Money | Curl Budget |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.8 (58 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/lunch-money/id6739028463/reviews) | **[5.0 (1 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/curl-budget/id6753088049/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **58** | 1 |
| Positive reviews | 60.9% of reviews | **100.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 2 weeks | **Weekly** |
| Monetization | **Free** | Free with in-app purchases |
| Size | 69 MB | 63 MB |
| Requires iOS | **16.4** | 17.4 |
| Devices | iPhone | iPhone |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Lunchbag Labs Inc](https://appshunter.io/developer/1361739811) | [Carl Gieringer](https://appshunter.io/developer/1469363183) |

## What reviewers say

### Lunch Money

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/lunch-money/id6739028463)

Track your income and spending with detailed statistics and charts. Review transactions, categorize them, and add notes on the go. This companion app requires an existing registration for the web application.

**Highlights:** Detailed income and spending stats, Spending breakdown by category, Quick transaction review, Categorize, tag, and add notes, Monthly spending patterns and charts

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Annual Subscription | $150.00 | per year |


### Curl Budget

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/curl-budget/id6753088049)

Manage your finances solo or with others. This app connects to your bank, automates transaction categorization, and helps you track budgets to stay on pace. It offers features for shared workspaces, multi-currency support, and crypto wallet monitoring.

**Highlights:** AI-powered transaction categorization, Shared budgeting for families and couples, Multi-currency account tracking, Crypto wallet balance monitoring, Savings goals and financial projections, Receipt capture with OCR, Automated bank transaction imports

**Features:** Family Sharing

**In-app purchases (2)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Curl Budget (Monthly) | $4.99 | per month |
| Curl Budget (Annual) | $49.99 | per year |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Lunch Money free?

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

### Is Curl Budget free?

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

### Which has better reviews, Lunch Money or Curl Budget?

Curl Budget is rated higher. Lunch Money averages 4.8 out of 5 from 58 ratings, while Curl Budget averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.

### Do Lunch Money or Curl Budget have ads?

Neither Lunch Money nor Curl Budget shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Lunch Money or Curl Budget?

Lunch Money ships an update every 2 weeks, and Curl Budget weekly. Most recently, Lunch Money was updated on October 24, 2026 and Curl 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.*