# Payoff vs Lighten

The clearest difference is ads: Payoff at none against Lighten's shown. Lighten's advantage is update cadence (weekly vs every 5 months). On price, in-app purchases, device support and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Payoff sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Lighten sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Payoff ships an update every 5 months, Lighten weekly. The most recent releases landed on November 5, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Payoff | Lighten |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[5.0 (1 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/payoff-debt-tracker/id6762548093/reviews)** | — |
| Number of ratings | **1** | — |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | **No** | Yes |
| Update frequency | Every 5 months | **Weekly** |
| Monetization | Freemium | — |
| Size | 5 MB | 44 MB |
| Requires iOS | **15.0** | 15.6 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 12+ |
| Developer | [Sandeep Mysore](https://appshunter.io/developer/1892943448) | [Nguyen Khac Tiep](https://appshunter.io/developer/1286629572) |

## What reviewers say

### Payoff

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/payoff-debt-tracker/id6762548093)

This app helps you create a personalized plan to pay off your debts efficiently. It compares different payoff strategies, tracks your progress, and sends due date reminders. You can visualize savings and share milestones.

**Highlights:** Personalized monthly debt payoff plan, Comparison of payoff strategies (Avalanche, Snowball, etc.), Progress tracking and debt-free countdown, Due date reminders, Home screen widget, Privacy-focused with no ads or analytics

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

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Payoff Premium | $2.99 | one-time |


### Lighten

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/lighten-debt-payoff-planner/id6793988156)

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

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Lighten Pro | $3.99 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Payoff free?

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

### Is Lighten free?

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

### Do Payoff or Lighten have ads?

Lighten shows ads; Payoff does not.

### Which is updated more often, Payoff or Lighten?

Payoff ships an update every 5 months, and Lighten weekly. Most recently, Payoff was updated on November 5, 2026 and Lighten on October 24, 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.*