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The best budget apps in 2026, by what you need

There is no single best budget app. There is a best one for a method, one for linking every account, one for envelopes, one for open source and one for money in several currencies. These are the ten we would point a friend to, grouped by the need each one meets best, with every price checked on its own site on 24 October 2026.

  • A budgeting method that teaches youYNAB
  • Every account linked, in the US or CanadaMonarch
  • Apple devices only, in the USCopilot
  • Envelopes, free on two phonesGoodbudget
  • The Ramsey plan, free by handEveryDollar
  • Open source, your own serverActual Budget
  • Money in several currencies, with or without a bankTavala
  • Forecasts and bank feeds outside North AmericaPocketSmith
  • Finding subscriptions to cancelRocket Money
  • A free, local tracker with Google Drive syncCashew

By Dejan Bogatinovski, founder of Tavala. Updated .

Ten budget apps side by side
AppPriceFree planCurrenciesBank connections
YNAB$109 a yearor $14.99 a month; 34-day trialNoneA 34-day trial; college students get 365 daysOne per planIts advice for several: a separate plan for eachIncludedSelect banks in the US, Canada and 18 European countries, UK included
Monarch$99.99 a yearor $14.99 a month (Core); Plus $199.99 a yearNoneA 7-day trial with a payment methodNo conversionShows every amount as $; USD or CAD accounts advisedIncluded, at the coreUS and Canada only, 13,000+ institutions
Copilot$95 a year$13 a month in the App Store; 1-month trialNoneA 1-month trialUSD only"does not convert foreign currency transactions"Included, at the coreUS-based accounts only, through Plaid and Finicity
Goodbudget$80 a yearor $10 a month on the web (Premium)Free forever20 envelopes, 1 account, 2 devices, 1 year of historyOneIts own comparison table: multiple currencies "N"Premium onlyUS banks only, through Plaid
EveryDollar$79.99 a yearor $17.99 a month (Premium); 14-day trialFree versionManual entry, unlimited categories, shared household budgetUS dollars only"currently only supports U.S. dollars"Premium onlyThrough Mastercard Connect and Plaid
Actual BudgetFree softwareHosting from $2 a month (PikaPods)FreeOpen source (MIT); you run itOne"does not support multi-currency"Optional, set up yourselfNeeds your server; SimpleFIN ($15 a year) or Enable Banking
TavalaFree; Plus $39.99 a yearor $6.99 a month on the webFree forever1 synced device, 2 currencies per space, 2 private spacesEvery currency in one space155 currencies and 96 cryptocurrencies; 2 per space on the free planOptional add-onBanks in the United States and Canada, through Plaid, $3.99 a month per bank
PocketSmith$9.99 a month, billed yearlyFoundation; $14.95 billed monthly; 14-day money backFree plan2 accounts, 12 budgets, 2 dashboards; no bank feedsMulti-currency, all plansA base currency; gold, silver and bitcoin tooPaid plans, capped by plan6 banks in 1 country, 18 banks, or unlimited
Rocket MoneyPay what you choosePremium "typically" $7 to $14 a month; Premium+ $15Free tierSubscription tracking, budgets and bill remindersNot statedRequired, US onlyUS users with US banks
CashewFree; Pro $11.99 a yearOr $1.49 a month, $19.99 once (US App Store)Free appOpen source (GPL-3.0)Multi-currencyOne currency per account; totals in the primary oneNoneNotification and SMS reading instead
Checked on 24 October 2026 on each app's own pages, US prices: YNAB, Monarch, Copilot, Goodbudget, EveryDollar, Actual Budget, PocketSmith, Rocket Money and Cashew.

YNAB, for a budgeting method that teaches you

  • Price: $109 a year
  • Platforms: iPhone, iPad, Android, web
  • Currencies: One per plan

YNAB is a method as much as an app: every dollar gets a job before you spend it, and its guides and workshops teach the habit. Bank import covers select banks in the US, Canada, the UK and much of the EU, and up to six people share one subscription with their own logins. $109 a year or $14.99 a month after a 34-day trial; college students get a year free.

Where it falls short: One currency per plan, no free plan, and a method that takes real setup.

YNAB's own pricing page

Monarch, for linking every account in the US or Canada

  • Price: $99.99 a year
  • Platforms: iPhone, iPad, Android, web
  • Currencies: No conversion

Monarch pulls every account from thousands of institutions into budgets, cash flow, investments and net worth, adds household members at no extra cost and has an AI assistant. $99.99 a year or $14.99 a month after a 7-day trial.

Where it falls short: Available only in the US and Canada, no currency conversion, no free plan.

Monarch's own pricing page

Copilot, for a US household on Apple devices

  • Price: $95 a year
  • Platforms: iPhone, iPad, Mac, web
  • Currencies: USD only

Copilot is the most polished bank-fed app on iPhone, iPad and a native Mac app, with automatic categorization and no ads. $95 a year, or $13 a month in the App Store, after a one-month trial.

Where it falls short: US accounts and US dollars only, and no Android app.

Copilot's own pricing page

Goodbudget, for envelopes on two phones, free

  • Price: $80 a year
  • Platforms: iPhone, Android, web
  • Currencies: One

Goodbudget is envelope budgeting for a household: fill envelopes, spend from them, share one budget on two phones free (20 envelopes, one account, a year of history). Premium is $80 a year with US bank sync.

Where it falls short: One currency, and its help describes it as needing an internet connection.

Goodbudget's own pricing page

EveryDollar, for the Ramsey plan, free by hand

  • Price: $79.99 a year
  • Platforms: Web, iPhone, iPad, Android
  • Currencies: US dollars only

EveryDollar is Ramsey Solutions' zero-based budget. The free version has unlimited categories and a shared household budget if you enter spending yourself; Premium, $79.99 a year, adds bank connections.

Where it falls short: Built around one personal finance program, and its currency support is not stated.

EveryDollar's own pricing page

Actual Budget, for open source on your own server

  • Price: Free software
  • Platforms: Mac, Windows, Linux, web
  • Currencies: One

Actual is free, open-source, local-first envelope budgeting with no tracking. It syncs through a server you run or rent (PikaPods from about $2 a month), and imports bank files from any country.

Where it falls short: One currency, mobile through an installed web page, and syncing needs a server.

Actual Budget's own pricing page

Tavala, for money in several currencies, with or without a bank

  • Price: Free; Plus $39.99 a year
  • Platforms: iPhone, iPad, Android, Mac, web
  • Currencies: Every currency in one space

Tavala keeps every entry in the currency it was paid in, with the rate of its day, and adds a budget up in one main currency: a salary in euros, rent in pounds, a card in dollars. It starts with no account and no bank, works offline on iPhone, iPad, Android, a native Mac app and the web, and is free to start; Tavala Plus is $39.99 a year on the web for every device, every currency and sharing with up to six people.

Where it falls short: Bank sync only for banks in the United States and Canada, as a paid add-on; no import from other apps yet; not a zero-based method.

Tavala pricing

PocketSmith, for forecasts and bank feeds outside North America

  • Price: $9.99 a month, billed yearly
  • Platforms: Web, iPhone, iPad, Android
  • Currencies: Multi-currency, all plans

PocketSmith projects your balances far ahead, holds real multi-currency accounts and connects banks in many countries, Australia and New Zealand especially. The free plan covers 2 accounts and 12 budgets; Foundation is $119.88 a year.

Where it falls short: Web first, and the full forecasting and country coverage cost more than most apps here.

PocketSmith's own pricing page

Rocket Money, for finding subscriptions to cancel

  • Price: Pay what you choose
  • Platforms: iPhone, web
  • Currencies: Not stated

Rocket Money's strength is finding recurring charges you forgot and helping cancel them, with budgets and bill reminders on its free tier. Premium is pay what you choose, which it says is typically $7 to $14 a month.

Where it falls short: US users with US banks only; it needs your bank connected.

Rocket Money's own pricing page

Cashew, for a free, local tracker

  • Price: Free; Pro $11.99 a year
  • Platforms: iPhone, iPad, Android, web
  • Currencies: Multi-currency

Cashew is a free, open-source tracker with data on your device, multi-currency with daily rates, and sync through your own Google Drive. Pro is $11.99 a year.

Where it falls short: No bank connections, and sharing runs through a Google account.

Cashew's own pricing page

How to choose

Start from where your money is, not from the app. If every account is at a bank in the US or Canada and you want it all to arrive by itself, pick a bank-fed app (Monarch, Copilot, Rocket Money). If you want to be taught a method, YNAB or EveryDollar. If you will not link a bank, or your bank is somewhere aggregators do not reach, pick an app built for entering spending by hand (Goodbudget, Actual, Cashew, Tavala).

Then check the three things lists rarely show: whether it handles a second currency (most do not), whether it works with no connection, and what the free plan really covers. Our free budgeting apps page goes through the last one app by app.

How this page was made

We chose apps that rank and are recommended for budgeting and that we could check on their own sites, and compared what can be measured: price, the free plan, platforms, currencies, bank connections, offline use. Every fact comes from the vendor's own pages on 24 October 2026, US prices; we check them again every quarter. The groups are our judgment of which need each app serves best; Tavala publishes this page and is on it, placed where it fits.

Questions

What is the best free budget app?
For envelopes, Goodbudget's free plan; for the Ramsey plan, EveryDollar's free version; for open source, Actual Budget; for several currencies, Tavala's free plan. Each covers different things; the free budgeting apps page lists what each free plan includes.
Which budget app works outside the US?
Most bank-fed apps are built for the US and Canada. YNAB imports from select UK and EU banks, PocketSmith and Wallet connect banks in many countries, and apps used by hand (Goodbudget, Actual, Cashew, Tavala) work anywhere.
Which budget apps handle more than one currency?
Of this list, Tavala, PocketSmith and Cashew convert accounts in different currencies into one total. YNAB keeps one currency per plan, Monarch and Copilot do no conversion, and Goodbudget and Actual have one currency.

Go further

Start with what you spent today.

There is no account to create and no card to enter. Pick your currency, add what you paid, and Home shows what is left.

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