Best Budgeting Apps
YNAB is the default pick for anyone actively trying to change their spending habits, since its zero-based method forces a decision on every dollar rather than just reporting where it went. Monarch Money suits households who want to budget jointly in one shared app. Copilot Money is worth it if you want strong automatic categorisation with minimal manual cleanup, and Empower Personal Dashboard is the pick if you mainly want a free net worth and investment tracker rather than a full budgeting system.
Best Budgeting Apps
Nothing we can price
None of these carry the figures needed to rank them for your situation yet.
Compared side by side
4 compared on the 4 things that decide it. A blank cell means we could not confirm the answer, not that the answer is no.
| Provider | Budgeting method | Free tier | Household sharing | Account linking |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| YNAB Best for changing habits | — | — | — | — |
| Monarch Money Best for households | — | — | — | — |
| Copilot Money Best automatic categorisation | — | — | — | — |
| Empower Personal Dashboard Best free net worth tracker | — | — | — | — |
Every offer, priced the same way
Ranked by what it costs you over a year. The arithmetic behind each figure is shown so you can check it. Offers we could not price are listed at the bottom with the reason.
1. YNAB — You Need A Budget
Best for changing habits
A zero-based method that has you assign every dollar a job before you spend it.
Priced from national figures.
2. Monarch Money — Monarch
Best for households
Built for couples and families budgeting together in one shared view.
Priced from national figures.
3. Copilot Money — Copilot
Best automatic categorisation
Learns your spending patterns quickly, reducing how much manual tagging you have to do.
Priced from national figures.
4. Empower Personal Dashboard — Empower
Best free net worth tracker
Free investment and net worth tracking, with an optional paid advisory service layered on top.
Priced from national figures.
How we ranked these
We rank on the budgeting method each app uses (zero-based versus automatic tracking), whether it supports shared or household budgets, how much manual categorisation it typically requires, and what is included free versus behind a subscription. We do not rank on subscription price, since pricing tiers change too often to compare fairly.