Alternatives
Monarch Money alternatives
Monarch Money is a personal finance app that connects bank, card, loan and investment accounts from thousands of institutions. It tracks spending, budgets, cash flow and net worth, finds recurring subscriptions, tracks savings goals and lets you invite a partner or a financial professional. It runs on the web, iPhone and Android.
Why people look
Why people look for a Monarch Money alternative
The reasons that come up most. Whether they apply to you depends on what you want from a budget app, and whether you need the receipts behind it.
The transaction says the store and the amount, not what we bought.
The itemized receipt is matched to the charge, with each item and tax read.
One grocery run covers us and a roommate, and the budget can't tell the difference.
Tap who had what on the receipt, and the split is tracked until it's settled.
Receipts for medical costs and donations are scattered when we file.
Tax receipts are sorted by category as they arrive, with a running total for the year.
The shortlist
5 alternatives to Monarch Money
The apps people try instead of Monarch Money, each with what it's for. The order isn't a ranking, and the criteria are explained below.
- 01
YNAB
YNAB plans every dollar before you spend it. Smartbills keeps the itemized receipts behind your spending, for splitting, returns and tax time.
Best forPeople who want to change how they plan their money, with a method to follow.
Compare it with Smartbills - 02
Copilot Money
Copilot Money is a polished budget and investment tracker for Apple devices. Smartbills keeps the itemized receipts behind your spending, on iPhone and Android.
Best forApple users who want a beautiful budget and investment dashboard.
Compare it with Smartbills - 03
Rocket Money
Rocket Money finds subscriptions and can cancel them for you. Smartbills flags them too, and adds the itemized receipt behind every other purchase.
Best forUS households who want a full budgeting app and someone else to handle cancelling subscriptions and negotiating bills.
Compare it with Smartbills - 04
PocketGuard
PocketGuard shows what's left to spend after bills. Smartbills keeps the itemized receipt for what you did spend, for splitting, returns and tax time.
Best forPeople who want one number that says what they can safely spend today.
Compare it with Smartbills - 05
Goodbudget
Goodbudget brings envelope budgeting to your phone. Smartbills keeps the itemized receipts you spend from those envelopes, ready to split and return.
Best forHouseholds who like the envelope method and want to share one budget.
Compare it with Smartbills
Disclosure
And Smartbills, which is ours
Slipping our own product into a roundup without saying so is exactly what makes these pages worthless, so to be clear, this one is ours.
Smartbills
Best for: People who want the detail behind each purchase, for splitting, returns and tax time.
Smartbills vs Monarch MoneyHow this list was put together
These are the apps that come up alongside Monarch Money when people look for a budget app. The order is editorial rather than a ranking, because we don't benchmark apps we don't run, and Smartbills isn't a budget app itself: it keeps the receipts behind your spending. Each entry links to a full comparison with claims specific enough to check.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
What people ask us before they sign up.
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Comparing Monarch Money with something else?
Keep your budget where it is and let Smartbills keep the itemized receipts behind it, for splitting, returns and tax time. It's free.