People look for Monefy alternatives for a handful of reasons. Some want recurring transactions or more accounts without a subscription. Some would rather sync through iCloud than through a Google Drive or Dropbox folder. Others have simply stopped opening it, because tapping a category on a ring chart never quite became a habit. The best Monefy alternative depends on which of those is you.
Every app below works without a bank login, like Monefy. The first is SpendPal, which we make, and we've put it on the one case it suits best. Each pick has its own "best for", and the first section is about what Monefy itself does well.
Where Monefy still wins
Credit first. Monefy (4.7, 6,800+ US ratings) from Reflective Technologies is built around speed: you tap a category, type the amount and you're done. Its own help centre says the budget lives in an encrypted file on your device by default, and if you turn on sync, that file goes to a folder in your Google Drive or Dropbox; Monefy's servers never touch it. The same sync works between iPhone and Android, so a couple on different phones can share one log. Monefy says the app contains zero ad SDKs. It handles 150+ currencies and 25+ languages, recurring records, multiple accounts, a passcode or Face ID lock, and a built-in calculator.
If that already fits, you may not need an alternative. For the wider field of trackers that never touch your bank, see the best manual expense tracker apps.
Monefy free vs Premium: what you get
According to Monefy's website, the core app is completely free. An optional upgrade "unlocks unlimited accounts, recurring transactions, advanced filters and more". On the App Store that upgrade is an auto-renewing Premium subscription; Monefy doesn't publish the price on its site, and it shows at checkout in your local currency. Refunds on iPhone go through Apple, not Monefy.
Monefy doesn't connect to your bank. You add expenses by hand or import statements yourself. That's the same lane as every app below. They differ in how you log, where your data syncs, and what's free.
1. SpendPal — when you'd rather type a line than tap a category
SpendPal looks like a paper notebook. You type a line in plain words, such as tacos 11.40 or bus 2.75, and press enter. SpendPal reads the amount off the end, files the category and writes it onto today's page. It learns your regulars, so the second coffee goes in the right place without you telling it. There's one monthly number and a single bar that fills as you spend, and widgets for the Home Screen and Lock Screen open the app with the keyboard already up.
Like Monefy, it has no bank login and no account. Where Monefy syncs through Drive or Dropbox, SpendPal syncs through your own private iCloud, and you can turn that off with a tap. There are no ads and no tracking. It has 30+ currencies and works with no connection at all.
To be straight about the price: the free version is a taste, not a plan. You get your first five lines in all, not five a month, with five built-in categories and day, week and month trends. Premium lifts those limits and adds custom categories, year and all-time trends, and CSV import and export. It's a weekly or yearly subscription or a one-time lifetime purchase.
Skip it if you want a free app for the long term, per-category budgets or several accounts. Spending Tracker or Cashew below will suit you better.
2. Spending Tracker — the closest free, simple swap
Spending Tracker (4.8, 19,500+ US ratings) by MH Riley is the nearest thing to Monefy's simplicity. You log expenses and income, pick a weekly, monthly or yearly period, and optionally set a budget for it, with whatever is left carried over to the next period. Categories are editable and the charts show where the money went. There's no bank connection anywhere in it.
It's free. A Pro upgrade adds repeating transactions and export. It runs on iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch, and MH Riley also publishes it for Android and Windows.
Skip it if you share a log with a partner. Monefy's Drive and Dropbox sync is the thing it doesn't replace.
3. Cashew — free budgets and bill reminders, open source
Cashew (4.9, 500+ US ratings) by James Kokoska is a free expense tracker and budget planner whose code is public on GitHub under the GPL-3.0 licence. You can budget by week, month, year or a custom period, track subscriptions and upcoming bills with reminders, and use multiple currencies with automatic exchange rates. Its listing says your financial data stays on your device and is never collected, shared or sold.
Like Monefy, it can sync through Google: its FAQ says syncing and sharing with a partner use a shared Google account. It runs on iPhone, Android and the web. An optional Cashew Pro is sold as a subscription or a lifetime purchase.
Skip it if you want fewer screens, not more. Cashew is closer to a full budgeting app than to Monefy's two taps.
4. Money Lover — budgets and debts, with a one-time Premium
Money Lover (4.6, 2,200+ US ratings) by Finsify covers more ground than Monefy: budgets, bill reminders, debt and loan tracking, savings goals, a travel mode for other currencies, a Home Screen widget for quick entry and an Apple Watch app. You enter transactions yourself.
Its App Store listing describes Premium as a one-time purchase with lifetime access, which adds multiple wallets, detailed category budgets, export to Google Sheets and no ads. Bank-linked wallets are a separate paid monthly service, and the listing names supported banks in the Philippines, Malaysia, Singapore, Hong Kong, Vietnam, Thailand and Indonesia.
Skip it if you want an app with no ads in the free version. The listing says Premium is what removes them.
5. Money Manager — every account, double-entry, in detail
Money Manager Expense & Budget (4.8, 19,700+ US ratings) by Realbyte is the most thorough option here. It keeps separate accounts for cash, cards and savings with automatic double-entry bookkeeping, and gives you a calendar view, weekly, monthly or yearly budgets, sub-categories, multiple currencies and a passcode. You still enter everything by hand.
The free lite version is limited to 10 accounts. Realbyte sells a separate paid version with no account limit and no ads, and its data sync service is an extra subscription.
Skip it if you just want to know what you spent this week. All those accounts are more than that needs.
6. Expenses — iCloud sync across iPhone, iPad and Mac
Expenses (4.8, 1,800+ US ratings) by Blue Comet Labs answers the sync question differently from Monefy. There's no account to create, and your data syncs through iCloud across iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple Vision Pro. It handles any currency with automatic exchange rates, tracks spending by merchant as well as category, can scan a receipt to save typing, and lets you share a sheet with someone for a trip or a household.
Skip it if anyone you share money with is on Android. It's Apple-only, which is exactly where Monefy's cross-platform sync is stronger.
How they compare
| App | Best for | How you log | Sync | Free version | Paid model |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monefy | Two-tap logging, shared across iPhone and Android | Tap a category, enter amount | Your Google Drive or Dropbox | Core app free | Premium subscription |
| SpendPal | One typed line a day | Type a line, e.g. “tacos 11.40” | Your private iCloud | First 5 lines in all | Weekly, yearly or lifetime |
| Spending Tracker | A free, simple swap | Quick entry form | — | Free | Pro upgrade |
| Cashew | Free budgets and bill reminders | Entry form | Google account | Free, open source | Pro subscription or lifetime |
| Money Lover | Budgets, debts and savings goals | Entry form or widget | Across devices | Free with ads | One-time Premium |
| Money Manager | Many accounts in detail | Entry form | Paid sync service | Lite, up to 10 accounts | Paid version + sync subscription |
| Expenses | iCloud across Apple devices | Entry form or receipt scan | iCloud | — | — |
A dash means the app doesn't publish that detail, so we haven't guessed. Details come from each app's App Store listing, website and help pages as of November 2, 2026. Prices vary by country and plans change, so check before you buy.
Which Monefy alternative should you pick?
- If you want it just as free and simple: Spending Tracker.
- If you want free budgets and bill reminders: Cashew.
- If you'd rather pay once than subscribe: Money Lover's one-time Premium.
- If you track several accounts and cards: Money Manager.
- If you want iCloud instead of Drive or Dropbox: Expenses.
- If tapping categories never stuck and typing might: SpendPal, one line a day.
Not sure which matters most? The expense tracker app finder asks four questions and names the one that fits.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best Monefy alternative?
It depends on what you want to change. If you want something just as free and simple, Spending Tracker by MH Riley is the closest match. If you want a free app with budgets and bill reminders that keeps data on your device, try Cashew. If you would rather type a purchase in plain words than tap a category, SpendPal turns one line like "tacos 11.40" into a filed expense. If you track several accounts, Money Manager by Realbyte goes the deepest.
Is there a free alternative to Monefy?
Yes. Spending Tracker is free, with a Pro upgrade for repeating transactions and export. Cashew is free and open source, with an optional Cashew Pro. Money Lover and Money Manager both have free versions with paid upgrades. SpendPal is not one of them: its free version is only your first five lines before Premium.
Is Monefy free, or do you have to pay for Premium?
Monefy's core app is free. Its website says the optional upgrade unlocks unlimited accounts, recurring transactions, advanced filters and more, and on iPhone that upgrade is an auto-renewing Premium subscription. Monefy says the app contains no ad SDKs, and it does not connect to your bank.
Which Monefy alternative syncs with iCloud instead of Google Drive?
Monefy syncs through your own Google Drive or Dropbox. If you would rather stay in iCloud, Expenses by Blue Comet Labs syncs across iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple Vision Pro through iCloud, and SpendPal syncs through your own private iCloud database, with no account in either app.
One line a day. No bank, no account.
Type “tacos 11.40” and press enter. SpendPal files it on today's page, and by the end of the month you know where it went.
Download SpendPal on the App Store →Related: The best manual expense tracker apps · SpendPal · Expense tracker app finder. Questions? Email us.
