The Best YNAB Alternatives in 2026

YNAB (You Need A Budget) has a loyal following for good reason: its method of giving every dollar a job works. But at $14.99 a month or $109 a year, plenty of people want the method without the subscription, or don't want to hand a budgeting app their bank login. Here are the best alternatives in 2026.

I build Covely, one of the apps below. I've tried to be fair: the closest like-for-like replacement for YNAB isn't Covely, and I say so. Prices were checked in October 2026 and are in US dollars.

Quick comparison

1. Actual Budget: the closest free replacement

If you love YNAB's method, start here. Actual is a free, open-source (MIT) envelope budgeting app that works much like YNAB: you budget the money you have, and overspending in one category has to be covered from another. There are desktop apps for Windows, Mac and Linux, and your budget lives on your device.

• Drawbacks: syncing between devices, using it on your phone and bank sync all need an Actual server that you run yourself or rent from a host. No investment tracking.
• Best for: YNAB users who want the same method for free and don't mind a bit of setup.

2. Covely: best if you want more than a budget

Covely is a desktop app for Mac, Windows and Linux that keeps all your data on your computer. Its budgeting is a monthly plan per category rather than strict envelope budgeting: you set an amount for each category, see what's spent and left, and can roll unspent money into next month. Savings goals and sinking funds sit alongside.

Where it goes beyond YNAB is everything else in the same app: investments, property, net worth, reconciliation and more than 20 reports, with PDF and CSV export.

• Drawbacks: no phone app and no shared budget across devices; no automatic bank feeds; not strict zero-based budgeting.
• Best for: people who want their whole financial picture in one private app, with no subscription.

For a feature-by-feature look, see Covely vs YNAB.

3. Goodbudget

Goodbudget is a long-running envelope budgeting app for phones and the web. The free plan gives you 20 envelopes, one account and two devices; Premium costs $80 a year for unlimited envelopes and accounts. You enter transactions yourself, so there's no bank connection.

• Best for: couples who want envelope budgeting on their phones without a bank connection.

4. Monarch Money

Monarch is a cloud-based app that connects to your bank accounts and combines budgeting with net worth and investment tracking, including a shared view for partners. It's a subscription, with the top plan costing a little more than YNAB.

• Best for: households that want automatic syncing and a shared budget, and are happy to pay.

5. Copilot Money

Copilot is a design-led app for iPhone and Mac that tracks spending from your bank accounts automatically, for about $95 a year. It's less about assigning every dollar and more about seeing where your money goes.

• Best for: Apple users in the US who want automatic tracking with little effort.

Budgeting without giving an app your bank login

Most budgeting apps that sync with your bank do it through a third-party data provider, which needs you to connect your bank account. Some people are uncomfortable with that, and some banks' terms restrict sharing your login details. The alternative is file import:

1. In your online banking, download your transactions as a CSV, OFX or QIF file. Most banks offer this on the account's transaction page.
2. Import the file into your budgeting app. Good importers remember your column layout and skip duplicates.
3. Let automation rules categorise the transactions, then review anything they missed.

Done weekly or monthly, it takes a few minutes, and your bank login never leaves your hands. Actual and Covely both import bank files; Goodbudget skips the bank entirely and has you enter transactions as you spend.

Moving your data out of YNAB

YNAB can export your budget and register as CSV files. Import the register into your new app and check that each account balance matches. Rebuild the budget categories by hand: it's a good moment to simplify them.

Frequently asked questions