Tracking spending is the first step to getting your finances in order. An expense tracker app can make it a lot easier to account for every dollar as you spend it, rather than sitting down with a fistful of receipts.
While they overlap with budgeting tools, expense tracker apps put more of an emphasis on spending than on your incoming cash deposits. They categorize your expenditures and present a good idea of your purchasing habits.
We’ve named the best expense tracker apps for a variety of users. (See https://fintrek.online/ for more on how we made our picks.)
Best expense tracker apps
- Best app for planners: Quicken Simplifi
- Best app for serious budgeters: You Need a Budget (YNAB)
- Best app for beginners: Goodbudget
- Best app for over-spenders: PocketGuard
- Best app for small business owners: QuickBooks® Online
- Best app for employees’ business expenses: Expensify
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Cost
Costs may vary depending on the plan selected but take advantage of a limited time offer – 70% off for 3 months*
Standout features
Save over 30 hours in business accounting per month with the AI-Powered Intuit Assist. Users can use app to do invoicing, accept payments, manage their cash flow, maximize tax deductions, track travel miles, run reports, send estimates, manage bills and 1099 contractors, plus pay employees
On Intuit’s site
Terms apply.
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Best for planners: Quicken Simplifi
Quicken Simplifi
- Cost50% off limited time offer: $2.99 per month for the first year, then $5.99 per month (billed annually).
- Standout featuresUsers can run customizable reports based on their spending, income and savings. Personalized spending plan adjusts in real-time.
- Categorizes your expensesYes, but users can modify.
- Links to accountsYes, bank, credit card and investment accounts and loans
- AvailabilityOffered in both the App Store (for iOS) and on Google Play (for Android)
- Security featuresFinancial data from bank servers transmitted using 256-bit encryption
Terms apply.
Pros
- Syncs with bank, credit card and investment accounts
- Customizable reports based on income, spending and savings
- Robust investments dashboard
- Refund tracker
- Credit monitoring
Cons
- No free tier
- No bill pay feature
- Quicken data can’t be imported
Who’s this for? Quicken Simplifi provides users with a personalized spending plan based on their income and costs, then adjusts it as they spend in real time. Its simple user interface also makes it easy for users to add planned spending like vacations.
Best for serious budgeters: YNAB
You Need a Budget (YNAB)
- Cost34-day free trial then $109 per year ($9.08 per month) or $14.99 per month (college students who provide proof of enrollment get 12 months free)
- Standout featuresInstead of using traditional budgeting buckets, users allocate every dollar they earn to something (known as the “zero-based budgeting system” where no dollar is unaccounted for). Every dollar is assigned a “job,” whether it’s to go toward bills, savings, investments, etc.
- Categorizes your expensesNo
- Links to accountsYes, bank and credit cards
- AvailabilityOffered in both the App Store (for iOS) and on Google Play (for Android)
- Security featuresEncrypted data, accredited data centers, third-party audits and more
Terms apply.
Pros
- Offers a 34-day free trial, and college students get 12 months free
- Designed to help you get out of debt
- YNAB website claims average user saves $600 in their first two months and $6,000 in their first year
- Syncs to your bank accounts and credit cards
- Users can set goals, customize spending categories
- Offers educational resources, such as budgeting advice and free, live workshops
- Personal customer support
- Security features include encrypted data, accredited data centers, third-party audits and more
Cons
- Costs $109 per year or $14.99 per month
- Customer reviews note that it takes longer to set up than other apps
Who’s this for? YNAB offers a zero-based budgeting system in which every dollar is assigned a “job,” whether that’s paying for groceries, rent, entertainment or credit card bills. This method allows you to clearly see the areas where you’re overspending.
Best for beginners: Goodbudget
Goodbudget
- CostFree for 20 total envelopes; $10/month (or $80/year) for unlimited envelopes
- Standout featuresAllows couples to use the envelope system digitally for budgeting, and allows couples to track their debt
- Categorizes your expensesYes, but users must manually input transactions since the app does not sync to your bank account
- Links to accountsNo, users must manually input purchases and transactions
- AvailabilityOffered in both the App Store (for iOS) and on Google Play (for Android) and as a version for laptops
- Security featuresInformation is using bank-grade 256-bit SSL
Terms apply.
Pros
- Free version of the app available
- Ability to share budget and spending with your partner
- Digital envelopes help couples save for big goals that matter to them
- Money management courses and resources available
Cons
- Transactions must be entered manually
Who’s this for? If you’re just starting to get your finances in check, Goodbudget is a solid option. Users track expenses with a digitalized version of the envelope budgeting method. This allows you to see your different expense types, how much each type takes up of your income and hopefully help you save money.
Best for overspenders: PocketGuard
PocketGuard
Information about PocketGuard has been collected independently by CNBC Select and has not been reviewed or provided by PocketGuard prior to publication.
- CostBasic PocketGuard plan is free, while PocketGuard Premium subscription is $12.99 per month or $74.99 annually. Lifetime membership offer available at a reduced rate.
- Standout featuresIn My Pocket feature uses your income, recurring expenses and savings goals to determine how much you have for everyday spending.
- Categorizes your expensesYes, but users can customize
- Links to accountsYes, users can connect accounts through Plaid and Finicity to import data automatically or manually add cash accounts for tracking
- AvailabilityOffered in both the App Store (for iOS) and on Google Play (for Android)
- Security featuresPocketGuard utilizes bank-level encryption, PINs and biometrics like Touch ID and Face ID
- AvailabilityOffered in both the App Store (for iOS) and on Google Play (for Android)
Pros
- Includes bill payment tracker and bill negotiation service
- Lifetime membership option offers additional savings
- A+ from Better Business Bureau
Cons
- Basic free plan only allows two budget categories
- Transactions may be categorized incorrectly
Who’s this for? If you’re bad at staying within your budget, PocketGuard sends alerts whenever one of your spending categories is almost over its limit. This gives you some advance notice of when it’s time to cut back, rather than just notifying you when you’ve gone too far.
Best for business owners
QuickBooks
On Intuit’s site
- CostCosts may vary depending on the plan selected but take advantage of a limited time offer – 50% off for 3 months
- Standout featuresTracks your business expenses as they happen, as well as your income. Users can use app to do invoicing, accept payments, manage their cash flow, maximize tax deductions, track travel miles, run reports, send estimates, manage bills and 1099 contractors, plus pay employees
- Categorizes your expensesYes
- Links to accountsYes, bank and credit cards, plus third-party apps like PayPal and Square
- AvailabilityAccessible from any web browser and also offered in both the App Store (for iOS) and on Google Play (for Android)
- Security featuresVerisign scanning, password-protected login, firewall protected servers and the same encryption technology (128 bit SSL) used by the world’s top banks. QuickBooks also offers multiple permission levels that you can set for additional users’ access
Terms apply.
Pros
- Offers a 30-day free trial
- Syncs to your bank accounts, credit cards and third-party apps like PayPal and Square
- Offers real-time dashboards so you can stay updated on all financial transactions related to your business
- The most basic “Simple Start” plan tracks income, sales and expenses, organizes receipts, creates invoices, helps you prepare your taxes, categorizes your business and personal trips, offers a QuickBooks Cash account, runs reports like P&Ls and balance sheets and includes 1 user
- “Essentials” plan, in addition to the above, helps you pay your bills, clock employee time and billable hours and includes up to 3 users
- “Plus” plan, in addition to the above, lets you oversees projects, track inventory and includes up to 5 users
- “Advanced” plan, in addition to the above, provides business analytics and insights, speeds up transactions, gives users access to VIP service QuickBooks Priority Circle that includes a dedicated account team and free online QuickBooks training includes up to 25 users. QuickBooks offers a fourth “Self-Employed” plan for freelancers
- Security features include Verisign scanning, encryption technology (128 bit SSL) used by the world’s top banks and customized access for other users
Cons
- Some user reviews complain of glitches in app and a not so user-friendly interface
Who’s this for? QuickBooks Online is ideal for small- to medium-sized business owners because it allows them to connect to their bank accounts, credit cards and other third-party apps like PayPal and Square.
Best for employees’ business expenses
Expensify
- CostFree for up to 25 SmartScans of receipts per month. For unlimited SmartScans, pricing is as follows: six-week free trial then for employees, individual pricing is $5 per month. For companies, group pricing starts at $9 per user, per month
- Standout featuresIndividuals can track receipts and submit expenses to their employer. Users scan their receipts and the app will automatically read the receipt then translate it into a logged expense. Also offers mileage and GPS tracking and automatic credit card importing
- Categorizes your expensesYes, but users can customize
- Links to accountsYes, bank and personal/company credit cards
- AvailabilityOffered in both the App Store (for iOS) and on Google Play (for Android)
- Security featuresTwo-factor authentication so users input a generated code when logging in; banking data is protected by world-class security standards and compliant with Privacy Shield and GDPR requirements
Terms apply.
Pros
- Free to use for up to 25 SmartScans per month
- Offers a six-week free trial for unlimited SmartScans
- Designed to help you get your expenses done quickly while on the go and in real time
- Expensify website claims expense reports with Expensify take 83% less time
- One-click receipt scanning and SmartScan automatically transcribes receipt details with the date, merchant and amount
- Receipts are automatically coded and categorized once user takes photo and assigns to a report or emails their receipts to receipts@expensify.com
- Users can split their expenses by using the ExpensePoint feature to split the cost
- Allows users to track their mileage by manual entry, odometer readings or by using the GPS
- Web dashboard shows spending by different categories and uses time references
- Automatically generates and submits expense reports for automatic next-day reimbursement
- Users can share or print documents/expense reports from the app for review
- Syncs to your bank accounts and credit cards
- Lets users send and receive money via Venmo
- Connects to apps like Uber, Lyft and HotelTonight for automatic receipt import and transcription
- Security features include two-factor authentication, world-class security standards and Privacy Shield / GDPR compliance
- With a group plan, employers can integrate with their accounting software, including QuickBooks, Xero, NetSuite and others
- Two plans offered for individuals: “Track” is $5 per month, with unlimited SmartScans, automatic mileage tracking and categorizing expenses; “Submit” is $4.99 per month and, in addition to the above, automatically submits reports for reimbursement, submits receipts
- Two plans offered for groups: “Collect” is $5 per user, per month and, in addition to the above, automates receipt collection and reimbursement, auto-syncs to accounting software and offers free Expensify card with auto-reconciliation; “Control” is $9 per user, per month and, in addition to the above, manages approval workflows
Cons
- Costs $4.99 per month for individuals and starts at $5 per user, per month for groups
- Some user reviews report that the interface isn’t intuitive