Finhabits
Sign inStart free
All comparisons

Compare

Financial Habits vs Monarch Money

Seeing the past clearly, or seeing the next 90 days.

Monarch became the home for a lot of people when Mint closed, and it deserved to. Every account in one place, investments and net worth included, a partner seat for free, and a design that respects the reader. If you have twelve accounts and want one dashboard, it's very good.

The comparison comes down to one question: do you want a clearer picture of what already happened, or a clearer picture of what's about to?

At a glance

Monarch Money and Financial Habits, side by side.

Side by sideMonarchFinancial Habits
Price$14.99 a month or $99.99 a year; Plus at $199 a year$10 a month or $120 a year (first 60 days free on annual)
Trying it7-day free trialFree MoneyMind Quiz, no account needed; 60 days free on the annual plan
How money gets inAutomatic sync through aggregators (Plaid, MX, Finicity)You type it, or import a bank statement spreadsheet. No bank credentials handed to anyone.
What you see firstDashboard of accounts, recent transactions and net worthA calendar of the month with your checking balance projected on every day, 30, 60 and 90 days out.
The methodFlexible categories and goals over synced dataHabit Loops: one small cue, routine and reward at a time, checked off weekly.
Weekly upkeepRe-link broken connections; review and re-categorize transactionsCheck a box when a bill is paid. Five minutes on Sunday covers the week.
Looking aheadCash flow reports and recurring detection; limited day-by-day balance aheadRunning balance on every day ahead, with the low point called out.
Personality fitOne dashboard for everyoneMoneyMind Quiz sorts you into one of eight money personas; the plan, habits and 5-Year Wealth Plan follow it.
Investments and net worthFull brokerage and retirement syncNet Worth tracker you update yourself. No brokerage linking.
PartnersFree partner seatCouples mode: two incomes, one shared plan.
PrivacyCredentials for every linked account held by third-party aggregatorsNo bank linking, no third-party data aggregator.

Details about Monarch reflect its public pricing and features as of this writing. If something here has changed, tell us and we'll correct it.

What Monarch does well

Credit where it's due.

  • Aggregation done properly. Banks, cards, loans and brokerages through several connection providers, so fewer accounts fall through.
  • Investments and net worth tracked alongside spending. Nobody in the category does this better at the price.
  • A free seat for a partner, and flexible categories that can loosen up if strict envelopes aren't your style.
  • Polished, calm design. It's a pleasant place to look at your money.

Who it fits

Monarch is the right call for some people.

  • People with many accounts and investments who want one place to see them.
  • Households comfortable connecting every account through a third party in exchange for automatic updates.
  • Anyone who tracks net worth closely and wants it to move on its own.

Where it wears people out

What members tell us made them look around.

  • Connections break and ask to be re-linked, and every transaction wants a category. Cleanup becomes the habit instead of the money.
  • It reports what already happened. The forward view, what the checking account looks like on the 23rd, is thin next to the history.
  • $14.99 a month or $99.99 a year, with a $199 Plus tier. Reasonable for a full dashboard, a lot for a household that wanted one answer.
  • Every account's credentials sit with an aggregator. Some people are fine with that. Some people never quite are.

What we do instead

The calendar first, then one habit at a time.

  • We show the next 90 days before the last 30. Paychecks, bills and savings on a calendar, with the running balance on every day ahead and the low point called out.
  • You type it, so you know it. A bill you entered by hand is a bill you noticed. A bank statement spreadsheet imports when history matters.
  • Habit Loops instead of category cleanup: one cue, one routine, one reward, checked off weekly. The MoneyMind Quiz picks the first one for your persona.
  • Net worth is here too, updated by you monthly. Slower than Monarch's, and honest about what it costs to know.

Straight answers

Questions people ask before switching.

Does Financial Habits sync with my bank like Monarch?
No. You enter paychecks, bills and savings yourself, or import a bank statement spreadsheet. It's slower on day one and clearer on day thirty, and no third party holds your logins.
Can I track investments?
The Net Worth tracker holds savings, investments, property and debts, and you update the balances yourself. If automatic brokerage sync is the main thing you want, Monarch is the better tool for that piece.
Can my partner use it?
Yes. Couples mode puts two incomes on one shared plan, at no extra cost.
Which costs less?
Financial Habits is $10 a month or $120 a year with the first 60 days free on annual. Monarch is $14.99 a month or $99.99 a year. Monthly, we're cheaper; annually, Monarch is by about $20, and it includes account syncing we don't offer.

Where that leaves you

Stay with Monarch

If you want every account in one place and you're comfortable with syncing, keep Monarch. It's the best dashboard in the category.

Try the calendar

If you opened Monarch and still didn't know whether the 23rd was covered, the calendar is the piece you were missing. Take the quiz; the running balance does the rest.

Five minutes. No account. Eight personas.

The quiz picks your first habit. The app is $10 a month, cancel anytime. Not ready? Try the free payday calculator.

Take the MoneyMind Quiz Start the calendar

Other comparisons

Financial Habits vs You Need A Budget (YNAB)Financial Habits vs Rocket MoneyYNAB alternatives, compared