Softwr

Software · head to head

Fidelity vs Moneydance

Fidelity logo

Fidelity

Software

Building a better financial future

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Moneydance logo

Moneydance

Software

Cross-platform personal finance management

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Fidelity options trades carry a 0.65 USD per contract fee on top of zero commission; Moneydance the free trial is limited to 100 manually entered transactions
  • They diverge on capability: Fidelity covers Commission-free trading, Moneydance covers Bill tracking.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Fidelity and Moneydance actually diverge.

Attributes where Fidelity and Moneydance differ
AttributeFidelityMoneydance
Pricing modeltransactionone-time
PlatformsWeb, IOS, AndroidWindows, Mac, Linux, IOS, Android
Founded19462001

Identical on both: starting price (On request), free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Unknown).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Fidelity

  • Commission-free trading
  • Retirement planning
  • Advisory services
  • Research tools
  • Web support

Only in Moneydance

  • Bill tracking
  • Investment monitoring
  • Budget tracking
  • Financial forecasting
  • OFX import
  • Windows support
  • Mac support
  • Linux support

Both cover

  • Bank accounts
  • Investment accounts
  • IOS support
  • Android support

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Fidelity

  • Commission free trading of US stocks and ETFsnot Moneydance
  • Holding IRAs, 401(k) plans and taxable brokerage accountsnot Moneydance
  • Trading bonds, options and mutual funds from one accountnot Moneydance

Moneydance

  • Desktop personal finance management on macOS, Windows and Linuxnot Fidelity
  • Importing and reconciling bank and credit card transactions locallynot Fidelity
  • Tracking investments and budgets without a cloud-only servicenot Fidelity

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Fidelity

  • Options trades carry a 0.65 USD per contract fee on top of zero commission
  • Non Fidelity mutual funds carry a 49.95 USD transaction fee per purchase
  • Secondary market bonds cost 1.00 USD per bond, while new issues are free
  • A foreign settlement fee of 50 USD applies per trade
  • Margin rates are tiered by debit balance, from 11.825 percent below 25,000 USD down to 7.50 percent at 1 million USD or more, against a base rate of 10.575 percent effective 12 December 2025
  • Margin liquidation by the broker costs 32.95 USD per liquidation

Moneydance

  • The free trial is limited to 100 manually entered transactions
  • A one-time Buy Once purchase covers Moneydance 2024 plus one free upgrade to the next major release, not all future versions
  • Bank connection features are sold separately as the Moneydance Plus subscription rather than included in the one-time purchase
  • Business use requires one licence per computer, while the household licence covers personal use only

Pricing, plan by plan

Fidelity

On request
  • Brokerage$undefined/month
    • Commission-free trading
    • Research tools
  • Advisory$undefined/month
    • Personal advisor
    • Wealth management

Moneydance

On request
  • Perpetual License$59.99/month
    • Full feature set
    • Free updates

Which should you pick?

Choose Fidelity if

  • You need commission-free trading.
  • You work on Web, IOS, Android.
  • You also want retirement planning.
Fidelity review

Choose Moneydance if

  • You need bill tracking.
  • You work on Windows, Mac, Linux, IOS, Android.
  • You also want investment monitoring.
Moneydance review

Questions people ask

Is Fidelity or Moneydance better?
Neither clearly leads. Fidelity starts at On request and Moneydance at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Fidelity or Moneydance?
Fidelity starts at On request and Moneydance at On request.
Does Fidelity or Moneydance run on more platforms?
Fidelity runs on Web, IOS, Android. Moneydance runs on Windows, Mac, Linux, IOS, Android.
What is Fidelity best used for?
Fidelity is most often used for commission free trading of us stocks and etfs, holding iras, 401(k) plans and taxable brokerage accounts, trading bonds, options and mutual funds from one account. Of those, commission free trading of us stocks and etfs and holding iras, 401(k) plans and taxable brokerage accounts are not what Moneydance is typically brought in for.
What can Fidelity do that Moneydance cannot?
Fidelity covers Commission-free trading, Retirement planning, Advisory services, Research tools. Moneydance covers Bill tracking, Investment monitoring, Budget tracking, Financial forecasting. Both handle Bank accounts, Investment accounts, IOS support, Android support.
ShareXLinkedInRedditWhatsAppEmail

Related pages

More on Fidelity

More on Moneydance

Keep looking

Other head to heads