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Personal Finance · head to head

Goodbudget vs Moneydance

Goodbudget logo

Goodbudget

Personal Finance

Digital envelope budgeting app

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Moneydance logo

Moneydance

Personal Finance

Cross-platform personal finance management

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Goodbudget has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Goodbudget free plan is capped at 10 regular envelopes, 10 more envelopes, 1 account, 2 devices and 1 year of history; Moneydance the free trial is limited to 100 manually entered transactions
  • They diverge on capability: Goodbudget covers Envelope budgeting, Moneydance covers Bill tracking.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Goodbudget and Moneydance actually diverge.

Attributes where Goodbudget and Moneydance differ
AttributeGoodbudgetMoneydance
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelfreemiumone-time
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWeb, IOS, AndroidWindows, Mac, Linux, IOS, Android
Founded20122001

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Personal Finance).

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 Goodbudget

  • Envelope budgeting
  • Shared budgets
  • Receipt scanning
  • Expense tracking
  • Web support

Only in Moneydance

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

Both cover

  • Bank accounts
  • IOS support
  • Android support

What people use each for

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

Goodbudget

  • Envelope method budgetingnot Moneydance
  • Sharing a household budget across a couple's devicesnot Moneydance
  • Tracking debt payoff alongside envelopesnot Moneydance

Moneydance

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

Where each one falls short

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

Goodbudget

  • Free plan is capped at 10 regular envelopes, 10 more envelopes, 1 account, 2 devices and 1 year of history
  • Automatic bank sync is Premium only and works with US banks only
  • Premium is limited to 5 devices and 7 years of history
  • Free plan gets community support only; email support requires Premium
  • Premium costs $10 per month or $80 per year

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

Goodbudget

Free
  • FreeFree
    • 10 envelopes
    • Basic tracking
  • Plus$5.99/month
    • Unlimited envelopes
    • Advanced reports
    • Receipt capture

Moneydance

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

Which should you pick?

Choose Goodbudget if

  • You need envelope budgeting.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, IOS, Android.
  • You also want shared budgets.
Goodbudget 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 Goodbudget or Moneydance better?
Neither clearly leads. Goodbudget starts at Free and Moneydance at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Goodbudget or Moneydance?
Goodbudget has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Goodbudget and On request for Moneydance.
Does Goodbudget or Moneydance run on more platforms?
Goodbudget runs on Web, IOS, Android. Moneydance runs on Windows, Mac, Linux, IOS, Android.
Can I use Goodbudget for free?
Yes. Goodbudget has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Moneydance starts at On request.
What is Goodbudget best used for?
Goodbudget is most often used for envelope method budgeting, sharing a household budget across a couple's devices, tracking debt payoff alongside envelopes. Of those, envelope method budgeting and sharing a household budget across a couple's devices are not what Moneydance is typically brought in for.
What can Goodbudget do that Moneydance cannot?
Goodbudget covers Envelope budgeting, Shared budgets, Receipt scanning, Expense tracking. Moneydance covers Bill tracking, Investment monitoring, Budget tracking, Financial forecasting. Both handle Bank accounts, IOS support, Android support.
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