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Personal Finance · head to head

Moneydance vs Acorns

Moneydance logo

Moneydance

Personal Finance

Cross-platform personal finance management

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Acorns logo

Acorns

Personal Finance

Invest your spare change

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Moneydance the free trial is limited to 100 manually entered transactions; Acorns a flat monthly subscription regardless of balance, so $3 a month on Bronze is a heavy percentage on a small account
  • They diverge on capability: Moneydance covers Bill tracking, Acorns covers Round-up investing.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Moneydance and Acorns actually diverge.

Attributes where Moneydance and Acorns differ
AttributeMoneydanceAcorns
Pricing modelone-timesubscription
PlatformsWindows, Mac, Linux, IOS, AndroidWeb, IOS, Android
CategoryPersonal FinanceUnknown
Founded20012012

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

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 Moneydance

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

Only in Acorns

  • Round-up investing
  • Automated investing
  • Portfolio management
  • Recurring investments
  • Credit cards
  • Debit cards
  • Web 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.

Moneydance

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

Acorns

  • Automated investing of spare change from everyday purchasesnot Moneydance
  • Retirement saving through Acorns Later IRA accountsnot Moneydance
  • Checking and high-yield savings alongside investingnot Moneydance
  • Custodial investing and debit cards for children through Acorns Earlynot Moneydance
  • Earning cashback that is invested rather than bankednot Moneydance

Where each one falls short

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

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

Acorns

  • A flat monthly subscription regardless of balance, so $3 a month on Bronze is a heavy percentage on a small account
  • The emergency savings account and the 1 percent IRA match need Silver at $6 a month
  • Custom portfolios, Acorns Early for children and Money Manager are Gold tier only at $12 a month
  • There is no free tier

Pricing, plan by plan

Moneydance

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

Acorns

On request
  • Lite$4.99/month
    • Round-up investing
    • Automated portfolio
  • Plus$9.99/month
    • All Lite features
    • Checking account
    • Dollar-based investing
  • Premier$19.99/month
    • All Plus features
    • Premium investing

Which should you pick?

Choose Moneydance if

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

Choose Acorns if

  • You need round-up investing.
  • You work on Web, IOS, Android.
  • You also want automated investing.
Acorns review

Questions people ask

Is Moneydance or Acorns better?
Neither clearly leads. Moneydance starts at On request and Acorns at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Moneydance or Acorns?
Moneydance starts at On request and Acorns at On request.
Does Moneydance or Acorns run on more platforms?
Moneydance runs on Windows, Mac, Linux, IOS, Android. Acorns runs on Web, IOS, Android.
What is Moneydance best used for?
Moneydance is most often used for desktop personal finance management on macos, windows and linux, importing and reconciling bank and credit card transactions locally, tracking investments and budgets without a cloud-only service. Of those, desktop personal finance management on macos, windows and linux and importing and reconciling bank and credit card transactions locally are not what Acorns is typically brought in for.
What can Moneydance do that Acorns cannot?
Moneydance covers Bill tracking, Investment monitoring, Budget tracking, Financial forecasting. Acorns covers Round-up investing, Automated investing, Portfolio management, Recurring investments. Both handle Bank accounts, IOS support, Android support.
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