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Personal Finance · head to head

Moneydance vs E*TRADE

Moneydance logo

Moneydance

Personal Finance

Cross-platform personal finance management

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
E*TRADE logo

E*TRADE

Personal Finance

Express your investing style

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; E*TRADE stock and ETF trades were $0 commission but options carried a $0.65 per-contract fee, broker-assisted trades added a $25 surcharge, and margin interest rates ranged from 12.70% to 13.20% depending on balance tier (Internet Archive capture, 3 January 2023)
  • They diverge on capability: Moneydance covers Bill tracking, E*TRADE covers Advanced trading tools.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Moneydance and E*TRADE actually diverge.

Attributes where Moneydance and E*TRADE differ
AttributeMoneydanceE*TRADE
Pricing modelone-timetransaction
PlatformsWindows, Mac, Linux, IOS, AndroidWeb, IOS, Android
Founded20011956

Identical on both: starting price (On request), free tier (No), 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 Moneydance

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

Only in E*TRADE

  • Advanced trading tools
  • Options and futures
  • Research tools
  • Mobile trading
  • Wire transfers
  • 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 E*TRADE
  • Importing and reconciling bank and credit card transactions locallynot E*TRADE
  • Tracking investments and budgets without a cloud-only servicenot E*TRADE

E*TRADE

  • Budget Managementnot Moneydance
  • Expense Trackingnot Moneydance
  • Investment Trackingnot 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

E*TRADE

  • Stock and ETF trades were $0 commission but options carried a $0.65 per-contract fee, broker-assisted trades added a $25 surcharge, and margin interest rates ranged from 12.70% to 13.20% depending on balance tier (Internet Archive capture, 3 January 2023)

Pricing, plan by plan

Moneydance

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

E*TRADE

On request
  • Stock & ETF TradingFree
    • Commission-free trades
    • Real-time quotes
  • Advanced Trading$undefined/month
    • All Stock & ETF features
    • Options, futures
    • Advanced tools

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 E*TRADE if

  • You need advanced trading tools.
  • You work on Web, IOS, Android.
  • You also want options and futures.
E*TRADE review

Questions people ask

Is Moneydance or E*TRADE better?
Neither clearly leads. Moneydance starts at On request and E*TRADE at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Moneydance or E*TRADE?
Moneydance starts at On request and E*TRADE at On request.
Does Moneydance or E*TRADE run on more platforms?
Moneydance runs on Windows, Mac, Linux, IOS, Android. E*TRADE 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 E*TRADE is typically brought in for.
What can Moneydance do that E*TRADE cannot?
Moneydance covers Bill tracking, Investment monitoring, Budget tracking, Financial forecasting. E*TRADE covers Advanced trading tools, Options and futures, Research tools, Mobile trading. Both handle Bank accounts, IOS support, Android support.
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