Monarch Money Review: The Best Budgeting App for 2025?
Monarch Money is a subscription budgeting app that costs $14.99/month or $99.99/year and connects all your bank accounts, credit cards, investments, and loans in a single dashboard. In this review you will learn whether the pricing is justified, how it stacks up against YNAB and the now-defunct Mint, and who should actually pay for it.
What Monarch Money Does (and Does It Fast)
Monarch Money pulls live data from over 11,000 financial institutions. You get a net worth tracker, a cash flow report, budget envelopes, investment performance tracking, and goal-setting — all updated automatically. Setup takes roughly ten minutes. You connect your accounts, Monarch categorizes your transactions, and you start seeing where every dollar goes. There is no manual entry unless you want it.
The mobile app (iOS and Android) mirrors the desktop experience rather than stripping it down. That matters if you check your budget more often on your phone than your laptop.
Monarch Money Pricing: Is $99/Year Worth It?
At $99.99/year ($8.33/month when billed annually) or $14.99/month on the monthly plan, Monarch sits in the middle of the paid budgeting app market. It offers a 7-day free trial with no credit card required, so you can pressure-test the sync reliability before committing.
For context: the average American household wastes $1,497 per year on forgotten subscriptions and impulse spending, according to a 2023 Rocket Money survey. If Monarch helps you catch even a fraction of that, the $99 annual fee pays for itself within the first month.
There is no free tier. If you want free, you are looking at a different tool.
Monarch Money vs YNAB vs Mint
| Feature | Monarch Money | YNAB | Mint (defunct) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly cost | $14.99 / $8.33 annual | $14.99 / $8.25 annual | Free (now shut down) |
| Account sync | 11,000+ institutions | 12,000+ institutions | Was Intuit-powered |
| Investment tracking | Yes | No | Basic |
| Net worth dashboard | Yes | No | Yes |
| Goal tracking | Yes | Yes (envelope method) | Basic |
| Collaborative budgeting | Yes (up to 2 users) | Yes | No |
| Mobile app quality | Strong | Strong | Was inconsistent |
YNAB uses a zero-based budgeting philosophy where every dollar gets a job, and it requires more active management. Monarch is more hands-off and works well for people who want visibility without spending 30 minutes a week assigning categories manually.
Where Monarch Money Falls Short
Monarch is not perfect. Three real limitations worth knowing before you subscribe:
- No bill negotiation or cancellation service. Apps like Rocket Money offer to negotiate bills on your behalf. Monarch does not.
- Investment tracking is read-only. You see your portfolio performance, but you cannot place trades or rebalance from inside the app.
- Sync errors happen. A small percentage of bank connections break after the bank updates its authentication. Monarch resolves most within 48 hours, but it is not zero.
Who Should Use Monarch Money
Monarch works best for households with multiple accounts across different institutions who want one consolidated view without building spreadsheets. It is especially strong for couples — two users can share one subscription and see a combined budget. If you recently left Mint and want a direct replacement that actually works in 2025, Monarch is the closest fit.
It is not the right tool for someone who wants zero-based budgeting discipline (use YNAB), someone who only needs investment tracking (use Empower), or someone who refuses to pay for a budgeting app (use a spreadsheet).
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Monarch Money safe to use with my bank accounts?
Yes. Monarch uses Plaid and Finicity for bank connections, the same infrastructure used by major fintech apps. Your login credentials are encrypted and never stored on Monarch servers. They read transaction data only and cannot move money.
What happened to Mint and should I switch to Monarch?
Intuit shut down Mint in January 2024 and redirected users to Credit Karma, which does not offer the same budgeting functionality. Monarch Money is the most popular direct replacement and actively markets to former Mint users. The import process from Mint takes about 15 minutes using a CSV export.
Does Monarch Money have a free version?
No. Monarch offers a 7-day free trial with no credit card required, but there is no permanent free plan. After the trial, you pay $14.99/month or $99.99/year.
Bottom Line
Monarch Money is the best all-in-one budgeting app for households who want automatic tracking, investment visibility, and a clean interface without building their own system. Start your free 7-day trial at monarchmoney.com — no credit card required.
If you want to go further than budgeting — building income streams, automating your finances, and actually growing wealth — that is exactly what ShiftRich coaching covers. Visit shiftrich.com to see how the program works and whether it fits where you are right now.