The market for budgeting apps is more crowded than ever. From simple spending trackers to all-in-one financial dashboards, consumers have more options than ever when it comes to managing their money.
Among the best budgeting apps, Monarch Money has emerged as a popular choice for users who want to track their budget, investments, net worth, and financial goals in one place. Rather than relying on ads or a free tier model, Monarch charges a subscription fee and promises a more robust personal finance experience.
This Monarch review details how the app works, its price, and whether its premium features are worth the price.
What is Monarch?
Monarch is a personal finance app that combines budgeting, account tracking, and net worth monitoring into one platform. Users can connect their bank accounts, credit cards, loans, investment accounts, and other financial accounts to see their finances in one place.
This app was co-founded by a former Mint product manager and is designed to serve as an alternative to traditional budgeting tools. Monarch offers spending tracking and budgeting features, as well as subscription monitoring, investment tracking, goal planning, and in-home collaboration tools.
By syncing data from connected accounts, Monarch can automatically categorize transactions and update account balances, reducing the need for manual data entry. The goal is to help users track spending, monitor progress toward financial goals, and get a broader picture of their overall finances.
Main features of Monarch
Monarch includes a wide set of tools for budgeting, expense tracking, subscription management, and net worth monitoring.
While many budgeting apps focus primarily on spending, Monarch also includes investment tracking, financial goal planning, and household collaboration features. Below are some of the platform’s most notable tools.
Track and manage your money
The dashboard acts as the app’s central hub, bringing together account balances, budgets, investments, and net worth data. During testing, the layout was easily customizable and widgets could be rearranged or hidden based on the information most relevant to the user.
Monarch also uses connected accounts to automatically calculate your net worth and track changes over time. Users can view assets and liabilities across categories such as cash accounts, investments, retirement savings, and loans, making it easy to monitor your overall financial health from a single screen.
Advanced budgeting features
During testing, Monarch’s budgeting tool felt more flexible than the category-based templates used by some competing apps. Users can create custom budget categories and groups, set spending goals, and establish rules to automatically categorize transactions.
Rather than focusing on a single budgeting method, Monarch emphasizes cash flow by showing your income, expenses, and savings activity in one place. This approach may appeal to users who want more control over how they manage their finances, rather than following a preset budgeting framework.
investment tracking
Monarch allows users to connect eligible brokerage and retirement accounts alongside their bank accounts and credit cards. Once synced, the app displays your investment balances, account holdings, and portfolio allocation information within the same dashboard you use for budgeting and tracking your net worth.
For users who want to monitor both their spending and investments on a single platform, this integration provides a more complete picture of their finances without the need for multiple apps.
Reports and insights
Monarch automatically generates spending reports based on transactions from your connected accounts. Users can filter data by category, seller, and custom tags to better understand where their money is being spent.
During testing, reporting tools made it relatively easy to identify recurring expenses and spending trends without having to export the data to a spreadsheet. A visual overview also provides an easy way to see your monthly spending and budget performance.
Collaboration features
One of Monarch’s standout features is its native support for couples and families. At no additional charge, you can invite partners to join your account using their own unique login credentials.
Both users get a unified view of joint accounts while maintaining the ability to track separate accounts, making it a powerful tool for joint financial planning.
Monarch pricing
Transparency regarding fees is important when choosing a personal finance app. This is Monarch’s main drawback. There is no permanent free tier.
Free version
Monarch does not have a free version, but it does offer a standard 7-day free trial with full access to all features. Monarch is known to extend this trial by 30 days, so be wary of promotional links.
premium version
- core version Monarch costs $14.99 per month or $99.99 per year ($8.33 per month).
- plus version For $199.99 per year, add access to more advanced tools for long-term financial planning and managing multiple income streams.
additional cost
A subscription to Monarch Money includes access to its core budgeting, account aggregation, investment tracking, and net worth monitoring features. At the time of writing, the platform does not charge additional fees for adding partners or connecting multiple financial accounts.
Unlike some free budgeting apps, Monarch Money relies on subscription revenue rather than advertising. As a result, you will see fewer promotional offers within the app than on ad-supported platforms.
Advantages and disadvantages of the monarch
Strong Points
- Multiple data aggregators: Monarch allows you to switch between Plaid, Finicity, and MX to connect to your bank. If one service fails to connect to your credit card or credit union, you can try another service, reducing frustrating disconnections and increasing the number of financial institutions you can connect to seamlessly.
- Collaboration tools: Free joint access for spouses or partners makes managing your finances seamless.
- Clean UI: Because you pay for a subscription, the user experience is completely focused on data and not on selling financial products. Plus, it looks great!
- Robust customization: From custom transaction rules to personalized categories, apps adapt to your workflow rather than forcing you into one.
Cons
- Fee: For users who only need basic transaction tracking, this is a significant recurring expense of approximately $100 per year.
- Focus less on tracking daily expenses: The app visually flags you if you spend too much, but it doesn’t automatically ask you to move money from another category to cover it. Very strict budgeters who want to get rid of debt or save for a specific goal may find other apps more useful for short-term planning.
- Occasional lag: Depending on the securities company, there may be a lag in investment balances and transaction history.
Comparing Monarch to other budgeting apps
Recommendation: Who is Monarch best for?
Monarch is ideal for households and individuals with complex financial portfolios. If you’re a paycheck-to-paycheck person focused on optimizing your checking account, multiple credit cards for rewards, investment portfolio, and possibly a mortgage mix, Monarch magically handles the complexity.
It’s also a strong option for couples who want shared financial visibility. The ability to invite partners without paying for a second license makes it the perfect framework for monthly money meetings, giving both parties a clear and equal view of the household’s total cash flow and net worth.
Who should skip?
If you only have a few financial accounts and primarily want an easy way to track your spending, it may be hard to justify the cost of a Monarch subscription.
Also, this app may not be very appealing to users who prefer highly structured budgeting systems. Monarch offers budgeting and planning tools, but its approach is generally more flexible than apps that use zero-based budgeting methods. Users looking for more practical guidance when it comes to spending decisions may prefer a platform with a more prescriptive budgeting framework.
Conclusion: Is Monarch worth it?
Monarch Money’s biggest strength is its ability to combine budgeting, investment tracking, and net worth monitoring into one dashboard. The platform is carefully designed, highly customizable, and includes collaboration features that are useful for couples and families.
That said, the annual fee doesn’t make sense for everyone. If you’re primarily looking for basic spending tracking, there are cheaper alternatives. But for users who want a more comprehensive view of their finances, including investments and long-term goals, Monarch Money offers an attractive feature set to help justify the cost.
FAQ
Is Monarch free?
No, Monarch does not have a free tier. However, a 7-day free trial is offered.
Is Monarch better than Mint?
These are different tools and it comes down to personal preference. That said, Monarch’s ad-free interface, multi-aggregator bank sync, and great customization options make it worth the price. (But Mint’s free features were certainly a big draw.)
Can Monarch track my investments?
yes. Monarch tracks investment accounts alongside traditional bank accounts. View portfolio balances, overall asset allocation, and historical performance charts in real time.
Are Monarchs safe?
yes. Monarch employs bank-level security protocols. Get transaction data through secure industry-standard aggregators like Plaid with read-only access. This means the app cannot move or access your actual funds.
Is Monarch suitable for budgeting?
Monarch is a great tool for cash flow analysis, tracking trends, and managing your financial picture. But it’s actually more of a tracking and forecasting tool than a strict budgeting tool.
