Best Mint Alternatives in 2026 (Free Options Included)

The best free Mint alternative in 2026 is DonkeyBucks, which is free to start, with bank sync available in its $4.99/mo Pro tier. Empower is the best choice for net worth tracking, and Rocket Money leads on subscription cancellation. If you want deeper budgeting, YNAB ($14.99/mo) and Monarch Money ($8.33/mo billed annually) are the strongest paid options.

Why trust this list?

We built DonkeyBucks, so we have a financial interest in you choosing it. We are telling you that upfront because we think honest comparisons are more useful than ones that bury the disclaimer. Every app on this list is here because it genuinely serves some users better than we do, and we say so explicitly in the sections below.

Quick comparison

Prices verified June 2026. Check each app's site for current offers.

DonkeyBucks

DonkeyBucks is the app we built specifically because Mint left a gap. The free tier includes CSV import with column mapping, manual account entry, demo data, a full dashboard, budgets, and spending breakdowns. Every new account also starts with a 30-day Pro trial, no credit card required, so you can explore every feature before deciding. After the trial, your account drops to Free and all your data is kept.

The Pro tier at $4.99/mo (or $49/yr) adds bank sync via Plaid (including investment and brokerage accounts), AI-powered categorization (using Claude Haiku), automatic recurring expense detection, a rules engine, and anomaly alerts. The unique feature no other app in this list has is spending tier classification: every transaction is labeled as Fixed Essential, Variable Essential, Discretionary Recurring, or Discretionary One-Time so you can see at a glance how much of your spending is actually flexible.

Choose DonkeyBucks if: You want a free Mint replacement you can explore without a credit card, you care about knowing what spending you can actually change, or you are coming from Mint with a CSV export you need to import.

Monarch Money

Monarch is the most polished paid Mint replacement available. At $8.33/mo billed annually (or $14.99/mo monthly), it offers a well-designed interface, solid Plaid-based bank sync, collaborative household budgeting, and a growing set of investment tracking tools. The Plus plan at $199/yr adds long-range financial planning and small business features.

The main limitation is that there is no free tier. After the 7-day trial, you are paying. It is also entirely Plaid-dependent, which means you are subject to Plaid's connectivity and privacy policies. For users who want the smoothest experience and are comfortable paying for it, Monarch is the closest thing to a premium Mint successor.

Choose Monarch if: You and a partner want to budget together, you want a polished interface, and you are comfortable paying around $100/year for it.

Rocket Money

Rocket Money (formerly Truebill) occupies a different niche from most Mint replacements. Its free tier gives you subscription tracking and basic budgeting. The Premium tier ($7 to $14/mo, you pick the price) adds custom categories, goal tracking, credit score monitoring, and real-time sync.

The standout feature is its subscription cancellation service. For 35-60% of first-year savings, Rocket Money will negotiate lower bills or cancel subscriptions on your behalf. If you have a lot of subscription creep to clean up, the fee can pay for itself quickly. On the other hand, if you mainly want transaction tracking and budgeting, you are paying for features you may not use.

Choose Rocket Money if: You want someone to audit and cancel your subscriptions for you, or you want a free starting point with basic tracking.

YNAB

YNAB (You Need A Budget) is the most serious budgeting tool on this list. At $14.99/mo or $109/year, it uses a zero-based budgeting philosophy: every dollar you have gets assigned a job before you spend it. It has a 34-day free trial, a strong community, and over a decade of product refinement.

YNAB requires a genuine commitment. You will not get value from it unless you engage with the zero-based system. Many Mint users who switched to YNAB found it too manual and returned to a lighter-touch app. If that sounds like you, one of the other options here will probably fit better. If you want to deeply understand and control your spending, YNAB is in a class of its own.

Choose YNAB if: You want a proven zero-based budgeting system, you are willing to spend 15-20 minutes per week in the app, and you want the most mature community of any budgeting app.

Copilot Money

Copilot is the best-designed budgeting app available on iOS, and it added web access in December 2025. At $13/mo or $95/year, it offers smart categorization, clear spending visualization, and a clean native feel. The interface is genuinely enjoyable to use.

The limitations are clear: there is no Android app (web access helps but is not the same), no permanent free tier, and the feature set is more focused on tracking than active budgeting. If you are an iPhone user who values design and wants a tool that stays out of the way, Copilot is worth trying.

Choose Copilot if: You are an iPhone user who values design above all else and wants a smooth, low-friction tracking experience.

Empower Personal Dashboard

Empower (formerly Personal Capital) offers a completely free financial dashboard with Plaid-based bank sync, net worth tracking, spending categorization, and investment portfolio analysis. There are no paywalls on the dashboard tools.

The catch is the business model. Empower makes money from its wealth management service (0.89% AUM fee), which requires a $100,000 minimum. If you have significant assets and are interested in advisory services, that is a real benefit. If you are a regular user just tracking monthly spending, expect persistent pitches toward managed accounts. The tool works well for net worth tracking and investment visibility.

Choose Empower if: You want free investment portfolio tracking alongside spending, or you have significant assets and are open to eventually using their advisory service.

How to migrate your Mint data

If you exported your Mint transactions before the shutdown (or used a third-party tool to grab them), DonkeyBucks can import them directly. The CSV import feature includes:

• Full column-mapping UI (map Date, Amount, Description, Category to your file's headers)
• Auto-detection of date formats (MM/DD/YYYY, YYYY-MM-DD, etc.)
• Amount sign flip option (if your export uses negative for expenses)
• Batch preview before committing
• Duplicate detection via content hash so re-importing the same file is safe

Once imported, you can run AI categorization in batch to re-classify transactions using DonkeyBucks' 45-category taxonomy and spending tier system.

Frequently asked questions

Is there a truly free Mint replacement?

Yes. DonkeyBucks has a permanent free tier with CSV import, manual accounts, demo data, dashboard, and budgets. Bank sync is available in the $4.99/mo Pro plan via Plaid. Every account also gets a 30-day Pro trial, no credit card required. Empower's dashboard is also free but targets higher net worth users. Rocket Money has a limited free tier.

What happened to Mint?

Intuit shut down Mint in August 2024 and redirected users to Credit Karma. Credit Karma does not offer budgeting or transaction management, leaving millions of users without a direct replacement.

Can I import my Mint CSV export?

DonkeyBucks accepts Mint CSV exports with a column-mapping interface. Map your date, amount, and description columns, preview the import, and bring your full history into the app.

Which app is best for tracking subscriptions?

DonkeyBucks detects recurring charges automatically and labels them as discretionary or essential. Rocket Money can cancel or negotiate subscriptions on your behalf for a percentage of savings.

Do any Mint alternatives work without a bank connection?

DonkeyBucks works fully without a bank connection. Start with CSV import, manual accounts, or demo data to explore the app before connecting anything. No bank connection or credit card is required to create an account.