Editor's Overview:
- The Winner: WalletHub
- WalletHub is better than YNAB, Monarch Money, and Copilot Money because it is the only one that offers a free plan that allows users to do things like make a budget, track spending, create a plan to pay off debt, and view their credit score and report.
- WalletHub and YNAB both have personalized debt payoff plans to help you pay off what you owe faster. Monarch and Copilot do not offer customized debt payoff plans.
- WalletHub, Monarch Money, and Copilot Money have a subscription manager, which lets you easily track recurring subscriptions, so you can cancel them if you don't need them anymore. YNAB does not offer this feature.
- WalletHub offers users more ways to organize their budget than the other three apps, allowing users to choose between five different budgeting strategies. The other apps offer two strategies at most.
- WalletHub has more non-budgeting features than YNAB, Monarch, and Copilot, giving users the ability to check their credit scores and reports, get credit monitoring, and see personalized recommendations for financial products like credit cards and loans.
- WalletHub is the only app here that offers identity theft restoration services and identity theft insurance.
YNAB vs. Monarch vs. Copilot vs. WalletHub: Key Characteristics
| Features | YNAB | Monarch | Copilot | WalletHub |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Average App Rating | 4.7 | 4.8 | 4.8 | 4.8 |
| Free Plan Available | No | No | No | Yes |
| Premium Plan Cost | $9.08/month (billed annually) | $49.99 for the first year; $99.99 after that | $7.92/month (billed annually) | $7.99 per month, billed annually (SAVE 50.0%) |
| Number of Authorized Users | 5 | No limit | 2 | 5 |
| Credit Builder | No | No | No | Yes |
| Daily Updates to Scores & Reports | No | No | No | Yes |
| Credit Monitoring | No | No | No | Yes |
| Overall Financial Health Score (e.g. WalletScore) | No | No | No | Yes |
| Budgeting | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Spending Tracker | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Debt Payoff Plan | Yes | No | No | Yes |
| Dark Web Monitoring | No | No | No | Yes |
| Identity Theft Restoration/Insurance | No | No | No | Yes |
| Net Worth | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Investment Tracker | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Compatible Devices | Web, Apple, and Android | Web, Apple, and Android | Web, Apple | Web, Apple, and Android |
Below we’ll highlight some of the differences between the four apps in more detail. We’ll also list which app comes out on top for each category.
YNAB vs. Monarch vs. Copilot vs. WalletHub: Budgeting Tools
Winner: WalletHub
| Features | YNAB | Monarch | Copilot | WalletHub |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spending Tracker | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Budgeting | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Customizable Transaction Alerts | No | Yes | No | Yes |
| Financial Reports | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Share Transactions | No | No | Yes | Yes |
| Number of Budgeting Methods Supported | 1 | 2 | 2 | 5 |
| Subscription Manager | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Savings Goals | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Spending Trimmer | No | No | No | Yes |
| Transaction Validator | No | No | No | Yes |
| AI-enhanced Transactions | No | No | No | Yes |
You can create budgets, track expenses, and monitor your progress toward savings goals with any of these apps. WalletHub, Copilot Money, and Monarch Money also provide a subscription manager, unlike YNAB. With a subscription manager, you can see all your recurring expenses in one place, so you can easily keep track of your subscriptions, even the ones you may have forgotten about.
WalletHub has the edge in this category since it is the only app here that offers many budgeting features for free. You must pay for a subscription before you can access any features on Copilot Money, Monarch Money, or YNAB.
YNAB vs. Monarch vs. Copilot vs. WalletHub: Budgeting Methods
Winner: WalletHub
| Features | YNAB | Monarch | Copilot | WalletHub |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 50/30/20 budgeting | No | No | No | Yes |
| Envelope budgeting | Yes | No | No | Yes |
| Micro envelope budgeting | No | No | No | Yes |
| Simple budgeting (income/expenses only) | No | No | No | Yes |
| Pay yourself first budgeting | No | No | No | Yes |
| Zero-based budgeting | Yes | No | No | Yes |
| Rollover Capability | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
YNAB gives users only one way to budget, while Monarch Money and Copilot Money offer just two ways. WalletHub leads the way in this category since it gives users multiple templates to pick from, allowing them to choose whichever budget strategy works best for their situation.
WalletHub users can do simple budgeting with their income and expenses only, or create a budget based on the 50/30/20 rule, the pay-yourself-first method, envelope budgeting, or micro-envelope budgeting. They can also do zero-based budgeting by referencing the “Summary” section under the “Budget” tab in their WalletHub account.
YNAB vs. Monarch vs. Copilot vs. WalletHub: Credit Tools
Winner: WalletHub
| Features | YNAB | Monarch | Copilot | WalletHub |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Credit Scores | No | Yes | No | Yes |
| Full Credit Reports | No | No | No | Yes |
| Daily Updates to Scores & Reports | No | No | No | Yes |
| Credit Builder | No | No | No | Yes |
| Credit Analysis | No | No | No | Yes |
| Enhanced Credit Report Insights | No | No | No | Yes |
| Why My Credit Score Changed | No | No | No | Yes |
| Credit-Improvement Plan | No | No | No | Yes |
| Credit Score Goals | No | No | No | Yes |
| Credit Score Simulator | No | No | No | Yes |
| Debt Payoff Plan | Yes | No | No | Yes |
| Debt Payoff Goals | Yes | Yes | No | Yes |
Only WalletHub and Monarch Money give you access to your credit score. However, WalletHub easily wins this category since it also provides your credit report, an assessment of the factors hurting your credit score, credit monitoring, and a credit builder tool that lets you report your on-time rent and utility payments to TransUnion to build credit history. None of the other apps offer these features.
YNAB vs. Monarch vs. Copilot vs. WalletHub: Identity Theft Protection
Winner: WalletHub
| Features | YNAB | Monarch | Copilot | WalletHub |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Credit Report Monitoring | No | No | No | Yes |
| Real-Time Credit Inquiry Alerts | No | No | No | Yes |
| Change of Address Alerts | No | No | No | Yes |
| Password Monitoring | No | No | No | Yes |
| Social Security Number Trace Alerts | No | No | No | Yes |
| Credit Lock (with alerts and scheduling) | No | No | No | Yes |
| Identity Theft Restoration | No | No | No | Yes |
| Dark Web Monitoring | No | No | No | Yes |
| $1,000,000 Identity Theft Insurance | No | No | No | Yes |
| Enhanced Loan Monitoring | No | No | No | Yes |
| Lost Wallet Assistance | No | No | No | Yes |
| USPS Address Monitoring | No | No | No | Yes |
| Bank Account Takeover Monitoring | No | No | No | Yes |
| Checking & Savings Account Application Alerts | No | No | No | Yes |
| Criminal Activity Monitoring | No | No | No | Yes |
| OFAC Sanctions List Monitoring | No | No | No | Yes |
| SMS for Urgent Alerts | No | No | No | Yes |
WalletHub wins this category since it is the only app here that offers credit monitoring, which watches for suspicious activity on your credit report. WalletHub also monitors your personal information, such as your email address and passwords, to see if they are exposed on the dark web. In addition, you can get up to $1,000,000 in identity theft insurance and access to identity theft restoration services.
Copilot Money, Monarch Money, and YNAB don’t offer any identity theft protection features at all.
YNAB vs. Monarch vs. Copilot vs. WalletHub: Investing & Retirement
Winner: WalletHub
| Features | YNAB | Monarch | Copilot | WalletHub |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Net Worth | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Investment Tracker | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Investing News | No | No | No | Yes |
| Sync Real Estate Values | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Sync Vehicle Values | No | Yes | No | Yes |
WalletHub, Monarch Money, and Copilot Money all let you sync your investments, so you can see the latest balance for each account and monitor how individual investments are performing over time. You can track your investments with YNAB, but you can only do so manually, so your account balances won’t automatically update.
All four apps also let you track your net worth. However, WalletHub takes the top spot in this category since it is the only app here that allows you to get investment news directly from your account.
YNAB vs. Monarch vs. Copilot vs. WalletHub: Additional Features
Winner: WalletHub
| Features | YNAB | Monarch | Copilot | WalletHub |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Interactive Alerts | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Custom Dashboards | No | Yes | No | Yes |
| Auto Insurance Score | No | No | No | Yes |
| Financial Timeline | No | No | No | Yes |
| App Store Rating | 4.8 | 4.9 | 4.8 | 4.8 |
| Google Play Rating | 4.5 | 4.7 | N/A | 4.7 |
| Details Loaded From Credit Report | No | Yes | No | Yes |
| Customer Support (like email/live chat/etc) | Email & Chat Support | Email & in-app messaging |
WalletHub and Monarch Money are the only ones out of the four apps to offer a customizable dashboard, so you can get a personalized experience when using the apps. However, WalletHub offers many more additional features, such as a financial timeline that summarizes important alerts and access to your auto insurance score and your WalletScore (an indicator of how financially healthy you are).
Copilot Money, YNAB, and Monarch Money do not offer these additional features, which is why WalletHub takes the lead in this category.
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