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Best expense trackers without bank linking (2026)

By Roland Moldovan · 4 September 2026

If you want to track spending without handing an app your bank login, you have more choice than the big comparison sites suggest — most of them only list apps with bank sync. Below are six trackers where manual entry is the whole point, and three that let you skip the bank connection but are built around it. I checked each one against its own store listing or website on 3 September 2026; where a listing doesn't say something, the table says so too. Prices are US App Store prices at that date, and they change without notice.

One of the six is mine: Monavo. It sits in the table on the same terms as the others, limits included.

The short version

Monefy if you want the classic pie-chart tracker and your own Drive or Dropbox as the sync. Bluecoins if you're on Android and want to pay once. Goodbudget if you budget with envelopes and want a web app too. Pocket Clear or Monavo if privacy is the reason you're here — Monavo if you'd also rather type an expense than tap through a form, or share one budget across an iPhone and an Android.

Side by side

*Pocket Clear's site says there is no sign-up form. When I installed it in July 2026, the first screen asked for an email address and a verification code. It may have changed since; check the first run yourself before you rely on it.

Monefy

The pie chart with a plus button. Monefy has been the default "simple tracker" recommendation for years: you add an amount, pick a category, done. There's no bank login — its own site says you can import statements manually or add expenses in seconds. Sync between phones, or with a partner, runs through your own Google Drive or Dropbox account, which is a real privacy point: Monefy never holds your data. The free version covers the basics; Premium adds unlimited accounts, recurring transactions and advanced filters. It supports 150+ currencies and 25+ languages. Where it costs you: every entry is a category tap plus an amount, and the partner setup is "share a Drive folder", not a pairing.

1Money

Android only, free, manual. Its Play listing leads with one-tap entry where the amount is the only thing you type, charts by category, debt and savings tracking, and multiple currencies with updated exchange rates. I couldn't verify sync or offline behaviour from the listing, so the table says "not stated" — check the app before you rely on either.

Bluecoins

The Android power user's tracker, with an iOS version since December 2022. Everything is manual — it never logs into a bank — though it can read your banking app's notifications or SMS to pre-fill an entry if you allow it. It works offline, backs up to Google Drive, Dropbox or OneDrive, and anyone you share that folder with can add expenses too. Free with ads, or a one-time Premium purchase; the site's own words are "never a subscription". 40 languages, any currency with live rates.

Goodbudget

Envelope budgeting, with a web app. On the free plan you enter everything by hand: 10 regular envelopes, 10 annual ones, one device. Bank sync exists, but only on the paid plans, and an account is not optional — your data lives on Goodbudget's servers and syncs from there. Paid plans link up to five devices, which is how couples and families use it. Plus is $5.99–7.99 a month or $49.99–69.99 a year; Premium $9.99 a month or $79.99 a year (the ranges are how the App Store lists them).

Pocket Clear

Positioned almost exactly like Monavo: no ads, no bank linking, manual entry, local data, a partner mode. Its site says it works fully offline, supports 135 currencies, and is free with unlimited transactions; Pro ($4.99 a month or $34.99 a year) adds cloud backup and sync, multiple devices and the partner mode. It also runs on iPad, Mac and Chromebook, which Monavo doesn't. On the account question, see the note under the table.

Monavo

Mine. The difference is how an expense gets in: you type coffee 15 and it's saved and categorised; you don't pick a category or fill a form. No account, no email — on a fresh install in airplane mode it opens straight into tracking. The one thing that waits for a connection is categorising a word it has never seen, which lands in "Other" until then. Data stays on the phone; cloud backup is optional and part of Pro, which also covers up to three phones and lets a couple share one budget by scanning a QR code, iPhone and Android mixed. Free with no time limit; Pro is $19.99 a year or $2.99 a month with a 7-day trial; Lifetime is $59.99.

What it doesn't have: a web or desktop app, and it won't import anything automatically — if you drop it for a month, that month is gone. I've written about why I skipped bank linking and about how to track expenses manually without the habit dying in week three.

Manual mode inside apps built around bank sync

Three well-known apps let you never connect a bank, but the design assumes you will. Spendee offers bank sync on every plan, including the free one, which gives you one cash wallet and one budget; Plus ($1.99 a month or $14.99 a year) and Premium ($5.99 a month or $35.99 a year) add unlimited wallets and shared wallets. Wallet by BudgetBakers has a free manual tier that does not connect to your bank, a Premium tier with 15,000+ bank connections (US App Store purchases start at $5.99, with a $49.99 lifetime option), and requires an account. MoneyCoach is Apple-only, tracks manually or through 2,800+ European bank connections, and syncs through iCloud with a family option. If you already use one of these, you can keep it manual; the table above is for people choosing fresh.

How I checked

US App Store listings and each app's own website, read on 3 September 2026, plus a fresh install where I say so. Nothing here comes from other review sites. Prices change several times a year, so the date is part of the claim. Corrections to support@getmonavo.com — I'll fix them.

Frequently asked questions

Monavo is a personal expense tracker for iOS and Android. Free to use, local-first, no bank linking. Which trackers really start without an account →