The Spending Tracker app by MH Riley has been a quiet staple for over a decade: free, simple, weekly/monthly/yearly views, a budget mode, and clean charts, with in-app purchases for extras like repeat transactions and CSV export. It works — but people outgrow it. The interface feels dated, entry is fully manual with no smart capture, sync is limited to Dropbox backup, and it stops short of real budgeting features like forecasts or savings goals. Here's what to move to when you want more without giving up the simplicity.

What to keep, what to upgrade

Spending Tracker gets one thing very right: it's fast to grasp and doesn't nag you to link a bank. Keep that. What's worth upgrading is the speed of manual entry (AI capture instead of typing every field), smarter charts and forecasts, and proper category budgets that warn you before you overspend rather than after.

Quick comparison

App	Best for	Price (2026)	Bank login	Platforms
Spending Tracker (baseline)	Dead-simple manual tracking	Free / small IAPs	No	iOS, Android, Windows
Lumi	Fast AI logging + forecast	Free / $4.99/mo	No	iPhone, web
Money Manager (Realbyte)	Deeper stats, still manual	Free / $19.99/yr	No	iOS, Android, PC
Monefy	Fast tap-to-add simplicity	Free / one-time or sub	No	iOS, Android
YNAB	Zero-based, proactive budgeting	$109/yr	Optional	iOS, Android, web

The alternatives

Lumi — Spending Tracker's simplicity, but entry takes two seconds

Lumi keeps the no-bank-login, log-it-yourself philosophy that makes Spending Tracker easy — then removes the typing. Say "coffee five", scan a receipt in any language, tap the back of your iPhone with Back Tap, or auto-import from Apple Pay, and the AI fills in amount, merchant, and category. On top of the charts you'd expect, you get budgets that warn before overspending, an AI month-end forecast, savings goals, and a unified 150+ currency view. Free tier includes AI features; Premium is $4.99/mo or $39.99/yr. iPhone and web (no Android). See how to log expenses without typing.

Money Manager (Realbyte) — more depth, same manual model

If you loved Spending Tracker's reports and want more of them, Money Manager adds main/sub-categories, double-entry-style accounts, multi-currency, and richer statistics — free with ads or $19.99/yr, on iOS, Android, and PC. A natural step up that keeps everything manual and private.

Monefy — if you want to stay minimalist

Monefy is the modern take on tap-to-add simplicity: a big colourful category wheel, instant entry, and clean summaries, without bank sync. Good if your only complaint about Spending Tracker is the dated look, not the feature set. We compare it directly in Lumi vs Monefy.

YNAB — if simple tracking stopped changing anything

Sometimes the issue isn't the app, it's that tracking alone doesn't fix overspending. YNAB's zero-based method (109 dollars a year) makes you assign every dollar a job up front. Heavier, but it's the tool when awareness needs to become a system — start with why tracking your spending matters.

The bottom line

Want the same simplicity with two-second AI entry and forecasts: Lumi. Want deeper reports, still manual: Money Manager. Want to stay minimalist with a fresher look: Monefy. Want a real budgeting system: YNAB. New to it all? Read how to track spending that actually sticks.

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FAQ

Is the Spending Tracker app still good in 2026?

For basic, private, manual tracking it still works and it's free. Its limits are a dated interface, manual-only entry with no smart capture, and no forecasting or goals. If those bother you, Lumi keeps the privacy and adds AI logging plus a forecast.

What's the fastest way to log expenses manually?

Skip typing every field. Voice ("groceries forty"), receipt scanning, Apple Pay import, and iPhone Back Tap all capture a transaction in about two seconds. Lumi is built around these — see best voice expense trackers.

Yes — Lumi, Money Manager, and Monefy all avoid bank linking. Lumi goes furthest, keeping everything on-device with no account required. See best expense trackers with no bank login.