The best budgeting apps in the UK: How to budget without trying

Which is the best budgeting app?

There are lots of different ways to budget in 2026. One of the most popular ways to stay on top of your finances is to use a dedicated budgeting app, but choosing the right one for you can be tricky.

This article provides a summary of the best budgeting apps in 2026, including the best free and low-cost budgeting apps, the best premium budgeting apps, and the best banks that have budgeting features. Moneyhub, a popular Budgeting App for UK users, announced it is closing its consumer-facing app entirely in August 2026. The video below looks at the best budgeting apps in the UK, which is particularly helpful to those looking for a Moneyhub alternative.

Best free budgeting apps

Here are the best free budgeting apps on the market right now. Some of these apps come with optional paid versions, but even their free counterparts offer a solid budgeting experience to get you started on your journey.

Snoop*

Founded in 2019, Snoop is a solid free budgeting app if you're looking for an easy way to track household bills. It uses open banking to combine your accounts in one place and help you analyse your spending habits and make savings. Snoop is currently ranked 3.2 out of 5.0 on Trustpilot based on around 120 reviews.

Here is an overview of some of the key features Snoop offers.

• Two plans to choose from Snoop Free and Snoop Plus at £5.99 a month (or £47.99 billed annually)
• See all of your bank accounts in one place within the app
• Track your bills and get notified if you can switch to save money
• Get a summary of your spending in the month and of any upcoming payments
• Categorise your spending
• Set monthly spending budgets
• Get notified of ‘Snoops', which are ways to save money based on where you spend

More information can be found in our independent Snoop review.

Actual Budget

Actual Budget is an open-source budgeting app that is privacy-focused. You can self-host the app for free on your own server if you wish. Or, you can host through Actual Budget's partner PikaPods from $1.50 a month. There is also optional end-to-end encryption to keep your data even safer. The app itself is free to use.

Here are some of the features you can expect with Actual Budget:

• Link all your accounts to track your transactions in one place
• Add, delete, rename and merge categories to make the budget your own
• Get a net worth and cash flow report
• Use the filters to create custom reports
• Choose between envelope-style budgeting or a tracking budget
• Own your data with self-hosting and end-to-end encryption

HyperJar

HyperJar is a prepaid debit card and money app available to both children and adults. It's a great way to control your spending as it allows you to divide your money among different jars for different purposes and spend from them accordingly. The app is also completely free. It's ranked 4.6 out of 5.0 on Trustpilot based on more than 3,700 reviews.

Here is an overview of some of the key features HyperJar offers.

• Free to download and use
• Budget effectively with separate ‘Jars' for your money
• Each adult account comes with a free virtual card which can be added to Apple Pay or Google Pay
• Those who prefer a physical card are charged £4.99 to cover some of the production and shipping costs
• Restrict spending from a Jar to certain shops and retailers
• Pocket money app and kids card to encourage money management for children
• Exclusive discounts and rewards based on your spending
• Fee-free spending when abroad
• HyperJar does not pay any interest, and you cannot withdraw cash at ATMs

More information can be found on the HyperJar website.

Best premium budgeting apps

If you're looking for a budgeting app with advanced budgeting features and are willing to spend a little more, then Emma, YNAB, and PocketSmith are all great options to consider.

Emma*

Founded in 2018, Emma is a money management app that has attracted more than 3 million customers since its inception. It uses open banking to combine information about your existing accounts, credit cards, and investments. It also comes with a range of budgeting and investment features to help you make the most of your money.

To make full use of Emma and connect more than two accounts, you will likely need to go for the paid option. Emma's app is one of the most comprehensive budgeting apps on the market right now. It's currently ranked 3.8 out of 5.0 on Trustpilot based on around 450 reviews.

Here is an overview of some of the key features Emma offers.

• Four plans to choose from ranging from £0 – £14.99 a month (or £41.99 to £124.99 per year)
• Earn up to 3.20% AER on your savings with an Easy Access pot, up to 3.67% AER with a 45 Day Notice Pot, or up to 3.24% AER with a Super Pot
• Users can invest in a curated range of international ETFs and funds and pay 0.10% to 0.60% depending on the membership plan
• Make use of rent reporting, where regular rent payments are reported to credit reference agencies to improve your credit score
• Group all of your accounts together in one place
• Monthly savings prompts to keep your budgeting on track
• Set your payday to track your spending between pay periods
• Set budget goals in the app
• Cut down unnecessary spending – Emma highlights wasteful subscriptions
• Offers savings advice and recommends an affordable amount to save each month based on your budget

More information can be found in our independent Emma review.

YNAB

YNAB (You Need A Budget) is a US-based budgeting app that has been growing in popularity in the UK. The YNAB method primarily focuses on envelope style budgeting where you assign all of your money a “job”. The app takes you through several questions to help you understand your financial priorities so you can assign your budget appropriately.

At a cost of $109 a year or $14.99 a month, YNAB is on the premium end of the budgeting apps spectrum in terms of pricing. On Trustpilot, YNAB has a score of 4.6 out of 5.0 based on more than 2,900 reviews.  Here is an overview of some of the key features YNAB offers.

• Learn the YNAB method and “give every dollar a job”
• Link your UK bank accounts for a full picture of your finances
• Add manual accounts if some of your existing accounts aren't compatible with YNAB
• Create custom categories and split transactions into multiple categories
• Share your subscription with up to six close family and friends to reach financial goals together
• Access the app from your computer, phone or tablet with automatic syncing and an offline mode
• Try YNAB for free for 34 days before deciding whether you want to sign up (no credit card required)
• University and college students can access a free 365-day trial

PocketSmith

Australian-based PocketSmith is a relative newcomer to the UK budgeting space, although it's been around since 2008. Their mission is to help you make better financial decisions by forecasting your future bank balances and giving you intuitive tools to help you interact with your money.

With plans starting at £14.95 a month (or £9.99 when billed yearly), PocketSmith is definitely on the premium end of the spectrum. It has a 2.9 out of 5.0 score on Trustpilot based on just 14 reviews.

Some of its key features are outlined below.

• Links with more than 12,000 financial institutions worldwide to show you your transactions in one place
• Tracks multi-currency accounts to show you your global assets (and auto-converts based on daily rates)
• Has customisable dashboards and reports to help you understand your financial situation
• Can forecast your daily bank balances up to 60 years into the future with its cash projections tool
• Lets you test out various decisions to see how they would impact future financial outcomes through forecasts

Nova Money

Unlike traditional budgeting apps that focus heavily on tracking past spending, UK-based Nova Money takes a forward-looking approach by focusing on financial forecasting. Its ethos revolves around “reverse budgeting – where you set your savings goals first, and the app's AI calculates what you can afford to spend with the rest of your money. It does not offer a free tier; instead, it offers two paid subscription plans: Forecast Pro (which forecasts your balance one month ahead) and Forecast Unlimited (which provides unlimited forecasting). It is a premium budgeting tool designed to visualise their future wealth rather than just track past expenses. It has a 4.0 out of 5.0 score on Trustpilot based on just 10 reviews.

Forecast Pro costs £9.99 per month (or £99.99 if you choose to pay annually) and Forecast Unlimited costs £14.99 per month (or £149.99 if billed annually).

• Connects securely to over 40 UK banks and credit cards via Open Banking
• Creates a 24/7 up-to-date forecast of your future account balances, adjusting in real-time as you spend
• Employs “reverse budgeting” by prioritising your saving and investing goals before calculating your disposable income
• Tracks upcoming bills, subscriptions, and regular payments to ensure you never miss a due date
• Provides interactive tutorials and guides to help users transition from traditional budgeting to financial forecasting
• Visualises your progress towards your goals, sending alerts if your current spending habits mean you are likely to fall short

Best banks for budgeting

Some banks have extra features that can help with your budgeting needs. Lloyds, for example, offers the option to link other bank accounts to your existing account so you can have a full overview of your financial situation.

Chase and Starling also have budgeting features that might appeal to some, including spending insights and the opportunity to set multiple savings goals or have multiple savings accounts to track your savings more easily.

Typically, banks that have free budgeting features are fairly limited in what they offer but can be a good starting point. That said, some may choose to avoid linking other accounts to their main bank account due to privacy concerns.

However, for those who would like the option to use their bank account as a budgeting app as well, options like Monzo and Revolut are particularly good choices as they allow account linking and have many of the budgeting features a traditional budgeting app offers.

Monzo

Monzo is an app-only bank with lots of helpful budgeting tools. However, to get the most of what it has to offer in terms of budgeting, you'll probably need to choose one of the paid plans. The cheapest one is Monzo Extra which costs £3 per month and comes with additional budgeting features. It won the SmartMoneyPeople Best Banking App award in 2023. On Trustpilot, Monzo is ranked 4.6 out of 5.0 based on around 68,000 reviews.

Here is an overview of some of the key features Monzo offers.

• Effortless savings feature that allows you to round up payments to the nearest pound, the pennies get added to a ‘savings pot'
• Can link bank accounts to see an overview of all your accounts in one place (Monzo Extra feature)
• Create custom categories (Monzo Extra feature)
• Get credit insights from three different credit referencing agencies (Monzo Extra feature)
• Use advanced round-ups to reach your savings goals faster (Monzo Extra feature)
• Earn interest on Savings Pots
• Can upgrade to Monzo Perks or Monzo Max for £7 or £17 a month – these come with additional benefits like weekly Greggs treats, free railcards, free cinema tickets and insurance policies (Monzo Max only)

More information can be found in our independent Monzo review.

Revolut

Revolut received its UK banking licence in March 2026, meaning it is now a fully-fledged UK bank. It offers budgeting features via its app and offers some of the best exchange rates on the market, meani it's an attractive option for travelling abroad. Revolut is currently ranked 4.7 out of 5.0 on Trustpilot based on around 404,000 reviews.

We've outlined some of the key features Revolut offers below.

• Link your other bank accounts with Revolut to get an overview of all your money
• Set custom expense categories
• Auto-sort your salary into categories like bills, savings and spending
• Create custom “pockets” to save for different goals
• Round up your spending to the nearest pound and the money is automatically put into a savings pot
• Get instant spending notifications

More information can be found in our independent Revolut review.

An overview of the best budgeting apps in the UK in 2026

There are lots of budgeting apps on the UK market right now, ranging from free to premium.

Snoop* is a great overall choice for your budgeting needs. The free version covers the basics by allowing you to connect your bank accounts and automatically categorise your spending. You also get a weekly spending report and can view your spending by merchant or category. Snoop Plus, the paid version of the app, costs £47.99 a year or £5.99 a month and comes with lots of helpful budgeting features like the option to create custom spending categories, add manual accounts, and export your data.

If you're looking for even more advanced features and extra benefits like cashback and investment options, then Emma* could be a good option as well. This premium app covers all the budgeting basics but comes with extra perks like the opportunity to earn interest on your savings, as well as a rent reporting feature to help build your credit score.

Using your own bank account is an option too, with banks like Monzo offering budgeting add-ons like Monzo Extra (£3 a month) which come with features like credit insights, custom categories, and the ability to link other bank accounts.

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