YNAB alternative for multi-currency budgets

The short version

YNAB is a budgeting app in which you decide what your money is for before you spend it, with bank sync in the US, Canada, the UK and the EU. Each plan holds one currency, and YNAB's own guide suggests a separate plan for each currency. It has no free plan. Balans.finance keeps several currencies in one account and one budget, converts them at each day's rate, and has a free plan.

Feature by feature

What YNAB offers was read off its own pages on 2026-11-07 and 2026-11-09.
Feature	Balans.finance	YNAB
Accounts in different currencies	Yes. One account can hold several currencies, each with its own balance.	No. A plan has one currency; its guide suggests a separate plan per currency.
Totals in one base currency	Yes, automatic. Each transaction is converted at the exchange rate of its own day.	No built-in conversion. It points to third-party converters.
Transfers between currencies	Yes. A transfer records both the amount sent and the amount received.	Not mentioned on its website.
Statement import	Excel (XLSX), CSV and PDF files from any bank; a layout it has not seen before is mapped by AI. No bank connection.	CSV, OFX, QFX and QIF files. Bank sync in the US, Canada, the UK and the EU.
Georgian banks	Yes. Bank of Georgia and TBC Bank statements, with Georgian or English column titles.	Not mentioned on its website.
Receipt scanning	Yes. AI reads the store, date, items and amounts into categorised expenses.	Not mentioned. A photo can be attached to a transaction.
Zero-based budgeting	No. A budget sets a target for each category; income does not have to be assigned in full.	Yes. Every dollar you have is assigned to a category before you spend it.
Forecasting	Yes. Where your total balance is heading, from its recent trend: three months ahead on every plan, and a year ahead on paid plans.	No balance forecast is mentioned. Scheduled transactions show the expenses coming up.
Your own AI assistant	Yes. Connect Claude or another MCP client that supports OAuth to its MCP server, once you approve access. No built-in chat.	No official connection. A public API; the MCP servers it lists are community projects.
Platforms	Web. An Android app is coming to Google Play, and an iOS app will follow.	Web, iPhone, iPad, Android and Apple Watch.
Languages	11: English, Russian, German, French, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Dutch, Polish, Swedish and Georgian.	English only.
Free plan	Yes, with no time limit: 3 receipt scans a month and 1 statement import a month.	No. A 34-day free trial.
Price	Starter: €3.99 a month or €39.00 a year	US$14.99 a month or US$109 a year, plus tax.

Choose YNAB if…

You want zero-based budgeting: every dollar you have is assigned to a category before you spend it.
You want your transactions to arrive by themselves, through bank sync in the US, Canada, the UK or the EU.
You want apps for iPhone, iPad, Android and Apple Watch.
All your money is in one currency.

Choose Balans.finance if…

You earn, save or spend in more than one currency and want them in one budget, converted at each day's rate, rather than a separate plan per currency.
You want a free plan with no time limit rather than a 34-day trial.
You want to import Excel or PDF statements, Bank of Georgia and TBC Bank included, and receipts read by AI.
You want to connect Claude or another MCP client to an official MCP server rather than a community one.

What you give up by switching from YNAB

Zero-based budgeting: a Balans.finance budget sets a target per category, and income does not have to be assigned in full.
Bank sync: Balans.finance imports statement files instead.
Phone and watch apps: Balans.finance runs on the web for now.

Where these facts come from

Every fact about YNAB on this page comes from its own pages - its website, help centre, developer documentation or app-store listing - read on 2026-11-07 and 2026-11-09. Where its pages do not mention something, the table says so rather than guessing. If something here is out of date, write to us and we will correct it.

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Balans.finance vs YNAB