A more powerful YNAB alternative for Mac & iPhone users.
YNAB is a great start – but if you’ve outgrown it, Banktivity gives you a complete financial picture: deeper budgeting, investment tracking, retirement planning and goal tools, in a native app for Mac, iPhone and iPad.
YNAB built its reputation on one thing: zero-based budgeting. For people learning to manage money intentionally for the first time, it works. But for people whose financial lives have grown more complex — investments to track, retirement to plan for, goals beyond the monthly budget — YNAB starts to feel like a tool that was not built for where you are now. Banktivity is built for that next stage: a native Mac app that covers budgeting, investments, reporting and long-term planning all in one place.
Why People Outgrow YNAB
YNAB is genuinely good at what it does. The complaints people have are not that it’s broken — it’s that it was intended for a specific use case, and over time many users find themselves needing more than it offers.
No investment tracking
YNAB does not track investment portfolios, individual securities, performance, ROI or capital gains. For anyone managing a 401k, brokerage account or retirement portfolio, that is a significant gap that requires a second app.
The method demands ongoing effort
Zero-based budgeting requires you to manually assign every dollar every month. For people who found this transformative at first, it eventually becomes a burden — particularly when life gets busy or finances grow more complex.
Budgeting without a bigger picture
YNAB is excellent at managing what you have right now. It is not built for long-term financial planning — retirement projections, savings goals with timelines, or understanding how today's budget decisions affect your future net worth.
$109 per year for a budgeting-only tool
At $109/year, YNAB is priced as a premium product. For users who need investment tracking and goal planning on top of budgeting, paying that and then also subscribing to a portfolio tracker adds up quickly.
Why Banktivity
All the budgeting power you need — plus everything YNAB leaves out.
Banktivity includes envelope budgeting, so the category-based approach you valued in YNAB is still here. But it goes much further: investment portfolio tracking, retirement goal planning, detailed financial reports and a full view of your net worth — all in a native app built specifically for Mac, iPhone and iPad.
Instead of managing your budget in YNAB and your investments somewhere else, Banktivity gives you one place to see your complete financial picture. Your budget, your portfolio, your goals and your progress — all connected.
What you gain
- Envelope budgeting — the approach you already know
- Full investment tracking including portfolios, ROI and capital gains
- Dedicated retirement, debt payoff and savings goal planning
- 10+ report types including tax, forecast and net worth
- Native Mac, iPhone and iPad apps
- Local data storage with end-to-end encrypted sync
- 30-day free trial, no credit card required
What to know before switching
- Mac and iOS only — no Windows or Android
- Deeper than YNAB — some setup time to get the most out of it
- YNAB data import via CSV export
Banktivity vs YNAB
Everything YNAB does well — and everything it doesn't.
Banktivity keeps the envelope budgeting approach that makes YNAB effective, and adds the investment tracking, retirement planning and reporting depth that YNAB has never offered.
| Feature | Banktivity | YNAB |
|---|---|---|
| Platform & Data | ||
Native Mac desktop app Built for macOS — not a web app |
✔ Fully native | ○ Web only |
Native iPhone + iPad app Full-featured iOS — not a web wrapper |
✔ Fully native | ○ Mobile web / app |
Offline access Full functionality without internet connection |
✔ Advanced | ○ Limited |
Local data storage Your data stays on your devices |
✔ On your device | ✗ Cloud only |
| Budgeting & Reporting | ||
Annual budget planning Plan all 12 months — handle irregular expenses |
✔ Full year planning | ○ Limited |
Multiple budget views See your budget different ways at once |
✔ Multiple views | ○ Limited |
Report export — PDF, CSV, Excel Portable reports for your CPA or records |
✔ Advanced | ○ Limited |
Custom report builder Tailor reports to exactly what you need |
✔ Advanced | ○ Limited |
| Goals & Planning | ||
Retirement projections & scenarios What-if modeling for retirement age, savings, income |
✔ Full suite | ✗ Not available |
College savings planning Dedicated advanced education savings tool |
✔ Advanced | ○ Basic only |
Home purchase planning Model a home purchase impact on your finances |
✔ Advanced | ○ Basic only |
What-if scenario modeling Test financial decisions before you make them |
✔ Advanced | ✗ Not available |
| Transactions | ||
Multiple currency support 30+ currencies with auto exchange rate downloads |
✔ 30+ currencies | ✗ Not available |
Recurring transaction management Advanced scheduling and automation tools |
✔ Advanced | ○ Basic |
| Investment Tracking | ||
Investment account tracking Track buys, sells, dividends, options, IRR, ROI |
✔ Full suite | ✗ Not available |
Capital gains tracking Short and long-term gains with full lot detail |
✔ Advanced | ✗ Not available |
Tax-loss harvesting Surface harvesting opportunities automatically |
✔ Advanced | ✗ Not available |
| Privacy & Pricing | ||
Local data ownership No third party holds your financial data |
✔ On device | ✗ Cloud only |
Annual subscription price Cost per year for full access |
✔ From $59.99 | ○ $109.00 / year |
Free trial — no credit card required Try without entering payment details |
✔ 30 days, no card | ○ 34 days, card req. |
Want the full feature-by-feature breakdown?
Deeper Budgeting
The budgeting you know — with more room to grow.
Banktivity uses envelope budgeting, so the core approach is familiar: plan ahead, allocate your income across categories and know exactly where you stand. But it goes further — budget groups, scheduled transactions, irregular expense planning and budget-vs-actual reporting give you more control without more complexity.
Track Investments
The investment tracking YNAB has never had.
YNAB does not track investments. Banktivity does — buys, sells, dividends, options, ROI, IRR, capital gains and lot-specific trading, all from the same app you use for your budget. Your full financial picture, in one place.
Retirement & Goal Planning
Budget for today. Plan for the rest of your life.
YNAB helps you manage the money you have right now. Banktivity connects that to the future you are working toward — with dedicated tools for retirement planning, debt payoff, education savings and other long-term goals that go far beyond what a monthly budget can show you.
Reports & Insights
See the full picture, not just this month's spending.
YNAB shows you your budget. Banktivity shows you your finances — income and spending, net worth over time, investment performance, tax summaries and forward-looking forecasts, all in one reporting suite that covers your complete financial life.
What Customers Say
Real customers who wanted more than a budgeting app.
Many Banktivity customers came looking for something that went deeper — more reporting, investment tracking, goal planning and a tool that grows with their financial life.
"This is a great tool to keep track of your income, expenses, and all sorts of financial assets. The functionality is great and it is very intuitive to use. I am thankful I found this software."
– Chris, Ohio
"Now, all it takes us is a 15-minute monthly session to review all transactions and change a few categorizations. Love being able to know at any moment what our expenditures are, in which categories, and what is our cash-flow need."
– Philip, Florida
"Simple, effective and efficient money management — doing the accounts is now a pleasure not a chore!"
– R.A.B., United Kingdom
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Banktivity a good replacement for YNAB?
Yes, particularly for users whose financial lives have grown beyond budgeting. Banktivity includes envelope budgeting like YNAB, but adds investment tracking, retirement goal planning, detailed reporting and a native Mac app — things YNAB does not offer. If you are managing a portfolio, planning for retirement or want a single app for your complete financial picture, Banktivity is the stronger choice.
Does Banktivity use the same budgeting method as YNAB?
Banktivity uses envelope budgeting, which is the same core principle as YNAB — assigning money to categories before you spend it. The implementation differs, but the approach of intentional, category-based budgeting is the same.
Can I import my YNAB data into Banktivity?
Yes. YNAB allows you to export your data as a CSV file, which Banktivity can import. Your transaction history can make the move with you.
Does Banktivity track investments?
Yes. Banktivity handles buys, sells, dividends, options, ROI, IRR, capital gains and lot-specific trading. Your full investment portfolio sits alongside your budget and bank accounts in the same app — something YNAB does not offer at all.
Does Banktivity have retirement planning tools?
Yes. Banktivity includes dedicated goal planning tools for retirement, debt payoff, education savings and other major milestones. You can set a retirement goal, track progress over time and see how your current financial picture maps to your long-term plans.
Does Banktivity work on iPhone and iPad?
Yes. Banktivity is native on Mac, iPhone and iPad with end-to-end encrypted sync across all your devices.
Is Banktivity a web app?
No. Unlike YNAB, Banktivity is not a web app. It runs natively on macOS, iOS and iPadOS for a faster, more integrated Apple device experience.
Try Banktivity risk-free for 30 days.
No credit card required for first-time subscribers. All the budgeting depth you valued in YNAB — plus investments, retirement planning and reports that go far beyond it.
Want the full feature breakdown? See the complete Banktivity vs YNAB comparison →