10 Free Budgeting Apps That Don't Sell Your Data

"Free" is doing a lot of work in the personal finance app world. Many of the most popular budgeting apps on the App Store are free in the same sense that a search engine is free — you're not paying with money, you're paying with data. That's not always sinister, but it's worth knowing what business model you're opting into.

This post is a starter list of budgeting apps where the business model is clearer: paid plans, donations, open-source community development, or in a few cases simply a small independent project that doesn't run ads or sell data. We'll also walk through how to verify any of these claims yourself, because a list like this is only as trustworthy as the publisher — and you should always check.

How to verify a "no data sale" claim

Before any list, here's the framework. Read these three documents for any app you're considering:

1. The privacy policy. Search for "sell," "share," "third parties," and "advertising partners." If those sections are vague, that's a signal.
2. The terms of service. Look for what rights you grant the company over your data and what happens to that data when you delete your account.
3. The business-model page. If you can't tell how the company makes money, ask. Apps with paid tiers usually say so on a pricing page.

For open-source apps you can do better: read the source code. Or read what trusted reviewers and communities have said about it. The point is that "verifiable" is the bar, not "trustworthy because they said so."

The list

1. Vault

Vault is the app this site belongs to, so we'll be transparent about it: it's a free, manual-entry budget tracker with no ads, no third-party trackers, no bank login, and no data resale. Source of revenue: nothing yet. Vault is small and independent. Every category, budget, transaction, bill, and goal lives in your private account. You can export everything as CSV any time. Open the user guide for what each feature does.

2. HomeBank

HomeBank is a free, open-source desktop app for Linux, macOS, and Windows. It has been around since the early 2000s, is GPL-licensed, and the source is on the project's site for anyone to inspect. Because it runs locally, there's no privacy policy to read — your data lives in a file on your computer. It supports multi-account budgeting, scheduled transactions, and budget vs. actual reports. The interface is functional and a little dated, but for desktop-first users this is a solid pick.

3. GnuCash

GnuCash is the heavyweight of open-source personal finance: full double-entry accounting, multi-currency, investment tracking, the works. It's overkill for someone who just wants to track lunches, but if you've ever wanted real accountant-grade books for your household, this is the one. GPL-licensed, desktop-only, and entirely local.

4. Money Manager Ex (MMEX)

Money Manager Ex is another open-source desktop budget app, GPL-licensed, with a friendlier learning curve than GnuCash. It supports multi-currency, scheduled transactions, budgets, and CSV import/export. Like the others, it's local-only, so privacy is a function of how you back up your file.

5. KMyMoney

KMyMoney is a KDE-project personal finance app, also open source, also local-first. Similar feature set to MMEX but with a different UI philosophy. Strong on investment tracking. Good for people already in the KDE ecosystem.

6. Skrooge

Skrooge is yet another open-source local desktop app. Supports multi-currency, transaction tagging, and detailed reports. The "data stays on your machine" pattern is consistent across this category for a reason — local apps simply have fewer ways to leak your data than cloud apps do.

7. Buddy (limited free tier)

Buddy is a small independent app with a limited free tier — their site markets it as free to try, so check what's included before signing up. Their privacy policy explicitly says they don't sell user data, and their business model is the paid tier (Buddy Premium). One caveat: the app's App Store privacy label discloses data that may be used to track you across other companies' apps, so read the policy yourself and decide whether that fits your bar.

8. Toshl Finance (free tier with limits)

Toshl has been around since 2010 and offers a free tier with manual entry. Their privacy policy is more detailed than most and worth reading. Note: their paid tier offers bank sync; if you stay on the free tier and stick to manual entry, you avoid the aggregator handoff entirely.

9. Spendee (free tier, manual mode)

Spendee similarly has a free tier where manual entry is available. Like Toshl, their paid tier is bank-sync; the choice to stay manual is yours.

10. A spreadsheet (Google Sheets, LibreOffice Calc)

It feels like a cop-out to put a spreadsheet on a budgeting app list, but a spreadsheet you maintain is one of the most private "apps" you can use — there's no third party in the loop. There are dozens of free templates online. The downside is that you're now also the developer, support team, and backup admin for your budget. Whether that's freeing or exhausting depends on you.

What's not on this list, and why

We deliberately left off apps that:

• Require bank credentials to use any feature.
• Have privacy policies that explicitly reserve the right to sell or share user data with advertising partners.
• Are venture-funded with no clear paid product (which usually means the data is the product, even if it's not stated).

That's not a moral judgment — those apps work fine for people who value automation over data minimalism. They're just outside the scope of this particular list.

How to choose from this list

If you want a browser-first app that works on every device with zero install: try Vault. If you want a desktop app where everything stays on your machine: HomeBank for ease, GnuCash for power. If you want maximum customization and don't mind being your own developer: a spreadsheet.

The best app is the one you'll actually open every day. Read why manual budgeting often beats automated apps for awareness if you're on the fence about giving up auto-import.

A final note on lists

Any "best apps" list — including this one — gets stale quickly. Apps are acquired, business models change, privacy policies get revised. Re-check the policy of any app you depend on every six to twelve months. Your transactions deserve at least the same maintenance you give your smoke detectors.

If you'd rather skip the homework and start budgeting today, create a free Vault account — no ads, no bank login, no card required, and everything we claimed about it above is verifiable right here on this site.