Monarch Money (monarchmoney.com, product and blog also on monarch.com) is a subscription-based personal finance app from the United States: it pulls bank, credit card, loan, investment and property accounts into one view, auto-categorizes transactions, and builds budgeting, net-worth and investment tracking, recurring-subscription detection and savings goals on top. A partner or a financial professional can be invited to collaborate at no extra cost (homepage, help center FAQ, checked 2026-10-02).

Its best-known context is the shutdown of Mint: Intuit announced in November 2023 that it was closing the pioneering free finance app (service ended March 2024), and Monarch's co-founder and CEO Val Agostino was the first product manager on the original Mint team. Monarch shipped a Mint data importer and a migration discount, and new sign-ups doubled after the announcement (Monarch blog, TechCrunch, 2023-11-02). It has since been named a top budgeting app by the Wall Street Journal, Forbes and others (press page), and the company says it passed 1 million members in March 2026 (PR Newswire).

Screenshot of the Monarch homepage: hero headline "The modern way to manage your money", above a 4.9-star rating claim and best-budgeting-app awards from the WSJ, Forbes and CNBC

The homepage (2026-10-02) pitches "budget, track your progress, and plan for the future — all in one app," with self-reported 4.9 stars across 100,000+ reviews and media awards below.

At a Glance

Item Details
URL https://www.monarchmoney.com/
Type Subscription personal finance platform (account aggregation + budgeting + investment tracking; not an advisory service)
Cost Core 99.99/yr(shownas99.99/yr (shown as8.33/mo) or 14.99/mo;Plus14.99/mo; Plus199.99/yr; no free tier, 7-day free trial (pricing, as of 2026-10-02)
Sign-up Email account; trial requires a payment method, cancel at least 24h before it ends to avoid billing
Platforms Web, iPhone, iPad, Android; Chrome extension that syncs Amazon/Target orders (download page)
Availability US and Canada only; USD or CAD accounts recommended; billed in USD (FAQ, Canada page)
Interface language English (observed)
Launched Company founded 2018; public launch early 2021 (press release, TechCrunch 2021-07-23)

Background

  • Founders: Monarch was co-founded by Val Agostino (CEO), Jon Sutherland (Head of Design) and Ozzie Osman (Head of Engineering). Agostino was the first product manager on the original Mint team through its 2010 acquisition by Intuit, and later founded WorkLife (acquired by Cisco); Osman co-founded Parlio (acquired by Quora) (About, Press).
  • Founding and launch: Current press materials say the company was founded in 2018 (TechCrunch's 2021 report said 2019). It exited private beta in early 2021 with web, iOS and Android apps, priced at the time at 9.99/monthor9.99/month or89.99/year (TechCrunch, 2021-07-23). Press releases are datelined San Francisco; the team is distributed.
  • Funding: a 4.8MseedroundledbyAccelwithSignalFirewasannouncedinJuly2021(4.8M seed round led by Accel with SignalFire was announced in July 2021 (5.5M total at the time); on May 23, 2025 the company announced a $75M Series B co-led by Wesley Chan (FPV Ventures) and Eurie Kim (Forerunner Ventures), with existing investors Menlo Ventures, Accel, SignalFire and Clocktower Ventures participating (announcement, archived, PYMNTS, 2025-05-23).
  • The Mint windfall: when Intuit said in November 2023 that Mint users should move to Credit Karma, Agostino responded publicly as Mint's first PM, and Monarch offered a Mint data importer plus a migration discount; he told TechCrunch that new users doubled (blog, TechCrunch, 2023-11-02). Mint shut down for good in March 2024 (TechCrunch, 2024-03-21).
  • Recent milestones: the company reports passing 1 million members in March 2026 (up 100%+ year over year), a spot on Fast Company's 2026 Most Innovative Companies list and the 2026 Forbes Fintech 50. On October 1, 2026 it announced $100M in ARR and its first acquisition — the team behind MBI (formerly HMBradley), now forming Monarch Labs to explore new products (PR Newswire, 2026-10-01).

Core Features

  • Aggregation and net worth: connect 13,000+ financial institutions through three data providers — Plaid, Finicity (a Mastercard company) and MX. Connections are read-only, Monarch never sees bank credentials, and a public connection status dashboard shows reliability per institution (help center).
  • Transactions and categories: every account feeds one searchable list, with automatic categorization, custom rules, review flags and assignment to household members.
  • Budgeting: two budgeting approaches, automatic budget creation from real spending, and overspending alerts.
  • Recurring: automatic detection of subscriptions and recurring bills with reminders.
  • Reports: customizable charts for spending, income, cash flow and net worth over time.
  • Goals: targets for home down payments, vacations, emergency funds and debt payoff (rebuilt and out of beta in June 2026).
  • Investment tracking: performance, allocation and diversification, including equity compensation; the Plus tier adds unrealized gains/losses and deeper allocation analysis. Zillow home values, Coinbase crypto and Apple Card sync are built in.
  • Household collaboration: add one or more household members free under a single subscription, each with their own login; Shared Views (October 2025) labels accounts as "yours, mine, and ours" (What's New).
  • Working with professionals: members can grant read-only access to an advisor, coach or tax professional; Monarch for Professionals is free for pros to join, then $14.99/month per sponsored client (For Professionals).
  • AI: an AI assistant (introduced December 2025), AI-powered insights, a weekly recap, receipt scanning and enhanced categorization. The company says the assistant was trained with input from CFPs, CFTs and financial coaches; it uses third-party LLMs plus in-house models, with minimal data, no retention by third parties and no training on user data (AI in Monarch, PR Newswire, 2026-03-24).
  • Plus tier (launched April 2026): Forecasting to model retirement, home purchases and career breaks on real data; business and rental-property tracking with P&L and tax-season exports; estate planning with a free will from Trust & Will (a $299 value) (launch release).

Screenshot of the Monarch pricing page: "Your first week is on us"; Core at <span class="katex"><span class="katex-mathml"><math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><semantics><mrow><mn>8.33</mn><mi mathvariant="normal">/</mi><mi>m</mi><mi>o</mi><mi>n</mi><mi>t</mi><mi>h</mi><mi>b</mi><mi>i</mi><mi>l</mi><mi>l</mi><mi>e</mi><mi>d</mi></mrow><annotation encoding="application/x-tex">8.33/month billed</annotation></semantics></math></span><span class="katex-html" aria-hidden="true"><span class="katex-base"><span class="katex-strut" style="height:1em;vertical-align:-0.25em;"></span><span class="mord">8.33/</span><span class="mord mathnormal">m</span><span class="mord mathnormal">o</span><span class="mord mathnormal">n</span><span class="mord mathnormal">t</span><span class="mord mathnormal">hbi</span><span class="mord mathnormal" style="margin-right:0.0197em;">l</span><span class="mord mathnormal" style="margin-right:0.0197em;">l</span><span class="mord mathnormal">e</span><span class="mord mathnormal">d</span></span></span></span>99.99 annually and Plus at <span class="katex"><span class="katex-mathml"><math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><semantics><mrow><mn>16.67</mn><mi mathvariant="normal">/</mi><mi>m</mi><mi>o</mi><mi>n</mi><mi>t</mi><mi>h</mi><mi>b</mi><mi>i</mi><mi>l</mi><mi>l</mi><mi>e</mi><mi>d</mi></mrow><annotation encoding="application/x-tex">16.67/month billed</annotation></semantics></math></span><span class="katex-html" aria-hidden="true"><span class="katex-base"><span class="katex-strut" style="height:1em;vertical-align:-0.25em;"></span><span class="mord">16.67/</span><span class="mord mathnormal">m</span><span class="mord mathnormal">o</span><span class="mord mathnormal">n</span><span class="mord mathnormal">t</span><span class="mord mathnormal">hbi</span><span class="mord mathnormal" style="margin-right:0.0197em;">l</span><span class="mord mathnormal" style="margin-right:0.0197em;">l</span><span class="mord mathnormal">e</span><span class="mord mathnormal">d</span></span></span></span>199.99 annually, both with "Try Monarch free for 7 days" buttons and fine print noting a payment method is required

The pricing page (2026-10-02). Note the fine print under the buttons: "Free 7-day trial, then $99.99/year … Payment method required."

Pricing (as of 2026-10-02)

Prices are from the pricing page and its embedded structured data; tax may apply:

Plan Price Notes
Core annual 99.99/yr(shownas99.99/yr (shown as8.33/mo) All core features: aggregation, budgeting, reports, goals, investment tracking, AI assistant, household collaboration
Core monthly $14.99/mo Same as above
Plus annual 199.99/yr(shownas199.99/yr (shown as16.67/mo) Everything in Core, plus Forecasting, business P&L and tax exports, advanced investment analysis, estate planning
Free trial 7 days Available for both tiers; payment method required, cancel at least 24h before the trial ends

Additional notes:

  • There is no free tier, but subscriptions come with a money-back guarantee for the remaining time, "no questions asked" (Apple in-app purchases excluded) (refund policy).
  • At check time, the site promoted 30% off the first year of an annual Core plan for new users with code WELCOME.
  • At the Plus launch in April 2026, the press release listed 299/yrfornewmembers(299/yr for new members (100 off the first year for existing members); the live pricing page now shows $199.99/yr — the pricing page figure should be treated as current.
  • Monarch recommends subscribing on the web rather than via the app stores for easier management (pricing FAQ).

Screenshot of the Monarch download page: "Manage your money anywhere" — available on web, iPhone, iPad and Android in the United States and Canada, with product screenshots of the web accounts view and the iPhone app

The download page (2026-10-02) states "Available on web, iPhone, iPad, and Android in the United States and Canada," with official product screenshots on the right.

Privacy and Security

  • Account connections are read-only and cannot move money; bank credentials are never stored (security page).
  • Data encrypted at rest and in transit; two-factor authentication and one-time passcodes; SOC 2 compliance announced January 2026 (What's New).
  • Business model: no ads, and user financial data is never sold — the pricing page explicitly argues "why pay for a personal finance app," positioning itself against Mint-era ad-supported models (pricing).
  • AI data policy: only the minimum data needed for a task (e.g., transaction descriptions and dates — not emails, account numbers, usernames or passwords); third-party models do not retain data or train on it (AI in Monarch).

Who It's For

  • US/Canada users with accounts spread across multiple banks and brokerages who want one live overview.
  • Former Mint users, or anyone looking for an ad-free, no-data-selling subscription alternative.
  • Couples and households: free shared views, joint budgets and goals with no per-seat cost.
  • Clients of financial advisors or coaches, who can follow along via the Professionals program.
  • The Plus tier suits users who want scenario modeling for retirement or big purchases, side-business or rental tracking, and deeper investment analysis.

Limitations

  • No free plan: the entry price is $99.99/year — expensive for a budgeting app — and even the trial requires a payment method up front.
  • US and Canada only: the company is explicit that it currently serves just these two countries, recommends USD/CAD accounts only, bills in USD, and the interface is English-only.
  • Sync reliability depends on upstream parties: connection quality varies by bank and data provider; the existence of a public status dashboard and provider-switching tools acknowledges disconnections as a known issue (help center).
  • Tools, not advice: Monarch states it provides financial information and tools, not personalized financial, investment, tax or legal advice — the same applies to AI assistant output (pricing page footer).
  • Inconsistent company figures: founding year is stated as 2018 in current press materials but 2019 in earlier coverage; the Plus price differs between the launch release and the live pricing page (see Pricing).

Alternatives

Monarch maintains official comparison pages against YNAB and Simplifi — the latter is a fellow entry in this Personal Finance batch, as is Copilot Money, which also grew out of the Mint shutdown but is Apple-ecosystem only. Monarch's differentiators are free multi-person collaboration, read-only access for financial professionals, and the Plus tier's forecasting and business reporting.

References