Comparison
FreeBudget vs Rocket Money
Two different approaches to managing your money. See how they compare and decide which is right for you.
| Feature | FreeBudget | Rocket Money |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly cost | $0/mo | $6-$12/mo |
| Annual cost | $0/yr | $72-$144/yr |
| Free tier | Full access - small fee for bank syncing | Limited |
| Bank syncing | ||
| Budget creation & tracking | ||
| Net worth tracking | ||
| Custom categories | ||
| CSV import/export | ||
| Spending reports | ||
| Bill negotiation | ||
| Subscription cancellation | ||
| Bill & subscription tracking | ||
| Credit score monitoring | ||
| No ads | ||
| No third-party data selling | ||
| Credit card required to start | No | No - required for premium features |
| Core approach | Budgeting | Monitoring |
How FreeBudget and Rocket Money Compare
FreeBudget and Rocket Money solve different problems. Understanding the difference helps you pick the right tool.
Rocket Money (formerly Truebill) has become one of the most popular personal finance apps in the US, known for helping users find and cancel forgotten subscriptions, negotiate lower bills, and monitor their spending. It has earned a strong reputation and millions of users for good reason.
FreeBudget takes a different approach. Instead of monitoring your money after the fact, FreeBudget is a budgeting tool that helps you plan where your money should go before you spend it. You create categories, set limits, and track progress throughout the month.
The two apps complement each other more than they compete. Rocket Money excels at the awareness side of personal finance: what am I spending on, what subscriptions do I have, and can I get a better deal? FreeBudget excels at the planning side: how much should I spend this month, am I on track, and where do I need to adjust?
Why choose FreeBudget?
Built for Budgeting, Not Just Tracking
Rocket Money is excellent at showing you where your money went. FreeBudget is built to help you decide where it goes next. If your goal is to actively plan and control your spending with real budgets, categories, and spending limits, that is what FreeBudget is designed around.
Full Features Without a Subscription
Rocket Money offers a limited free tier, but many of its best features require a premium plan at $6-$12/month. FreeBudget gives you complete budgeting, tracking, net worth reports, and CSV exports without a subscription. Bank linking has a small per-account fee to help cover our costs, but everything else is free.
Plan Ahead Instead of React After
Rocket Money sends alerts after transactions happen and helps you spot subscriptions you forgot about. That is genuinely useful. But FreeBudget helps you plan your spending before it happens, giving you a proactive way to manage money rather than a reactive one.
Simple and Focused
Rocket Money does many things: bill negotiation, subscription cancellation, credit monitoring, spending alerts. FreeBudget does one thing well: help you budget your money. If you want a focused budgeting tool without the extras, FreeBudget keeps it simple.
When Rocket Money might be the better choice
You want help canceling subscriptions
Rocket Money can detect and cancel unwanted subscriptions on your behalf. If subscription creep is your main financial pain point, Rocket Money is purpose-built for that.
You want bill negotiation
Rocket Money offers a concierge service that negotiates lower rates on your bills (internet, phone, insurance). FreeBudget does not offer this. If you want someone to actively save you money on recurring expenses, Rocket Money delivers real value here.
You prefer passive money monitoring
If you do not want to set up budgets and prefer an app that simply watches your accounts and alerts you to unusual activity, Rocket Money's approach may suit your style better.
The bottom line
Rocket Money is a great app for monitoring spending and managing bills. FreeBudget is a great app for planning and controlling a budget. If you want to actively manage where your money goes each month without paying a subscription, FreeBudget is worth trying. If you want help negotiating bills and canceling subscriptions, Rocket Money has you covered.
Frequently asked questions
Does Rocket Money have budgeting features?
Rocket Money includes basic spending tracking and categorization, but it does not offer traditional budget creation with spending limits per category. Its strength is in monitoring and managing bills and subscriptions. If you want to create and track budgets, FreeBudget is built specifically for that.
Is Rocket Money really free?
Rocket Money has a free tier that includes basic transaction tracking and subscription detection. However, features like bill negotiation, custom budgets, and detailed insights require a premium plan that costs $6 to $12 per month, depending on what you choose to pay.
Which app is better for managing a monthly budget?
FreeBudget is built specifically for budgeting. You can create custom categories, set spending limits, track progress throughout the month, and review detailed reports. Rocket Money is better suited for people who want to monitor spending patterns and manage recurring bills.
Ready to take control of your finances?
Join the growing community who've simplified their money with FreeBudget. It takes less than a minute to start.