Tare vs YNAB

Everything you like about YNAB's method, without the parts that make it a chore. Credit cards that just work, next month's money without a holding category, a forecast, and a price that goes down the longer you stay.

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Checked against YNAB's own website and help center on September 28, 2026, and card rewards on October 4. Prices are in US dollars. Sources

Why people switch from YNAB to Tare

01No credit card payment category

Card purchases come straight out of the category you spent from. No yellow, and no moving money around just to pay for dinner.
02Old debt gets its own envelope

Pay down a balance while you keep using the card, and see the date it'll be gone.
03A month ahead, without a holding category

Hold money for the 1st, or let every paycheck wait for next month on its own.
04See what's coming

A cash and debt forecast up to two years out, and what-if scenarios on a copy of your budget.
05A price that goes down

$12 a month falling to $8. From year two that's $96 a year, less than YNAB's $109.
06Never locked out

Stop paying and your whole budget stays on the free Manual plan, history and all.

Side by side

How you budget

TareZero-based: every dollar you have gets a job

YNABZero-based: every dollar you have gets a job

Card spending

TareComes straight out of the category. The money to pay the card is set aside for you; there's no payment category

YNABMoved into a separate payment category for each card

Old card balances

TareTheir own Debt payoff envelope per card, kept apart from new spending

YNABPaid from the same payment category as new spending

Card rewards

TarePicks the best card for every envelope from what your cards earn, and shows what the last 90 days left unearned. With Autopilot

YNABNo card suggestions; its help center explains how to record a reward once you redeem it

Next month's money

TareHold it out of Ready to assign until the 1st, or have new income wait for next month on its own

YNABAssign ahead into next month's categories, or keep a holding category; new income always lands in this month first

Subscriptions

TareFound in your spending, with what each costs a year and a note when a price goes up

YNABNo subscription finder; plan for them with targets and scheduled transactions

Split transactions

TareYes, from the register or while reviewing imports

YNABYes

Repeating bills

TareWeekly to yearly, with a weekend rule; they also feed the forecast

YNABYes, as scheduled transactions

Looking ahead

TareCash and debt forecast up to 2 years, and what-if scenarios on a copy of your budget

YNABLoan planner for extra payments; compare targets with income

Couples

TareSeparate logins; each account is joint or personal, and personal categories stay private

YNABSeparate logins for 2–6 people; privacy is per budget, not per account

Bank sync

TareWith Autopilot

YNABIncluded

Free plan

TareYes: the whole budget, entered by hand

YNABNo

Free trial

Tare35 days of Autopilot; card required

YNAB34 days; no card when you sign up on their site

Price

Tare$12/month, dropping to $8 the longer you stay ($132 in year one, $96 a year after)

YNAB$14.99/month or $109/year

If you stop paying

TareYou move to the free plan. Nothing is locked or deleted

YNABYou lose access to your budget until you resubscribe

Platforms

TareWeb; iOS and Android coming soon

YNABWeb, iOS, Android

Where they differ most

Credit cards without a payment category

In YNAB, every swipe moves money from the category you spent from into that card's payment category, and an old balance is paid from the same place. Overspend on a card and the category turns yellow, leaving the payment short until you cover it.

In Tare, a card purchase comes straight out of the category you spent from, and Tare keeps track of what's set aside to pay each card. An older balance goes in that card's Debt payoff envelope, where you assign to it like any other goal and see the date it'll be gone.

How cards work in Tare

Getting a month ahead

YNAB suggests assigning into next month's categories or keeping a holding category, and new income always lands in the current month's Ready to assign first.

Tare lets you hold money back from Ready to assign: it arrives on the 1st of next month and isn't counted as assigned in the meantime. Turn on holding new income and every paycheck waits for next month on its own.

Holding money in Tare

What you pay, and what happens when you stop

YNAB is $14.99 a month or $109 a year, and if your subscription lapses you can't get into your budget until you pay again.

Tare's Autopilot starts at $12 a month, steps down to $10 after six months and $8 after a year: $132 in year one, then $96 a year, which is less than YNAB's annual plan. Cancel and you drop to the free Manual plan with your whole budget and history intact.

Tare's pricing

Moving over

Bring your YNAB budget with you.

Nothing to retype, and nothing saved until you've checked it.

01Export from YNAB

In YNAB, open the menu under your budget's name and choose Export budget. You'll get a .zip.
02Check it before anything is saved

Tare reads the export in your browser and shows what it found: accounts, categories, transactions, and months assigned. Then it checks every category's Available against YNAB's, so you know the numbers match.
03Import, in one go

Everything is written into an empty budget at once. Card payment categories become Debt payoff envelopes, and tracking accounts are left out.

Questions

Switching from YNAB

What comes over from YNAB?

Your accounts, categories, every transaction, and what you assigned each month. Tare reads the export in your browser, shows you what it found, and checks every category's Available against YNAB's before anything is saved. Card payment categories become Debt payoff envelopes, and tracking accounts are left out.

Do I have to learn new words?

No. Ready to assign, targets, and moving money work the way you're used to. The difference you'll notice first is that a card purchase doesn't move money anywhere: it's spent from its category, and that's it.

Can I try it before I move my budget?

Yes. The demo budget needs no sign-up, and the Manual plan is free with no card, so you can import your YNAB budget and look around before starting a trial.

Sources

YNAB's own pricing page and help center. Features and prices change; if something here is out of date, tell us and we'll fix it. YNAB is a trademark of its owner, who isn't affiliated with Tare.

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Start with the money you have today.

Budget by hand for free, no card needed. Or try Autopilot free for 35 days: $12/month after that, dropping to $8 the longer you stay.

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