The real question isn’t “app or spreadsheet.” It’s: Which tool will you still be using in six months?
Apps have real advantages. Automatic bank syncing, a polished mobile interface, and it only takes ten minutes to get started. But that same automation is often what causes us to eventually abandon them. When your transactions appear without you lifting a finger, you just read your expenses instead of really feeling them. You open the app once a month to assess the damage, promise to be more careful, and the cycle starts all over again. Not to mention that your banking data passes through third-party servers whose business models are worth examining closely.
A spreadsheet takes ten minutes a week. This slight friction is often what distinguishes someone who sticks to their budget for two years from someone who gives up after three months. Entering a transaction means processing it, not just reading it.
If you want to understand where your money is going rather than just finding out after the fact—and you manage multiple accounts—The Ninja Budget is built for that. 15 euros, one-time purchase, ten accounts managed simultaneously, data stored in your Google Drive.