Spreadsheet or app for tracking expenses?

The spreadsheet is the classic way to manage personal finances, and it works: it's flexible, free and the data is yours. A dedicated app, though, solves the reasons most spreadsheets are abandoned after a month.

The comparison

	Excel / Google Sheets	An app like CaliMoney
Adding an expense on your phone	awkward	a few seconds
Without a connection	depends on the app	yes, syncs later
Bank statement import	copy, paste and clean up by hand	CSV, Excel, PDF or photo, with suggested categories
Totals and charts	to build and maintain	ready
Budgets and alerts	formulas and manual checks	alerts at 80% and 100%
Recurring costs	to remember	created automatically, with reminders
Flexibility	total	what the app offers
Data in a format you own	yes	yes, through export

When a spreadsheet is the right choice

• you want to model complex scenarios (mortgages, long-term investment plans);
• you enter data once a month from a computer and that suits you;
• you need a completely free-form layout.

When an app is better

• you want to record expenses when they happen;
• you have several accounts or cards and want correct balances without reconciling by hand;
• you want to know during the month whether you're on budget, not after.

The most common worry: your data

With a spreadsheet, data stays where you put it. With an app, check three things:

1. Where the data goes and who can read it. In CaliMoney you can turn on end-to-end encryption: movements are encrypted on your device with a passphrase we never know.
2. Whether you can take it with you. CaliMoney exports any month to Excel and the whole account to JSON or CSV, even offline.
3. How it makes money. CaliMoney is free and shows no ads.

The best of both

Many people use the app to record every day and the spreadsheet for occasional analysis: CaliMoney's Excel export has the totals per category and a sheet with every movement, ready for your formulas.

Create a free account and try recording a week of expenses.