You Need a Budget costs $109 per year.

Every year. Forever.

Year one: $109 Five years: $545 Ten years: $1,090

That's over a thousand dollars to track your spending.

The pitch is compelling: automatic bank sync, real-time categorization, mobile app, debt payoff tracking, goal setting.

But here's what they don't emphasize: most of YNAB's value comes from the methodology, not the software. The zero-based budgeting framework. The envelope system. The habit of regularly reviewing your spending.

You can implement that methodology yourself with a spreadsheet, automated categorization, and 30 minutes of setup.

The Real Cost of "Free" Budget Apps

Mint was free for nearly 20 years.

Then Intuit shut it down in January 2024 and pushed users to Credit Karma, their credit-score-and-loan-recommendation platform.

Why was Mint free? Because you were the product.

Mint made money by:

• Selling your anonymized financial data to third parties
• Earning affiliate commissions when you signed up for credit cards and loans they recommended
• Showing you targeted financial product ads

This is the bargain: free budget tracking in exchange for your data and attention.

Some people are fine with that trade. Many aren't, but don't realize there's an alternative.

What You Actually Need in a Budget System

Strip away the marketing and features you'll never use. What do you actually need?

1. Transaction Import

Get your spending data from bank accounts and credit cards into one place.

YNAB approach: Automatic bank sync. Connects to your accounts via Plaid, downloads transactions daily.

Mint approach: Same as YNAB. Automatic sync via Plaid.

Spreadsheet approach: Download CSV files from your banks, import them. Takes 2 minutes per account per month.

The automatic sync is convenient but creates a tradeoff: you're giving a third party read access to your bank accounts.

2. Categorization

Assign each transaction to a category: Groceries, Dining Out, Transportation, etc.

YNAB approach: Automatic categorization based on merchant, with manual review and corrections.

Mint approach: Same. Auto-categorize with manual fixes.

Spreadsheet approach: AI-powered categorization that learns from your corrections. Same result, runs locally.

3. Budget Tracking

See how much you've spent vs. how much you planned to spend.

YNAB approach: Envelope budgeting. Assign every dollar to a category. Track remaining budget in each envelope.

Mint approach: Set budget limits per category. Get alerts when you're close.

Spreadsheet approach: Budget column, actual spending column, difference column. Add conditional formatting to highlight overspending.

4. Reporting and Insights

Visualize your spending over time. Identify trends.

YNAB approach: Built-in reports: spending by category, spending trends, net worth tracking.

Mint approach: Similar built-in dashboards and charts.

Spreadsheet approach: Pivot tables, charts, and dashboards you build once and reuse.

5. Mobile Access

Check your budget and add transactions on the go.

YNAB approach: Native mobile app. Manual transaction entry while you're out.

Mint approach: Native mobile app.

Spreadsheet approach: Google Sheets mobile app. Not as polished, but fully functional.

Side-by-Side Feature Comparison

Let's be specific about what you get (and don't get) with each option.

Feature	YNAB	Mint (RIP)	Google Sheets
Transaction Import	Auto sync	Auto sync	Manual CSV import (2 min/month)
Categorization	Auto + manual	Auto + manual	AI-powered local categorization
Budget Tracking	Envelope system	Category limits	Custom budget formulas
Reporting	Pre-built reports	Pre-built reports	Custom charts and pivots
Mobile App	Native app	Native app	Google Sheets app
Bank Connection	Via Plaid API	Via Plaid API	None (CSV download)
Data Privacy	Stored on YNAB servers	Sold to third parties	Your Google Drive only
Multi-Device Sync	Automatic	Automatic	Automatic (Google Drive)
Sharing	Multiple users	Single user	Share Google Sheet
Cost	$109/year forever	Free (ad-supported)	One-time $29 setup
Debt Payoff Tracking	Built-in	Built-in	Build your own formula
Goal Tracking	Built-in	Built-in	Build your own tracker
Net Worth Tracking	Built-in	Built-in	Build with asset/liability tables
Investment Tracking	Limited	Limited	Full custom portfolio tracker

The Three-Year Cost Analysis

Most people don't think about the long-term cost of subscription services.

Let's look at three years of budget tracking:

YNAB:

• Year 1: $109
• Year 2: $109
• Year 3: $109
• Total: $327

Mint (when it existed):

• Year 1-3: $0
• Privacy cost: Your financial data sold to third parties
• Attention cost: Constant credit card and loan offers

Google Sheets with automation extension:

• Setup: $29 one-time
• Year 1-3: $0 ongoing
• Total: $29

The spreadsheet approach saves you $298 over three years compared to YNAB.

Over ten years? $1,061 in savings.

That's not counting the value of data privacy and not being constantly marketed to.

What You Lose With a Spreadsheet

Let's be honest about the tradeoffs. Spreadsheets aren't perfect.

1. No Automatic Bank Sync

You have to manually download CSVs from your bank and import them.

Time cost: 2 minutes per account per month. If you track 3 accounts, that's 6 minutes per month, or 72 minutes per year.

Benefit: Your credentials aren't stored in a third-party service. No read access to your accounts.

Some people value convenience over privacy. Others value privacy over convenience.

2. No Native Mobile App

Google Sheets has a mobile app, but it's not designed specifically for budget tracking.

What this means:

• You can't quickly add transactions while you're out (you can, but it's clunky)
• The interface isn't optimized for budget review
• Charts and dashboards don't display as nicely

Workaround: Most people do their budget review on a computer anyway. The mobile app is fine for checking balances and viewing summaries.

3. Setup Required

YNAB and Mint are ready to use immediately. Connect your accounts and start.

A spreadsheet requires initial setup:

• Build your budget categories
• Set up import workflow
• Create charts and dashboards
• Configure categorization

Time cost: 2-3 hours for initial setup.

Benefit: You understand exactly how your budget system works. You're not locked into someone else's methodology.

4. No Hand-Holding

YNAB teaches you their budgeting methodology with tutorials and prompts.

A spreadsheet doesn't teach you anything. You need to understand budgeting concepts independently.

Who this matters for: If you've never budgeted before and need step-by-step guidance, YNAB's onboarding is genuinely helpful.

Who this doesn't matter for: If you understand the basics of budgeting and just need a tool to track numbers, a spreadsheet is sufficient.

The Hidden Value: Data Ownership

When you use YNAB or Mint, your financial data lives in their database.

You can export it, but:

• It's in their format
• Historical data might not export completely
• If they shut down (like Mint), you have to migrate quickly

With a spreadsheet, you own the data from day one.

Your transaction history, category assignments, budget trends—it's all in a file you control.

You can:

• Back it up locally
• Export to any format
• Keep it forever
• Analyze it with any tool

This matters more the longer you use your budget system.

After 5 years of data, your budget spreadsheet becomes a historical record of your financial life. You can see:

• How your spending changed when you moved cities
• What happened to your budget when you had a kid
• How your income grew over time
• Which categories consistently blow your budget

That historical data has value. With a spreadsheet, you control it permanently.

When YNAB Actually Makes Sense

I'm not saying YNAB is bad. For some people, it's worth $109/year.

You should use YNAB if:

You've never successfully budgeted before. The onboarding, methodology training, and hand-holding are valuable. Think of the subscription as paying for education.

You share finances with a partner who isn't spreadsheet-savvy. YNAB's interface is more user-friendly for non-technical people.

You have irregular income (freelance, commission-based). YNAB's "age your money" methodology is specifically designed for variable income.

You value automatic sync above all else. If manually downloading CSVs feels like too much friction, YNAB removes that friction.

You've tried spreadsheets and abandoned them. Some people need the structure and polish of a dedicated app to maintain the habit.

For everyone else—people comfortable with spreadsheets who value data ownership and don't want ongoing subscriptions—a spreadsheet budget is better.

When Spreadsheets Actually Make Sense

You should use a spreadsheet budget if:

You're comfortable with basic spreadsheet functions. You don't need to be an Excel wizard, but you should understand SUM, AVERAGE, and basic formulas.

You want full control over your methodology. Spreadsheets are infinitely customizable. YNAB has one approach.

You value data privacy. Your transaction data never leaves your control.

You want to avoid subscription fees. One-time payment vs. ongoing costs.

You track investments alongside expenses. Spreadsheets let you build a complete financial dashboard. YNAB is expense-focused.

You like understanding how things work. Building your own budget system means you understand every formula and calculation.

The Spreadsheet Budget Setup Process

Here's exactly how to build a spreadsheet budget that rivals YNAB:

Week 1: Build the Core Budget

1. Create budget categories

List your spending categories:

• Fixed expenses (rent, insurance, subscriptions)
• Variable expenses (groceries, dining out, entertainment)
• Savings goals (emergency fund, vacation, down payment)

2. Set monthly budget amounts

Assign a target spending amount to each category. Start with rough estimates. You'll refine after tracking real spending for a month.

3. Build the budget tracking table

Category	Budgeted	Spent	Remaining
Groceries	$600	$0	$600
Dining Out	$200	$0	$200
Transportation	$150	$0	$150

Formula in "Remaining": =B2-C2

Add conditional formatting: turn red when remaining is negative.

Week 2: Set Up Transaction Import

1. Download one month of bank transactions as CSV

2. Import to a "Transactions" tab

Columns: Date, Amount, Description, Category

3. Set up automated categorization

Use an AI categorization extension or build keyword-based formulas.

4. Link spending to budget

In the "Spent" column of your budget, use SUMIF:

=SUMIF(Transactions!D:D, "Groceries", Transactions!B:B)

This sums all transactions categorized as "Groceries."

Week 3: Build Dashboards

1. Spending by category (pie chart)

2. Budget vs. actual (bar chart)

3. Spending trends over time (line chart showing monthly totals)

4. Net worth tracker (assets minus liabilities)

Week 4: Test and Refine

Import a second month of transactions. Review your categories. Adjust budget amounts based on actual spending.

After one month, your spreadsheet budget is fully functional.

The Monthly Maintenance Routine

Once you're set up, here's the ongoing workflow:

End of Month:

1. Download CSV files from your banks (2 minutes)
2. Import to your spreadsheet with auto-categorization (1 minute)
3. Review categorizations, fix any mistakes (2 minutes)
4. Look at budget vs. actual spending (3 minutes)
5. Adjust next month's budget if needed (2 minutes)

Total time: 10 minutes per month.

Compare to YNAB: You'd still spend 5-10 minutes reviewing and reconciling transactions even with automatic sync.

The time difference is marginal. The cost difference is $109/year.

What About Automation Tools Like Tiller?

Tiller is an interesting middle ground: spreadsheet-based budgeting with automatic bank sync.

It costs $79/year (cheaper than YNAB, more expensive than DIY).

You get:

• Automatic transaction sync to Google Sheets
• Pre-built budget templates
• Community support

You lose:

• Direct control over the data import process
• True data privacy (transactions still route through Tiller's servers)

Tiller makes sense if you want spreadsheet flexibility but don't want to manually download CSVs.

For me, the $79/year isn't worth it. I'd rather spend 2 minutes per month downloading CSVs and have full data privacy.

Your calculus might differ.

The Real Question: What's Your Time Worth?

The common argument against spreadsheet budgets: "My time is worth more than saving $109/year."

Let's do the math.

YNAB ongoing time:

• Transaction review and categorization: 5 min/month × 12 = 60 min/year

Spreadsheet ongoing time:

• CSV download and import: 5 min/month × 12 = 60 min/year
• Transaction review and categorization: 5 min/month × 12 = 60 min/year
• Total: 120 min/year

Time difference: 60 minutes per year

Money saved: $109/year

Implied hourly rate: $109/hour

If your time is worth more than $109/hour, YNAB might be the better choice.

If your time is worth less than $109/hour, or if you value data privacy, the spreadsheet approach saves money.

Migration Path: YNAB to Spreadsheet

Already using YNAB but considering switching?

Here's how to migrate:

1. Export your YNAB data YNAB lets you export your budget and transactions.

2. Import transaction history to a spreadsheet This becomes your historical record.

3. Rebuild your budget categories Create the same categories in your spreadsheet.

4. Set up ongoing import workflow Start downloading and importing bank CSVs going forward.

5. Run both systems in parallel for one month Make sure you're getting the same insights from the spreadsheet before fully switching.

6. Cancel YNAB subscription Once you're confident in your spreadsheet system.

Total migration time: 3-4 hours.

After that, you're saving $109/year forever.

The Bottom Line

Budget tracking shouldn't cost $109 every year.

The value isn't in the software—it's in the habit of regularly reviewing your spending and adjusting behavior.

YNAB, Mint, and spreadsheets all enable that habit.

The question is: do you want to pay a subscription, give up data privacy, or spend 3 hours on initial setup?

For me, 3 hours of setup to save $1,000+ over ten years is an easy choice.

Your budget system should help you reach financial goals, not become an ongoing expense itself.

Track your spending. Own your data. Keep your money.