Monarch vs Empower in 2026: which is better for you?

How we compared

Because the two apps aren't after the same thing, we didn't score them against each other. We asked what each one does for you, and then compared the parts they share:

• The main job. Budgeting, or looking at net worth and investments.
• Price and business model. What you pay, and who pays for the free one.
• Budgeting depth. What each lets you set up.
• Investments and retirement. What each shows beyond bank and card spending.
• Couples. Whether a partner can join and what they see.
• What people say. App Store reviews from 2026.

We read Monarch's pricing, couples, budgeting and planning pages, Empower's home, tools, net worth and retirement planner pages, and both apps' store listings. Each fact is numbered to its source at the end.

Monarch vs Empower: two different jobs

This is the frame for the rest of the page. If you remember one thing, remember this.

Monarch is a budgeting and net worth app first. Connects bank accounts, credit cards, loans, investment accounts and real estate, through 13,000+ financial institutions.^[4] Two ways to budget: Flex, which splits spending into fixed, flexible and non-monthly buckets and gives one main number to watch, or Category budgeting.^[2][7]

Empower is a net worth and investment dashboard first. A free dashboard and app that links your bank, card, loan and investment accounts to show net worth, spending and retirement scenarios, paid for by Empower's advisory services.^[14] Connects IRAs, 401(k)s and other retirement plans, investments, mortgages, loans, bank accounts and credit cards.^[13]

So the question isn't which app is better. It's whether you want to plan what you spend each month, or see where your investments and retirement stand. Some people want both, and because each app links to your accounts on its own, using the free one beside the paid one is an option.

Monarch vs Empower price, and how Empower is paid for

Monarch lists $14.99 a month or $99.99 billed yearly, so paying monthly for a year comes to $179.88.^[1] The pricing page says "Your first week is on us." The App Store says the app is free to try for 7 days before a monthly or annual membership is billed. Neither says whether a card is needed.^[1][2] No free plan is listed on the pricing page or the App Store. The only free access is the first week.^[1][2]

Empower's dashboard costs nothing. The dashboard and its financial tools are free. The high-yield cash account is described as having "no account fees, no minimums".^[13] The catch is how Empower makes money. Advisory services are paid: "Advisory fees are calculated based upon the amount of assets being managed." The percentage is in Empower Advisory Group's Form ADV, which was not opened.^[12][16]

Empower's Personal Strategy minimum: two numbers

Empower's own pages disagree on what you need to invest for Personal Strategy, its advisory service. Personal Strategy is "available when you invest $100,000 or more with us" on the home page; the tools and planner pages say "more than $250,000". Private Client is for $1,000,000 or more.^[12][13][15] Which one is current isn't stated, so ask Empower before you rely on either. If you only want the dashboard, you don't need to invest anything with Empower.

For the full price picture of Monarch, see Monarch pricing.

Budgeting and net worth

If you want to budget, the gap is large. Monarch builds around it. It Two ways to budget: Flex, which splits spending into fixed, flexible and non-monthly buckets and gives one main number to watch, or Category budgeting.^[2][7] Rollovers: money left in a category carries into the next month, to cover bills that do not come every month.^[7] Goals with a target amount, a planned monthly contribution and an image. You can assign an account to a goal and the app tracks progress from its balance.^[8]

Empower's pages describe budgeting differently: Budgeting and cash flow: tracks daily spending and expenses; transactions are categorized automatically.^[13] They describe no envelope, zero-based or per-category plan.^[13] It does have savings tools: Savings Planner, Debt Paydown and Emergency Fund tools.^[13]

On net worth the two are closer. Net worth: total holdings minus total debts, across accounts in one place, with the effect of paying down debt or saving more.^[14] Monarch also tracks net worth across all connected accounts.^[2][4] For a longer look at that side, see the best net worth trackers.

Investments and retirement

This is Empower's ground. Portfolio analysis: performance, risk level and where your money is invested.^[13] Retirement planner: compare retirement ages, see what goals such as college or travel need, and set up withdrawals.^[15] Fee Analyzer, to find hidden fees in investment accounts.^[18]

Monarch connects investment accounts too, and its pricing page says the Plus tier adds deeper investment tracking, forecasting and tracking several income sources.^[1][2] Plus is shown only as an in-app purchase at $199.99 a year on the App Store, and the pricing page lists no Plus price.^[1][2] If portfolio analysis is what you came for, Empower's pages describe much more of it, free.

Couples and sharing

• Monarch: A partner joins at no extra cost under the same subscription and gets their own login. The page says, "Partners will each have their own login, but can view each other's data."^[5][6] Both partners see everything. The page says, "both parties will have full visibility into all accounts and transactions associated with it," and tells people to check they are comfortable with that first. The help center adds: "You cannot hide bank accounts or transactions in Monarch."^[5][6][10]
• Empower: Nothing on the pages we read describes a spouse, partner or joint view.^{[12][13][14][15]}

For two people sharing one household budget, Monarch is the only one of the two with an answer. For a wider look, see the best budgeting apps for couples.

Ratings and what they cover

Empower shows 4.8 stars from 421,639 App Store ratings.^[16] That number is for one app that also serves people who only use it for a workplace retirement plan, and many of its 2026 reviews are about 401(k) tasks, not the dashboard. Monarch's 4.9 (116K) on the App Store and 4.8 (26.1K) on Google Play are for a budgeting app people chose and pay for.^[2][3] Read the two numbers as measuring different groups of people.

What people say

These are App Store reviews from 2026. Reviews skew toward people with a problem or a strong feeling, so read them as examples.

Monarch

Billing after cancelling. Several App Store reviews from July to October 2026 say they were billed after they cancelled or found it hard to cancel.^[9]

Empower

Stability: App Store reviewers in 2026 report blank screens, crashes after login and long loads.^[17] Linked accounts: a September 2026 reviewer says other investment accounts must be reconnected constantly.^[17]

Choose Monarch or Empower

Looking at more options? See Monarch alternatives, the best budgeting apps and Copilot vs Monarch.

A third option

We make Wonderful, so weigh this as a maker's note. Net worth for each of you and for both, from the balances your banks send, with its line over time.^[21] That is net worth from balances, not investment analysis: Wonderful gives no investment advice or portfolio analysis, so it does not replace Empower's investment tools. It is a budgeting app for people who keep their own money: Each person chooses, account by account, whether the other sees everything, only totals, or nothing.^[20] It costs $14.99 a month or $99 a year for both of you, has no free plan after the trial, and runs only in the browser for now.