Envelopes you fill by hand. A budget you write by hand.
Goodbudget is the classic envelope budget, built for entering money by hand and sharing between devices. Oakfold shares that philosophy, as a free desktop app with debt payoff and goals built in.
Goodbudget and Oakfold agree on the big thing: you're more in control when you enter your money yourself. Pick Goodbudget for strict envelopes on your phone; pick Oakfold for a fuller free plan on your computer.
| Oakfold | Goodbudget | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free for all budgeting. Core is $4.99 a month for Oak, your household and sync | Free, or Premium at $10 a month or $80 a year |
| Free option | Free for good, with every budgeting tool. No trial to run out | Yes: 20 envelopes, 1 account, 2 devices, 1 year of history |
| Where it runs | Desktop app for Windows and Mac. No phone app yet | Web, iPhone and Android |
| Bank connection | None, by design. Enter transactions yourself, or scan a statement (PDF, CSV or photo) | Optional, Premium only, US banks only. Free is entry by hand |
| Where your data lives | On your computer. Cloud backup and sync are optional, with Core | Goodbudget's cloud, synced between devices |
| How you budget | Category and subcategory budgets, 50/30/20 or your own split, fixed and variable | Envelope budgeting |
| AI assistant | Ask Oak, with Core: chat, voice and screen share, 150,000 credits a month | None |
| Budgeting with a partner | With Core, up to 4 people, each with a profile and PIN, on up to 5 computers | Share by syncing devices: 2 on Free, 5 on Premium |
| If you stop paying | Everything you entered keeps working on Free | Free keeps working, within its limits |
Facts about Goodbudget from its own site, checked November 10, 2026. Prices and plans change, so check before you decide.
What Goodbudget does well
- A pure envelope method, simple to understand.
- Built for entering money by hand, like Oakfold.
- Easy sharing: everyone on the budget sees the same envelopes.
Why people choose Oakfold
- Free has no limits on categories, accounts or history.
- Debt payoff plans and savings goals with dates, built in.
- Your data stays on your computer, with cloud sync optional.
- Scan a statement to check your records and add what's missing.
Pick the one that fits how you budget
Pick Goodbudget if
- You want strict envelope budgeting.
- You want to log spending on your phone as it happens.
- You want bank sync as an option.
Pick Oakfold if
- You want a free plan without envelope or account limits.
- You're paying down debt and saving toward goals.
- You prefer a desktop app and keeping your data local.
The cost, plainly
What each costs over three years, at the prices listed today.
Oakfold and Goodbudget, answered
Can I do envelope budgeting in Oakfold?
Oakfold uses categories and subcategories rather than envelopes, with budgeted, actual and remaining side by side. If moving money between envelopes is how you think, Goodbudget is built for it.
Which free plan does more?
Goodbudget's free plan is capped at 20 envelopes, one account, two devices and a year of history. Oakfold's free plan includes every budgeting tool with no caps, on one computer.
More comparisons
- Oakfold vs YNABZero-based budgeting, two ways
- Oakfold vs MonarchLinked accounts, or a budget you write
- Oakfold vs CopilotAn Apple app, or a desktop app
- Oakfold vs EveryDollarRamsey's budget, or your own
Try it on your own month. It's free.
Every budgeting tool is free for good, with no trial to run out and no card to enter.