Empower vs Monarch Money (2026): I Used Both. Which to Pick?

TL;DR verdict: Empower's dashboard is genuinely free and has the stronger investment and retirement analytics — but the dashboard is a lead magnet for an advisory service that charges 0.89% per year, and once you link $100,000+ you should expect a sales call. Monarch Money ($99.99/year Core, $199.99/year Plus) is the better budgeting and couples app. Pick Empower for portfolio depth at $0, Monarch for day-to-day money management. Neither one gives you a FIRE date out of the box.

These two apps get compared constantly, and for good reason: after Mint shut down on March 23, 2024, Empower and Monarch became the two most common landing spots — one free, one paid. I've used both with my own money, and the honest answer to "which is better?" is they're not trying to be the same product.

Updated October 3, 2026. Prices and features were re-checked that day against the sources linked below; the Plus price now comes from Monarch's own pricing page, and Empower's three service tiers and full fee ladder are new to this version.

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Empower vs Monarch Money: the comparison table

The verdict, by the job you need done

Choose Empower if…

• Your main question is "how are my investments doing and what am I paying in fees?"
• You want a free retirement scenario planner
• You can politely decline a sales call (or take it — the advice conversation itself is free)
• You're a single user, or your partner doesn't need their own login

Choose Monarch Money if…

• Your main question is "where does our money go every month?"
• You manage money with a partner and want true shared access
• You want AI-assisted categorization and budgeting rules that stick
• You'd rather pay $99.99/year than be a sales lead

If the question is "when can I stop working?", neither app answers it directly. Put your spending, savings and return assumption into the free FIRE calculator first; it gives you the year, and then either app above can track the path to it.

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What changed in 2026

• Monarch launched Plus on April 20, 2026 (Monarch's announcement): forecasting, business income and expense tracking with P&L reports, and advanced investment analysis; at launch it came with a free will through Trust & Will. The pricing page lists it at $199.99 a year, billed annually, after the same 7-day trial as Core.
• Empower redesigned the Personal Dashboard in July 2026 (version 1.4, per Empower's release notes): "a cleaner layout, clearer financial insights, faster performance, and a more modern user interface," plus a refreshed budgeting view. The tool list on the free dashboard page now runs Retirement Planner, Net Worth, Budgeting & Cash Flow, Portfolio Analysis, Savings Planner, Debt Paydown, Emergency Fund, Tax Filing and Investment Insights.
• Core did not move. Monarch Core is still $99.99 a year or $14.99 month to month, and Empower's dashboard is still free.

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Is Empower actually free?

Yes — the dashboard and tools cost nothing. Empower's own FAQ answers "What does it cost?" with: "Nothing! The dashboard experience and financial tools are completely free." That includes net worth tracking, a Budgeting & Cash Flow view, a scenario-based Retirement Planner, Portfolio Analysis and Investment Insights.

The honest part most reviews skip: the dashboard is a marketing channel. Empower (formerly Personal Capital) makes money on wealth management. Its own wealth management page lists three service tiers (Investment Services from a $100K minimum, Wealth Management from $250K, Private Client from $1M) and describes the cost as "an annual advisory fee as a percentage of your total assets under management (AUM) using a tiered fee structure." The percentages are in an image on that page; NerdWallet's review (updated May 5, 2026) spells them out:

The rates step down by slice, the way income-tax brackets do, so the first million is always charged at 0.89%.

What that costs at the balances where the sales calls start, next to the two Monarch subscriptions:

That's the real price of the free dashboard if you take the upsell: on $500K, $4,450 a year, every year.

Do Empower advisors really call you?

Yes. Rob Berger's review (updated September 3, 2026) puts it plainly: "They use the financial dashboard as a marketing tool. I've spoken with their advisors in the past." He also notes the calls stop if you ask: "If you don't want them to call you, just tell them. They honored my request." Empower doesn't publish a rule for when the calls start; $100K is where its cheapest advisory tier begins, and that's roughly where reviewers report getting the call.

So the trade is explicit: you get genuinely excellent free analytics, and you pay with your phone number. If you can say "no thanks" once, it's a good trade.

What does Monarch Money cost in 2026?

Three numbers matter:

• Core: $99.99/year (works out to $8.33/month) — unlimited account syncing, budgeting, AI categorization, and shared household access for partners (Monarch's pricing page).
• Month-to-month: $14.99/month — same features, no annual commitment.
• Plus: $199.99/year, billed annually: the premium tier Monarch launched on April 20, 2026, with forecasting, business tracking and deeper investment analysis.

The pricing page runs a 7-day free trial ("Your first week is on us") on every plan, payment method required, so set a reminder, and at the time of writing offers 30% off the first year of the annual Core plan with code WELCOME. It also mentions a money-back guarantee; read its terms before relying on it.

There is no free tier. Monarch's pitch is the opposite of Empower's: you pay the subscription, so nobody calls to sell you anything.

Which is better for budgeting?

Monarch, clearly. Its founder, Val Agostino, was the first product manager on the original team that built Mint, and budgeting is the product's center of gravity: flexible categories, custom rules, rollover budgets, and clean reports. The Wall Street Journal called it the best budgeting app overall for 2024, and partners join at no extra cost.

Empower has a Budgeting & Cash Flow view, refreshed in the July 2026 redesign, but budgeting is still a secondary feature — there's no real category management depth, and you can't shape it around a method. If budgeting is the job, Empower will frustrate you.

Which is better for investments and retirement?

Empower, clearly. The allocation breakdowns, performance tracking, and Retirement Planner scenarios are stronger than anything in Monarch's Core tier — and they're free. Monarch's $199.99/year Plus tier narrows the gap with deeper investment analysis and forecasting, but paying $199.99 to approach what Empower gives away makes little sense if investments are your main concern.

Which is better for couples?

Monarch. Household sharing is included in Core, and the shared-view experience is the best of any mainstream finance app. Empower is built around a single user; there's no comparable shared experience.

Can you just use both?

Yes, and plenty of people do exactly that: Monarch for budgeting and the shared household view, Empower for the free investment and retirement analytics. The cost is one $99.99 subscription plus tolerating Empower's onboarding call. The downside is maintaining two sets of account connections.

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And if you want a manual-first alternative

Full disclosure up front: My Financial Freedom Tracker (MFFT) is my own product — I build it and run it. It's not trying to beat Empower or Monarch at their own game, so here's the honest positioning:

If bank sync and mobile apps are dealbreakers, MFFT loses — pick one of the two above. But if you'd rather not hand an aggregator your bank credentials, and you want budgeting, net worth tracking, and an actual "when can I stop working?" answer in one tool, that's the exact gap I built it for. You upload a bank statement once a month; it categorizes transactions and projects your path to financial independence with a FIRE planner. It's €4.99 a month, €49.90 a year, or €299 once for lifetime access — a small subscription that funds the servers and keeps your data private, never sold, never a lead magnet like Empower's dashboard. Signed up before paid plans launched? You're a founding member, and your first year is on us. Want to look around first? The read-only demo needs no signup at all.

For the wider field — YNAB and Rocket Money included — see my full budgeting app comparison and its head-to-head verdicts like YNAB vs Monarch. If the subscription itself is what bothers you, I've also rounded up YNAB alternatives that are actually free and net worth trackers that don't link to your bank.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Is Empower or Monarch Money better in 2026?

It depends on the job. Empower is better for free investment tracking, fee analysis, and retirement scenario planning — but its free dashboard exists to sell a 0.89%/year advisory service, with sales calls once you link about $100K. Monarch Money ($99.99/year Core) is better for budgeting, AI categorization, and shared couples finances. Neither app gives you a FIRE date out of the box.

Is Empower really free, or is there a catch?

The dashboard and all its tools are genuinely free — Empower says so explicitly. The catch is the business model: Empower sells wealth management (0.89% on your first $1M, $100,000 minimum per Empower), and linked users with larger balances get sales calls. Reviewers report the calls stop if you ask.

How much does Monarch Money cost in 2026?

Monarch Core costs $99.99/year (or $14.99 month-to-month), and the Plus tier launched in April 2026 costs $199.99/year, billed annually, with forecasting, business tracking and deeper investment analysis. There's a 7-day free trial that requires a payment method, and no permanent free tier.

What is the difference between Monarch Core and Monarch Plus?

Core ($99.99/year) is the full budgeting app: unlimited account syncing, categorization rules, reports and household sharing. Plus ($199.99/year) adds forecasting (modelling your financial future), business income and expense tracking with P&L reports, and advanced investment analysis. If you only budget, Core is enough; Plus is for people who also run a business or want the forecast.

Can I use Empower and Monarch Money together?

Yes — a common setup is Monarch for budgeting and shared household views plus Empower's free dashboard for investment and retirement analytics. You'll pay Monarch's $99.99/year and maintain two sets of account connections.

Is there a free alternative that doesn't link to my bank?

Yes. My Financial Freedom Tracker (my own product) is manual-first: you upload bank statements instead of sharing credentials, and it combines budgeting, net worth tracking, and FIRE projections. It's €4.99 a month (or a cheaper annual or lifetime plan) — a small subscription that keeps your data private and never sold. The trade-off is no automatic sync and no native mobile apps. If you want something free, try the read-only demo, or use spreadsheets and open-source tools like GnuCash.

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What's next?

• Compare the whole field: YNAB vs Monarch vs Rocket Money vs Mint
• Want your FIRE date, not just a budget? Try the FIRE planner
• Questions? Email me at dennis.vymer@myfinancialfreedomtracker.com.