A free YNAB
alternative with
CSV bank import
YNAB costs £14.99/month and requires sharing bank credentials with a third-party aggregator. migj offers the same budget-first approach — every pound has a job — with direct CSV import from your bank and a permanently free plan.
YNAB is great — but comes with trade-offs
YNAB (You Need A Budget) is probably the best proactive budgeting app in the world. Its "give every dollar a job" method genuinely works. The issue isn't the product — it's that the experience comes with meaningful compromises depending on where you bank and what you're comfortable sharing.
💷 £14.99/month is a significant cost
That's £180/year — a real expense for a savings tool. YNAB does offer a 34-day trial, but after that the price is non-trivial. Many users who'd benefit most are put off by the cost before they experience the value.
🔑 Bank credentials shared with third parties
YNAB's automatic import works via Open Banking — which means authorising a third-party aggregator to access your bank account. Some users are uncomfortable with this, particularly for joint accounts.
🌍 Limited support outside the US
YNAB works best with US banks. UK and European bank support is patchy, often relies on third-party services like Plaid or TrueLayer, and direct CSV import requires manual column-mapping.
📱 Complexity curve
YNAB's four rules and vocabulary (age of money, rolling with the punches, true expenses) are powerful once you're in — but the learning curve causes significant drop-off among new users who never get past onboarding.
migj vs YNAB: direct comparison
| Feature | migj (FREE) | migj Premium | YNAB |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | £0 / month | ~£4 / month | £14.99 / month |
| Bank CSV import | ✓ Unlimited, free | ✓ Unlimited | Manual or third-party |
| Bank credentials required | ✗ Never | ✗ Never | Yes (Open Banking) |
| Budget-first approach | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Custom spending categories | Up to 15 | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Shared budget (couple/family) | ✓ (up to 3 members) | ✓ (up to 3) | Basic sharing |
| Family plan (up to 12 members) | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Savings goals | Up to 2 | Unlimited | ✓ |
| Reports & charts | ✓ Core | ✓ Advanced | ✓ Advanced |
| Mobile app | ✓ PWA | ✓ PWA | ✓ Native app |
| Free trial | Permanent free plan | — | 34 days then billing |
| Supported in Italian | ✓ Native | ✓ Native | ✗ English only |
Prices verified June 2026. migj Family plan (up to 12 members, ~£6/month) has no direct YNAB equivalent.
What migj shares with YNAB (and why it matters)
migj isn't a simple expense tracker. Like YNAB, it's budget-first: you plan where every pound goes before you spend it. This is the principle that actually changes behaviour.
Plan before you spend
Each month you set a budget for every category before the month begins. Real spending is compared to the plan in real time — not in hindsight.
Every pound has a job
Your month's income is allocated to budget categories until it's all assigned. No "loose money" that disappears without you knowing where it went.
Learn from real data
Month after month, real data refines your budget. You learn where you tend to overspend, which categories you've overestimated, and correct before it becomes a problem.
migj pricing — transparent, no surprises
- Unlimited CSV import
- Up to 15 custom categories
- Proactive monthly budget
- Up to 2 savings goals
- Core dashboard & reports
- Family group (3 members)
- Everything in FREE
- Unlimited categories
- Unlimited goals
- Advanced reports + PDF export
- Automatic recurring transactions
- AI spending insights
- Everything in Premium
- Up to 12 members
- Children's allowance
- Expense approval
- Per-member privacy
- Linked family groups
Frequently asked questions — migj vs YNAB
📥 How does CSV import work?
Download the CSV from your online banking (1 click), upload it to migj (drag & drop), transactions are categorised automatically. No credentials. No API. 30 seconds.