Monarch is one of the best budgeting apps in the US — genuinely excellent at what it does. The trouble starts at the Atlantic. If you live in Europe, the bank sync that makes Monarch shine mostly doesn't reach your accounts, and the budgeting focus isn't the same job as tracking your whole net worth. Here's an honest comparison of where each fits.
The short version
- Monarch is a polished, US-centric budgeting app: cash-flow, categories, bank sync — excellent on US rails, around $100/year, data in a shared cloud.
- Krosos is an EU-built net-worth tracker: your entire picture (stocks, crypto, cash, funds, property, liabilities) in one number, on your own private instance, for €6/month (€60/year).
Different jobs. If you're American and budgeting-first, Monarch. If you're in Europe and want a complete, private net-worth view, Krosos.
At a glance
| Krosos | Monarch | |
|---|---|---|
| Primary job | Whole net worth in one number | Budgeting & cash-flow |
| EU bank coverage | Built for it; open banking rolling out | Limited outside the US |
| Crypto | 7 exchanges + on-chain wallets | Limited |
| Property & liabilities | Yes, netted into your number | Manual |
| Privacy model | Private instance per user | Shared cloud |
| Connection safety | Read-only — can't move money | Read-only aggregation |
| Price | €6/mo · €60/yr | ~$100/yr |
| Built for | Europe | United States |
Prices change — check monarchmoney.com and our pricing page.
Where Monarch wins
- Budgeting depth. Categories, rules, cash-flow forecasting, joint-household budgeting — Monarch is a proper budgeting tool, and Krosos doesn't try to be one.
- US bank sync. On American rails, the automatic transaction feed is fast and reliable.
- Spending insight. If your question is "where did my money go this month?", Monarch answers it well.
If you're in the US and budgeting is the point, Monarch is hard to beat.
Where Krosos wins (especially in Europe)
- It can actually see your EU accounts. Monarch's coverage thins out badly outside the US. Krosos is built around European open banking, multi-exchange crypto, and manual/CSV entry for the assets no API reaches.
- Net worth, not just budgeting. Krosos answers a different question — "what am I actually worth?" — across stocks, crypto, cash, funds and property, minus the mortgage and loans against them.
- Real crypto. Seven exchanges plus on-chain wallets, not a bolt-on afterthought.
- Privacy by architecture. Your data lives on your own isolated instance, not in a shared cloud — and connections are read-only, so the app can't move your money.
- EU-native. Built in Belgium, EU data handling, priced in euros at €60/year.
Who should pick which
- Pick Monarch if you're US-based and your main need is budgeting and spending tracking.
- Pick Krosos if you're in Europe and want your complete net worth in one private, always-current place.
They can even coexist: budget in Monarch (if you're in the US), track total net worth in Krosos. But for most European users, Monarch's core strength simply doesn't reach their accounts.
The honest bottom line
Monarch isn't a worse app — it's a different app, built for a different country and a different question. If you're in Europe and want the private, EU-built way to see everything in one number, that's exactly the gap Krosos was built for: read-only, on your own instance, €60/year, 14-day free trial, one-click export if you leave.
See how your data is protected, compare all the EU trackers, or try the live demo.