Updated 2026-09-18
YNAB alternative for Canada
OwnFi is a free budgeting app for Canadians who like YNAB's discipline but not the US$109 a year or the bank connection that keeps dropping: you import the PDF or CSV statement your bank sends, and OwnFi builds budgets, bills and a safe-to-spend number from it on the phone.
If you already budget from CSV files in YNAB, OwnFi can also export a YNAB-ready CSV from any statement, so the two can work together.
How it compares
| OwnFi | Monarch | YNAB | Copilot | Rocket Money | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bank login required | No. Import the PDF or CSV your bank sends | Yes | Optional; file import for many banks | Yes | Yes |
| Works in Canada | Yes: RBC, TD, Scotiabank, CIBC, BMO formats | Listed; Canadian connections are the top complaint in its Canadian reviews | Listed; direct import missing for many Canadian banks | Not on the Canadian App Store | Not on the Canadian App Store |
| Price | Free, no tier | US$99.99/yr | US$109/yr | US$95/yr | Free tier plus paid Premium |
| Imports past statements | Yes, any month you have a file for | CSV import | CSV/OFX/QFX file import | CSV import | No file import |
| Financial data leaves the device | Never | Yes (cloud account and aggregator) | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Android app | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes |
Competitor facts were checked against their public store listings and pricing pages on 18 September 2026; prices are in US dollars and change. Tell us if something is out of date.
How it works
- Download the statement you already get
Your bank's app or website has a PDF or CSV for every month. Save it to your phone, or share it straight to OwnFi from the bank's app.
- Import it on the phone
OwnFi reads it locally: 27 named bank formats plus a parser that learns any CSV once you confirm the columns. Password-protected PDFs open with the password your bank sent, which is never stored.
- Get the number
Transactions are categorised, bills and subscriptions detected, and the Dashboard shows what you can safely spend today with upcoming bills already reserved.
Questions
Does OwnFi do envelope budgeting like YNAB?
OwnFi budgets by category with monthly limits and rollover, suggests limits from your income and rent, and shows one daily safe-to-spend number. It is simpler than YNAB's envelope method by design.
Can I keep using YNAB and use OwnFi for imports?
Yes. Export from OwnFi in YNAB's CSV format (Date, Payee, Memo, Outflow, Inflow) and use YNAB's file-based import.
Which Canadian banks parse?
RBC, TD, Scotiabank, CIBC and BMO statements are recognised automatically; any other CSV is learned once you confirm the columns.
Does it cost anything?
No. Free, no subscription, no trial that turns into a charge.
Is my data safe?
It never leaves the phone. Encrypted at rest, no server, no analytics; the App Store label is "Data Not Collected".
About OwnFi
OwnFi is a free budgeting app that imports your bank statements instead of logging into your bank. Nothing leaves your phone. Free on iPhone and Android, with a sample-data mode so you can look before importing anything. See everything it does or read the privacy proof.