Stay Steady vs Monarch
Last updated: 30 October 2026
Monarch is a subscription budgeting service that connects to your bank accounts. Stay Steady is a free app that works from the statement files your bank gives you and keeps transactions on your device. The biggest practical difference for most readers of this site is where each one works.
Get Stay Steady, free: App Store (iPhone and iPad) · Mac App Store · Google Play
Competitor details were checked on Monarch’s own pages on 30 October 2026. Prices are in US dollars as Monarch publishes them. Check Monarch’s pricing page for today’s figures.
At a glance
| Stay Steady | Monarch | |
|---|---|---|
| Where it works | Anywhere you can export a statement file; built for Belgium and Europe | Monarch’s help centre says it is “currently only available in the US and Canada” |
| Price | Free. No subscription, no ads, no in-app purchases | $14.99 per month or $99.99 per year; “your first week is on us” |
| Getting transactions in | Import CSV, OFX/QFX, Belgian CODA or SWIFT MT940 files; optionally fetch from a service you subscribe to | Connects to accounts through the data providers Plaid, Mastercard Data Connect and MX |
| Where your transactions live | On your device; optional sync through your own iCloud | In Monarch’s service |
| Currencies | Your own currency per environment, 159 to choose from, nothing converted | Shows the dollar sign for both USD and CAD |
| Platforms | iPhone, iPad, Mac, Android | Web, iOS and Android |
Where Stay Steady fits
- You live or bank outside the US and Canada. Monarch’s connections come from US-focused data providers. Stay Steady needs no connection: export a file from your bank’s website and import it. Here is how.
- You do not want a subscription. Stay Steady is free.
- You keep several sets of books. Household, company and club each have their own accounts and budgets, and no total mixes them.
- You want your transactions to stay on your device. Stay Steady stores them on-device and categorises them with a model that runs on your device.
Where Monarch fits
- Your accounts are US or Canadian and you want them to sync automatically.
- You want a web app and shared access with a partner.
- You are happy to pay a subscription for that.
About “no ads”
Monarch says “never any ads”, as we do. It is not a reason to choose either one. Compare price, availability and where your data is stored.
Try it
Stay Steady is on the App Store, the Mac App Store and Google Play. Other comparisons: Stay Steady vs YNAB and Stay Steady vs Copilot Money.