https://getduezen.com/blog/ Honest writing about money apps, privacy, and calmer personal finance. en-us Fri, 21 Aug 2026 12:00:00 GMT https://getduezen.com/blog/ai-budgeting-apps/ https://getduezen.com/blog/ai-budgeting-apps/ Fri, 21 Aug 2026 12:00:00 GMT AI can genuinely help you understand your money — the question is how much access it needs to do it. Here's what ChatGPT Personal Finance, Origin, Cleo, and Monarch's AI actually get, and a middle path that needs no bank connection at all. https://getduezen.com/blog/best-zero-based-budgeting-apps/ https://getduezen.com/blog/best-zero-based-budgeting-apps/ Wed, 19 Aug 2026 12:00:00 GMT Zero-based budgeting means every dollar gets a job before the month starts. Here are the apps that actually implement it in 2026, ranked, with honest pricing and a straight answer on which ones require a bank login. https://getduezen.com/blog/is-rocket-money-safe/ https://getduezen.com/blog/is-rocket-money-safe/ Mon, 17 Aug 2026 12:00:00 GMT Rocket Money hasn't had a reported breach and encrypts what it stores — but a long BBB complaint record and data sharing within the Rocket Companies family are worth knowing before you connect an account. https://getduezen.com/blog/how-much-does-monarch-money-cost/ https://getduezen.com/blog/how-much-does-monarch-money-cost/ Sun, 09 Aug 2026 12:00:00 GMT Monarch Money's Core plan is $14.99/month or $99.99/year, and a new Plus tier at $199.99/year showed up in 2026. Here's exactly what each tier includes, how the price has changed over time, and whether it's worth paying for. https://getduezen.com/blog/is-simplefin-safe/ https://getduezen.com/blog/is-simplefin-safe/ Sun, 09 Aug 2026 12:00:00 GMT SimpleFIN keeps your bank credentials away from every app you connect — but it's still a connection, run by a small team, with one disclosed incident on the record. Here's the full picture, including how it compares to Plaid. https://getduezen.com/blog/rocket-money-vs-monarch-money/ https://getduezen.com/blog/rocket-money-vs-monarch-money/ Sun, 09 Aug 2026 12:00:00 GMT Rocket Money vs Monarch Money, head to head: pricing, bill negotiation fees, free tiers, and which one actually fits your problem — subscriptions or full household budgeting. https://getduezen.com/blog/duezen-vs-monarch-money-vs-ynab-vs-rocket-money/ https://getduezen.com/blog/duezen-vs-monarch-money-vs-ynab-vs-rocket-money/ Sun, 03 May 2026 12:00:00 GMT Four budgeting apps, four very different philosophies. Here's how DueZen, Monarch, YNAB, and Rocket Money actually stack up — pricing, privacy, features, and where each one fits. https://getduezen.com/blog/real-cost-of-budgeting-apps/ https://getduezen.com/blog/real-cost-of-budgeting-apps/ Sat, 18 Apr 2026 12:00:00 GMT Most budgeting apps cost between $72 and $109 per year. Here's the honest 2026 breakdown — what you actually get for the money, including a free-at-launch option that doesn't ask for your bank login. https://getduezen.com/blog/is-your-budgeting-app-safe/ https://getduezen.com/blog/is-your-budgeting-app-safe/ Thu, 26 Mar 2026 12:00:00 GMT Every major budgeting app asks you to link your bank. Few of them explain what that actually means — or what's happened to user data across the industry. Here's the full picture. https://getduezen.com/blog/best-budgeting-apps-reddit/ https://getduezen.com/blog/best-budgeting-apps-reddit/ Wed, 04 Mar 2026 12:00:00 GMT Reddit's r/personalfinance and r/budget users have strong opinions about budgeting apps. We pulled the actual recommendations — what's loved, what's hated, and what to try. https://getduezen.com/blog/what-happened-to-mint-app/ https://getduezen.com/blog/what-happened-to-mint-app/ Sat, 14 Feb 2026 12:00:00 GMT Intuit shut Mint down in March 2024. If you were one of the 3.6 million people relying on it, here's the full story — and the best Mint alternatives now, including private options that don't require a bank login.