Comparison
Finley vs Mint: the honest 2026 alternative
Mint shut down in March 2024 with 25M users in the lurch. The convenience features are still missed; the bank-aggregator fragility that ended Mint isn't.
This page is the honest read on what to use instead — what Finley keeps, what it deliberately doesn't, and how to switch.
Side-by-side
| What we compared | Finley | Mint (shut down) |
|---|---|---|
| Status | Live, actively developed | Shut down March 2024 |
| Approach | AI-assisted on-device categorisation | Bank-aggregator with auto-categorisation |
| Bank linking | No (intentional — kills the breakage class that ended Mint) | Yes via Plaid/Yodlee — fragile and the reason for shutdown |
| Auto-categorisation | AI from manual entry + receipts, learns over time | Aggregator-rule based, retrained server-side |
| Anomaly detection | Spike, duplicate, drift, subscription growth alerts | Limited — alerts on bills and budgets only |
| Subscription tracking | Auto-recognised, growth-tracked, cancellation reminders | Manual category, basic reminders |
| Multi-currency | USD, EUR, GBP, INR, AUD, CAD, + | USD-primary; weak outside US |
| Privacy | Local-first, AI runs on-device, no data sale | Cloud-stored, ad-supported, sold to Credit Karma |
| Free tier | Free for core, no ads, no data sale | Free with ads (when alive) |
| Platforms | Web + Android (iOS planned) | iOS, Android, Web (when alive) |
| Best for | Ex-Mint users who want the convenience without the bank-aggregator fragility | n/a (shut down) |
What Mint did well that Finley keeps
- Auto-categorisation that actually works. Mint trained on years of US-bank data; Finley's on-device AI learns from your manual entries plus optional receipt scans, so it gets personal-feeling fast.
- "Why is my food spend up?" instincts. Mint had basic budget alerts; Finley's anomaly engine flags 3× spikes, duplicate subscriptions, and category drift before the month closes.
- Subscription visibility. Both apps surface recurring spend; Finley adds growth tracking — every renewal that bumped 10%+ is flagged.
- Multi-account view. Mint pulled from banks; Finley supports multiple accounts via manual or import sources, plus multi-currency for users with assets across regions.
What Mint did that Finley deliberately doesn't
- Direct bank linking. The single biggest source of Mint complaints in its last three years — connections breaking, banks changing APIs, support tickets unanswered. Finley's view: skip the breakage class entirely.
- Credit-score and product-placement bundling. Mint pushed credit cards and lending products. Finley doesn't sell financial products; the revenue model is premium features, not affiliate commissions.
- Aggressive ad targeting. Mint was free-with-ads; Finley is free without ads, with privacy as a deliberate constraint.
How to migrate from Mint (or Credit Karma)
- Export your Mint data. If you saved the CSV before shutdown, you have transaction history. If not, Credit Karma's "View Transactions" page exports the carried-over Mint data the same way.
- Import into Finley. The importer maps Mint's category structure (which most users had customised over years) and surfaces edge cases for one-tap confirmation.
- Set base currency. Pick USD, EUR, GBP, INR, AUD, CAD — the default formatting follows.
- Let the AI run for two weeks. By week four, Finley typically matches the categorisation accuracy you had in Mint year-five, with no bank dependency.
For the wider 2026 landscape — YNAB, Monarch, Copilot, Rocket Money, plus the smaller picks — read Mint shut down — what should you use instead in 2026?
Frequently asked
Why did Mint shut down?
Intuit acquired Mint in 2009 and rolled it into Credit Karma in March 2024. The official line was strategic consolidation. The honest read: the bank-aggregator model is structurally hard to keep running — institutions change APIs, integrations break, support costs scale linearly with users — and the ad-supported revenue model never matched the operational cost. Mint's 25M users were directed to Credit Karma, which has fewer budgeting features.
What is the closest replacement for Mint in 2026?
Depends on what you valued in Mint. For convenience-first users (auto-categorisation, anomaly alerts, no daily logging), Finley is the closest match. For envelope-method power users, YNAB. For credit-score + budgeting bundle, Credit Karma (the official Mint successor) plus a separate budgeting app. For local-first / privacy-conscious users, Finley or Money Manager.
Can I import my Mint data into Finley?
Yes. Mint exported CSV until shutdown — if you have that file, Finley's importer reads transaction history, categories, and tags. If you used Credit Karma's Mint successor and want to leave, Credit Karma's transaction export works the same way.
Is Finley as feature-rich as Mint was?
On categorisation, anomaly detection, and subscription tracking — yes, and arguably better because the AI runs on-device and improves with use. On bank-aggregator integration — no, Finley deliberately doesn't link banks. The model assumption is that bank linking sounds nice but breaks constantly and is what made Mint operationally untenable.
Is Finley free like Mint was?
Yes. Finley's core is free with no ads and no data sale. Mint was free-with-ads and sold financial product placements. Finley's revenue model is paid premium features for users who want them, not data monetisation.
What about budgeting envelopes? Mint had basic budgets.
Finley supports category budgets, monthly rollovers, and goal-tracking. It's not a strict YNAB-style envelope system — that's intentional. Most ex-Mint users we've talked to didn't use envelope methodology and found YNAB too rigid.
Try it
The Mint replacement that won't shut down on you.
Free for the core experience. No bank linking, no ads, no data sale.