Side by side
| Feature | UrBudget | Principal Plan |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $9 once, on all your own Windows and Mac computers, with future updates | $39.99 once (Forever), $19.99 a year or $1.99 a month, bought in the app through the Microsoft Store or the Mac App Store |
| Free trial | 30 days, with no account or card | 60 days, with no account or card |
| Runs on | Windows 10 and 11, macOS 12 or later | Windows 10 or later, macOS 12 or later |
| Where your budget lives | In a file on your computer. Works offline, with automatic backups | In a single file on your computer. Works offline, with automatic backups when you save changes |
| Between devices | Optional sync between your computers for $2 a month, encrypted with your passphrase before it leaves your computer | No sync between computers. A free app for iPhone, iPad and Android shows the envelope balances you choose from one paired file, encrypted end to end. It's view-only |
| Bank connections | None. Import statement files (CSV, OFX, QFX, QIF), checked row by row | None. Import CSV, OFX/QFX and QIF files, with duplicate detection, envelope suggestions learned from your history and an optional watched download folder |
| Sharing | Your own computers; no shared budget for several people | No shared budgets. Paired phones see the envelope balances you publish, but can't change anything |
| Method | Envelopes with targets, credit-card payment categories, rollover and Quick assign | Envelopes with an allocation plan: templates split a paycheck across envelopes in one step. Envelopes can nest, and account and envelope totals always match |
| Language | English, with any currency, number and date format | English, German, Spanish, French, Italian and Portuguese |
| Getting your data out | CSV in YNAB's layout, or a full JSON backup | Ledgers and reports export to CSV or copy to the clipboard; envelope summaries print as small as a business card |
What it costs over time
Over five years, Principal Plan's yearly license comes to $99.95 and the monthly one to $119.40. Its Forever license is $39.99 once. UrBudget is $9 once.
UrBudget's sync adds $2 a month if you turn it on, which makes $129 over five years with the license. Principal Plan has no sync between computers to set against that, and its phone app is free.
Which one fits you
Principal Plan, if you
- want 60 days to decide
- want the app in German, Spanish, French, Italian or Portuguese
- want to check envelope balances on your phone while you shop
- like applying a whole paycheck split with one click, or having the app watch your downloads folder for new bank files
UrBudget, if you
- want to pay $9 once instead of $39.99
- use two computers and want sync to keep them the same
- are leaving YNAB and want your budget, targets and history to come over in one click
- want targets, credit-card payment categories, Quick assign, a loan planner and twelve reports
These two are close: both are offline desktop envelope budgets with no bank connections. The choice comes down to price, the phone app, the language you want, and whether you budget on more than one computer.
Moving from Principal Plan to UrBudget
UrBudget can't open a Principal Plan file, but Principal Plan exports each account's ledger as CSV, and UrBudget imports CSV one account at a time. Envelopes you set up again by hand.
- Export each account's ledger. In Principal Plan, open an Account Ledger, set the filter to show all transactions (the export saves only what the ledger shows), and choose Export Ledger. Repeat for each account.
- Rename three columns. Open each file in a spreadsheet. UrBudget looks for Date, Payee and either Amount or Outflow and Inflow. Principal Plan's ledger calls the payee and amount columns Payable to, Payment and Deposit, so rename them Payee, Outflow and Inflow. Where there's no amount, leave the cell empty rather than writing a dash; currency symbols are fine in UrBudget 1.0.3 and later. Save as CSV.
- Add the account and import. In UrBudget, add the account with its balance from before the first transaction in the file. Choose Import file in its register, pick the file and the date order it uses, and check the rows before saving.
- Set up your envelopes. Make a category for each envelope, grouping nested ones, and assign each what it holds in Principal Plan today until Unassigned reaches zero. Recreate recurring templates, like your paycheck and bills, as scheduled transactions.
- Import from your bank from now on. Keep downloading CSV, OFX, QFX or QIF files from your bank, as you did for Principal Plan. Overlapping files are safe: rows you've already imported are marked as duplicates.
Don't need your history? Skip the export: add each account with today's balance, then set up your envelopes.
Try UrBudget for a month
Free for 30 days, with no account and no card. Your Principal Plan file stays as it is.
Principal Plan is a trademark of its owner. UrBudget isn't affiliated with Principal Plan or Thomsens.net LLC.