Comparison
Skimp vs FinArt
Last verified 6 October 2026
FinArt does more than Skimp: it runs on iPhone, reads email and notifications as well as SMS, syncs a family, and handles several currencies. It costs a subscription after a five-day trial. Skimp is free and cannot connect to the internet at all.
This page is written by the developer of Skimp, so read it with that in mind. Every statement about FinArt links to where it comes from, and the section on when to choose FinArt is not there for show.
What FinArt is
FinArt is a subscription expense tracker for India with more than ten lakh downloads on Google Play. It positions itself on privacy, earns from subscriptions instead of credit products, and captures transactions from bank SMS, email and app notifications. It added an iPhone app in 2026 and offers family sync and multi-currency support.
- Made by
- FinArt
- Gets transactions from
- Bank SMS, email and app notifications
- Price
- Free for five days, then a subscription. FinArt says the price varies by country and is shown in the app. It is ad-free.
- Runs on
- Android and iPhone
- Website
- finart.app
Side by side
“Not verified” means we found no source that settles it either way. It does not mean FinArt lacks the feature.
| Feature | Skimp | FinArt |
|---|---|---|
| Reads bank SMS automatically | YesOn the device, with a review queue for uncertain ones | YesAlso email and notifications |
| No internet permission | YesAndroid blocks any network connection | NoSyncs and sends some data to its servers |
| Works without an account | YesNo sign-up, phone number or email | YesEmail is optional, per its Data Safety section |
| Every feature free | YesNo paid tier, no in-app purchases | NoSubscription after a 5-day trial |
| No ads | Yes | Yes |
| No loans or cards sold in the app | Yes | YesSubscription-funded; no credit products listed |
| Budgets with alerts | YesOverall and per category, at 80% and 100% | Yes |
| Recurring and subscription tracking | YesRecurring rules plus detected subscriptions | Yes |
| Lend and borrow (udhaar) ledger | Yes | Not verified |
| Export to CSV or PDF | YesBoth | Not verified |
| Encrypted backup | YesAES-256-GCM, your passphrase | Not verified |
| Sync across devices | NoNo server; move data with a backup file | YesFamily sync; Google Drive backup |
| iPhone app | NoiOS does not let apps read SMS | YesLaunched in 2026 |
| Multiple currencies | NoRupees only | Yes |
| Investments and net worth | No | Not verified |
| Open source | NoProprietary | No |
The differences that matter
Price
FinArt is free to try for five days and then needs a subscription to keep using. Skimp is free with no paid tier, because it has no server to pay for.
How much stays on the phone
FinArt's privacy policy describes a Private Mode setting that keeps SMS text and transaction details on the device, while sender names and merchant names are still sent occasionally to handle new message formats. Its Data Safety section on Google Play declares SMS or MMS, financial info and device IDs as collected for analytics, and says collected data cannot be deleted on request. Skimp has no setting to find, since the app has no internet permission.
Reach
FinArt captures from email and notifications as well as SMS, which catches payments a bank sends no SMS for. It has an iPhone app, syncs between family members and supports multiple currencies. Skimp does none of those.
Choose FinArt if
- You use an iPhone
- You want a shared ledger with a partner or family
- You spend in more than one currency
- Your bank no longer sends SMS for small UPI payments and you want email or notification capture to fill the gap
Choose Skimp if
- You want a tracker that stays free, with no trial running out
- You want the guarantee enforced by Android, not by a setting
- You want to see and confirm uncertain transactions before they are posted
- You track money lent to and borrowed from people
Skimp is in a closed test ahead of a public release. Join the waitlist to be told when there is a build to install, or read what it does and does not do.
Sources
Read on 6 October 2026. Apps change their pricing, permissions and policies, so check the source if a detail matters to you.
What Skimp itself does is documented in its privacy policy and Data Safety answers. Found something wrong or out of date? Tell us at support.skimp.rabugotra.com and it will be corrected.