Is there any point to a personal finance that’s only available on one device? I certainly don’t think so. Sometimes, you want to be able to make notes on your spending habits when you’re out and about, while other times you want to sit quietly at your computer and give everything a good hard look. If you want to keep tabs on yourself, it makes sense to always keep your finance app just a finger’s breadth away. The multi-device sync of Checkbook HD Free is arguably the best reason to check out this personal finance app for your Mac.

What is it and what does it do

Main Functionality

Checkbook HD Free is a personal finance app with a clean and beautiful interface. If you have the mobile Checkbook HD app installed on your iPhone or iPad, you can easily use cloud sync to keep everything up to date.

Pros

• Colorful charts help you to visualize your spending and track your finance habits
• You can either manually add entries to change balance on your accounts, or you can import your banking records using your bank’s OFX file
• Schedule delayed transactions and clear them later (reconcile feature)
• Allows an unlimited number of accounts (checking, savings, credit card, etc.)
• Multiple currencies are supported.
• If you delete an account, you can always restore it later
• Protect your personal financial info with a PIN

Cons

• The charts are gorgeous, but the balance sheet is less dynamic
• Some of the coolest features such as Unlimited Recurring Transactions, Unlimited Accounts, Direct Connect, and Export/Print features are only available as in-app purchase

Discussion

One of the nicest things about Checkbook HD Free for Mac is that it has so many features. Unfortunately, the best of these features require in-app purchases, so Checkbook HD Free really ought to be called Checkbook HD CHEAP. Thankfully, the premium package is still pretty reasonably priced at under $13.

It’s a funny thing, but most people’s interest in financial apps is directly proportional to how attractive and visually appealing the app is. When a financial app is easy on the eyes, we’re subconsciously attracted to using it more regularly.

Checkbook HD Free has very attractive charts (though I wish the balance sheet was a little more dynamic), so I think that will go a long way towards getting people to use it on a daily basis. After all, a financial app only works if you use it regularly.

Conclusion and download link

While many of its best functions aren’t available without an in-app purchase, Checkbook HD Free still deserves kudos for its solid, base-level features. If you want a personal finance app that syncs your personal data between your mobile iOS devices and your Mac, Checkbook HD Free should fit the bill nicely…especially if you thrive on charts and graphs.

Price: Free

Version reviewed: 1.0.1

Requires OS X 10.7 or later, 64-bit processor. The related mobile app for iPhone and iOS devices requires iOS version 5.0 or later.

Download size: 11.5 MB

Checkbook HD Free on Mac App Store