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1Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute2Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problems3Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesThe three apps named in the original 2022 article were Walnut Money Manager (now Axio), Money Lover, and Money Manager Expense & Budget. They are historical picks—not a verified ranking for 2026. Their key difference is how they capture spending: Axio is built around SMS-based transaction detection, while the other two were described as manual trackers. The right choice depends on your comfort with permissions, how much entry you will do yourself, and whether you need features such as exports or backups.
What the three apps were picked for
The January 2, 2022 article, which carried an August 23, 2021 update note, compared three apps for recording spending and understanding where money goes. Its descriptions reflect what the article reported at the time; they do not establish each app’s current features, pricing, or platform support.
| App | Tracking approach described in 2022 | Other features described in 2022 | Limits or cautions reported then |
|---|---|---|---|
| Walnut Money Manager, now Axio | Automatically filtered transaction SMS messages and categorized spending; users could also add expenses manually. | Budgets, summaries, bill reminders, backups, and payment splitting. | The article flagged mandatory SMS access and promotional banners. It said the iOS version it reviewed did not track expenses. |
| Money Lover | Manual entries by amount, category, and date. | Monthly overviews and reports, budgets, event tracking, recurring transactions, and reminders. | The article noted ads and said CSV and Excel export were premium features. Those tier details may have changed. |
| Money Manager Expense & Budget | Manual transaction recording; the article said it did not automatically track expenses. | Account balances, categorized statistics, assets and liabilities, backups, export, passcode protection, and dark mode. | The article reported ads in the free version. A 2025 roundup also described the free version as ad-supported and said asset count was limited to 15; check the current listing before relying on that limit. |
What to know about Axio, formerly Walnut
Axio’s current Google Play listing identifies the app as formerly Walnut and describes it as an SMS-based expense and budget tracker. The listing was updated July 15, 2026. It describes daily and monthly expense tracking, budgets, reminders, and transaction notes, tags, and receipt photos. It also promotes credit products and fixed deposits, so the tracking tool sits within a broader financial-services app rather than a tracker-only experience. See Axio’s Google Play listing.
Axio’s listing says SMS access is used to analyze transactional messages for spending and bill detection, budgeting, loan-fraud prevention, and fixed-deposit SIM-device binding. That is the app’s stated rationale, not an independent privacy assessment. Before granting access, read the permission prompt and the listing’s data-safety disclosures, and decide whether those uses suit you. A 2025 Indian Express roundup reported more than 10 million downloads, but that is a dated secondary-source figure, not a current audited count. Read the Indian Express roundup.
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How to choose among the three
Choose by how you want to capture transactions
- Prefer automation: Axio is the one of these three with a current listing that describes SMS-based tracking. Automation may reduce manual entry, but it comes with permission considerations.
- Prefer deliberate manual tracking: Money Lover and Money Manager were described as requiring users to enter transactions. Manual entry avoids relying on SMS detection, but it takes ongoing effort.
Check platform and free-tier details before committing
The 2022 article’s iOS observation about Walnut applies only to the version it reviewed then; it does not establish present iOS support. Current exact availability and free-tier limits for Money Lover and Money Manager were not established in the sources cited here. Check each app’s current store listing for supported devices, ads, paid features, export, backup, and any asset limits before moving your records into it.
Decide which practical features matter
- Budgets and reminders: All three had some budget-related functionality described in the 2022 article, while Axio’s current listing also describes budgets and reminders.
- Reports and categorization: The historical descriptions include summaries or categorized statistics across the apps, but feature names and reporting options may have changed.
- Export and backup: Money Lover’s exports were described as premium in 2022; Money Manager was described as offering backup and export. Confirm current access and test an export before making an app your only record.
- Ads and product offers: The historical article noted ads in Money Lover and Money Manager. Axio’s current listing includes credit and fixed-deposit offers. Consider whether advertising or cross-promotion would distract from your budgeting workflow.
A practical way to test an expense tracker
- Choose one app and review its current store listing, permissions, privacy disclosures, and free-versus-paid feature boundaries.
- Record spending for a short trial period using your usual payment methods. With manual apps, see whether you will actually enter transactions consistently; with Axio, assess whether its SMS access and detection fit your expectations.
- Check whether categories, budgets, reminders, and reports answer the questions you care about—for example, which categories are growing or whether you are staying within a monthly limit.
- Try backup or export before depending on the app. Confirm what file or backup is available and whether you can retrieve your data if you stop using the service.
Because Money Lover’s and Money Manager’s current listings and exact free-tier terms were not verified here, treat the 2022 feature descriptions as a starting point, not a guarantee. A vendor-authored comparison page also discusses Axio’s transition from Walnut and its broader product mix; use it as the company’s perspective rather than an independent head-to-head test. See Axio’s comparison page.
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