Last updated: 3 October 2026
ArthaVibes is a personal income and expense tracker for Android. This policy explains what the app does with your information. The short version: everything stays on your phone. We do not collect, receive, sell or share any of your data.
ArthaVibes does not have Android’s internet permission, so it cannot send anything off your phone. There are no accounts, no servers, no analytics, no advertising and no crash-reporting services in the app. Premium purchases go through the Google Play Store app on your phone (section 5a), not through ArthaVibes.
This applies to the standard version of ArthaVibes. The “lite” version does not ask for SMS access and never reads SMS.
Why the app reads SMS. Banks, cards and wallets send an SMS for most payments. ArthaVibes reads these messages to add your income and expenses automatically, so you do not have to type them. This is the app’s main feature.
You choose. Before Android asks you for SMS permission, the app shows a screen that explains what it reads and why. You can say no and still use the app by adding transactions yourself. You can turn SMS tracking off at any time in Settings > SMS auto-tracking, or remove the permission in your phone’s settings.
What is read. When you turn SMS tracking on, the app checks the messages in your SMS inbox from the period you choose (for example the last 3 months), and then each new SMS as it arrives.
What is kept. All checking happens on your phone.
What is never done. Your SMS messages, and anything taken from them, are never sent to us or to anyone else, never used for advertising, credit scoring or lending, and never sold.
Transactions you add by hand, categories, accounts, budgets, recurring entries and notes are saved only on your phone, in the same encrypted database. Your settings are kept in a separate settings file on your phone; it contains no amounts, messages or names.
Android asks you before the app can use these:
| Permission | Why |
|---|---|
| SMS (read and receive; standard version only) | To add transactions from bank, card and wallet messages (section 2) |
| Notifications | To tell you when a budget reaches 80% or 100%, and to show progress while the first SMS scan runs. Optional |
The app also uses permissions that Android grants without asking: biometric (for App lock, only when you turn it on), and a few that let Android’s background task system run scheduled work, such as adding recurring entries on their dates, even after the phone restarts, and Google Play billing (to buy Premium, section 5a). None of them give access to the internet.
Premium is bought through Google Play. Google handles the payment under Google’s privacy policy; we never see your card, UPI or bank details.
You can save a backup file, a CSV spreadsheet, or a PDF or Excel report of your transactions from Settings. The app writes these files only when you ask, to the place you choose with Android’s file picker. After that, the file is under your control: if you save it to a cloud folder or share it, the privacy policy of that service applies. Backup files never contain SMS text.
We do not share any data with anyone, because we do not receive any. The app contains no third-party services that collect data. Payments for Premium are handled by Google Play (section 5a).
ArthaVibes is meant for adults (18 and over) and is not directed at children.
If the app changes how it uses your information, we will update this policy and the “Last updated” date above, and describe the change in the app’s release notes. If a change would ever mean sending data off your phone, the app would ask for your permission first.
Questions or concerns about privacy: support@arthavibes.in