I tested ten apps. Here's why I chose this one.

The real problem wasn't finding an app — it was finding one that actually worked

"At first I used Excel," Luca says. "One sheet for Fineco, one for Degiro, a third one trying to add it all up. Every time I updated something in one place, I forgot to update it in the other. By the end of 2023, I realised I didn't know exactly how much I was making. I knew I was making something — just not how much."

The decision to find something better came about in a mundane way: a dividend credited to his Degiro account that he couldn't find in the Excel sheet because he'd forgotten to log it three weeks earlier.

What happens when you test ten apps systematically

Luca has a methodical approach — the same one he uses at work to evaluate vendors and software. He drew up a list of criteria: multi-broker support, reliable CSV import, performance calculation net of reinvested dividends, a usable mobile interface. Then he started testing.

"The most common problem was the import. Most apps accept the Degiro CSV in theory, but in practice something always goes wrong — wrong dates, unrecognised tickers, duplicate transactions. I wasted an afternoon on one app that looked promising, and it turned out it had imported my 140 transactions with 11 silent errors. You only notice afterwards, when the numbers don't add up."

The second recurring issue was customisation: locked dashboards, fixed widgets, no way to highlight what actually mattered to him — performance by asset class, not total portfolio value.

Why he created a test account before using it for real

When he found DonkyCapital, Luca didn't immediately import his real portfolio. "I'd learned from experience with the other apps. Now I always create a separate test account, load dummy data, and see how the system behaves. Only if it passes the test do I put in my real data."

The test lasted two days. He manually entered around fifteen transactions on real instruments — VWCE, a few individual stocks, a bond ETF — and verified that the calculations were correct. Then he tried the Degiro CSV import.

"It worked on the first try. There was nothing to correct. That had never happened with any other app."

How he set up the dashboard — and why it took two hours

Once the test was passed, Luca imported his real portfolio and spent an afternoon on configuration. "It wasn't complicated. I just wanted to get it right from the start, so I wouldn't have to redo everything later."

He created two separate dashboards: one for the big picture — asset class allocation, year-to-date performance, dividends received — and a more operational one with individual holdings sorted by portfolio weight. "I look at the second one when I need to decide whether to rebalance. I look at the first one on Saturday mornings to check whether everything is going as planned."

The widget he uses most is the allocation chart: it shows him in real time how far his holdings have drifted from his target weights. When an asset exceeds its target by three percentage points, he knows it's time to consider rebalancing — not necessarily to act, but to think about it.

What convinced him — and what's still missing

Luca is equally precise when describing the strengths. He doesn't just say "it's nice." He says the dashboard is customisable in a sensible way, the performance calculation is transparent (gross by default, with a net-of-tax view available in the Portfolio Table widget), and the mobile interface works without installing anything — you just add it to the home screen from Chrome.

He lists the limitations with the same matter-of-fact tone: transaction dates can't be edited once entered, and crypto support was still in development when he started using it. "It's not a problem for me because I don't have crypto. But I understand it as a limitation for those who do."

Editor's note — Crypto support has since been added: you can now track cryptocurrencies alongside ETFs and stocks in a single portfolio.

Luca opens the app once a week, usually on Saturday morning. He checks the period performance, verifies whether his asset allocation has drifted from his targets (60% global equities, 25% bonds, 15% deployable cash), and decides whether to act. "The thing I didn't expect is that having a reliable tracker made me check the portfolio less often. Before, I'd compulsively open Excel because I didn't trust the data. Now I know the data is right, so I look when it actually makes sense." It's also changed how he thinks about his investment decisions. "Before, I reacted more. Now I look at the twelve-month performance chart and the urge to make impulsive moves goes away."