Actual vs Ghostfolio
| Tagline | Local-first zero-sum budgeting app with optional cross-device sync | Wealth dashboard tracking stocks, ETFs, and crypto with privacy in mind |
| Category | Finance & Budgeting | Finance & Budgeting |
| Replaces | YNAB, Mint | Mint, YNAB |
| GitHub stars | 27k | 8.8k |
| Language | Nodejs | Docker |
| License | MIT | AGPL-3.0 |
| Self-host difficulty | 2/5 Easy | 3/5 Moderate |
| Deploy options | Docker Docker Compose Manual | Docker Docker Compose Manual |
| Managed hosting | ||
| Last updated | today | yesterday |
| View repo | View repo |
Where each falls short
The honest trade-offs — what you give up with each, versus the proprietary tools they replace.
Actual
- Bank sync coverage is narrower than YNAB's direct connections, especially outside the US/EU
- No mobile native app; the web app is mobile-responsive but not fully optimised for touch
- Investment tracking and net-worth projections are basic compared to Mint/Quicken
- Multi-currency support is limited and requires manual workarounds
Ghostfolio
- No budgeting or expense tracking; purely an investment portfolio tool
- Market data depends on free Yahoo Finance tier, which can be rate-limited or return stale data
- Tax-lot accounting and tax reporting are limited; not a replacement for dedicated tax software
- Import from brokers is manual (CSV) unless you write a custom scraper
Bottom line
Choose Actual if you want the lower-effort setup; choose Actual for the larger community and ecosystem. Actual has seen more recent development. Open each guide below for deploy steps and the full feature gap.
Ghostfolio
Wealth dashboard tracking stocks, ETFs, and crypto with privacy in mind