Alternatives to Beancount
Plain-text double-entry accounting with a strict, checkable ledger format. The listings below can replace it for an important use case. Each note says what changes if you switch.
The original
Beancount
Plain-text double-entry accounting with a strict, checkable ledger format.
Replacements
Listings that take over the same core job as Beancount.
hledger
Plain text accounting: double-entry bookkeeping in a text file you own, with command-line, terminal and web interfaces.
hledger keeps plain-text double-entry accounting but adds terminal and web interfaces alongside the command line, is GPL-3.0 licensed and does not require a Python toolchain.
Ledger
The original plain-text double-entry accounting tool for the command line.
Ledger is the original plain-text accounting tool under BSD-3-Clause, with read-only reporting and flexible commodities, but it is command-line only and has no import tooling.
GnuCash
Double-entry accounting for personal and small-business finances.
GnuCash keeps double-entry accounting but uses a graphical desktop app instead of a text file, adding invoicing and scheduled transactions at the cost of version-control friendliness.
KMyMoney
Double-entry personal finance manager from the KDE community.
KMyMoney offers double-entry accounting in a graphical KDE desktop app with investment handling and price quotes, replacing the plain-text ledger with its own data file.
Paisa
An open-source personal finance manager built on plain-text ledger files and double-entry accounting.
Paisa is a self-hosted open-source manager built on plain-text ledger files with a visual dashboard, budgeting and investment tracking with market price updates.
Also worth comparing
These listings name Beancount as their own alternative, so the relationship runs both ways.
Akaunting
Accounting software for small businesses and freelancers, available online or self-hosted.
Beancount stores a strict double-entry ledger in plain text that is checked on every parse, with no graphical entry and a Python toolchain assumed instead of a web app.
Manager.io
Accounting software for small businesses and personal bookkeeping, with a free desktop edition and a Cloud Edition.
Beancount is a GPL-2.0 plain-text double-entry ledger with balance assertions checked on every parse, but no graphical entry and a Python toolchain to learn.
Similar software
Related functionality, not a direct replacement.
Fava
Web interface for Beancount ledgers with charts, queries and reports.
Portfolio Performance
Calculates how your investments are actually doing across several accounts, using the measures a professional would use.
Firefly III
A self-hosted personal finance manager with budgets, categories, rules and a lot of reports.
