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Actual Budget vs Monarch Money: catalog facts
Actual Budget	Monarch Money
Free Free and open source under the MIT licence. Third-party hosting such as PikaPods or Fly.io…	Paid Paid subscription, with introductory discounts on the first year.
Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS, Web, Self-hosted	Android, iOS, Web
Envelope budgeting done properly, not a spending report Local-first, so it works offline and stays fast with long history	Automatic categorization of connected accounts Shared access for a partner or adviser at no extra cost
Syncing between devices needs a server, which is a step most apps hide Automatic bank connections depend on your country and a third-party service	Requires an account and a paid subscription Financial data is held by a cloud service
Downloadable app, Self-hosted	Downloadable app, Web application, Hosted service
Open source	Closed source
License: MIT	License not stated
No account needed	Account needed
Works offline	Not stated if it works offline
Official website Full listing and sources Checked September 21, 2026	Official website Full listing and sources Checked September 23, 2026

Catalog facts only. Anything “not stated” is unconfirmed. Check full listings for details.