Head to head
Actual Budget vs EnvelopeBudget
Actual Budget (Free) vs EnvelopeBudget ($4/mo). Actual Budget costs less per year. Pick Actual Budget for people who want real envelope budgeting, full control of their data, and are fine with (or willing to pay a few dollars a month for) self-hosting; pick EnvelopeBudget for people who want hosted envelope budgeting with optional manual entry or bank sync through SimpleFIN or Plaid, plus debt-payoff planning and shared budgets.
EnvelopeBudget, our Editor’s Pick, has a financial interest in BudgetingApps.org. Details
Key differences
- Price
- Actual Budget is cheaper: it has a free plan versus $40 a year for EnvelopeBudget. EnvelopeBudget does offer a lifetime option ($60 ($60 lifetime (first 500 members; remaining spots not stated))).
- Budgeting method
- Actual Budget is built for envelope and zero-based budgeting; EnvelopeBudget for envelope, zero-based and expense tracking. They overlap on envelope and zero-based.
- Platforms
- Actual Budget: Desktop and Web. EnvelopeBudget: Android, iOS and Web. Only Actual Budget has Desktop. Only EnvelopeBudget has Android and iOS.
- Feature differences
- EnvelopeBudget lists multi-currency, which Actual Budget’s listing does not confirm.
- Track record
- EnvelopeBudget has been around since 2009; Actual Budget since 2022.
- Trying it first
- Actual Budget Free plan
- EnvelopeBudget 34-day free trial, no credit card required
- Separate logins for shared budgets
- Actual Budget Not confirmed. Check whether each person gets their own login.
- EnvelopeBudget Yes. Invite family and team members to shared budgets with their own logins. Manage member access and transfer budget ownership; eligible family members can share the family owner's subscription access.
- Bank sync
- Actual Budget Optional; requires the server and provider credentials. Supports SimpleFIN (North America), Enable Banking (Europe), Akahu (New Zealand), and Pluggy (Brazil); GoCardless is closed to new accounts. Automatic syncing is configurable but runs only while Actual is open; it can also be triggered manually. Tokens are stored server-side outside E2EE.
- EnvelopeBudget Optional SimpleFIN ($1.50/mo or $15/yr paid to SimpleFIN) or Plaid ($3/mo or $30/yr add-on). Plaid is enabled in the web, iOS and Android apps, per current owner confirmation; the vendor changelog documents Plaid connections and mobile bank-sync updates.
Which should you choose?
Side-by-side comparison
| Rating | ||
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | $4/mo |
| Yearly price | Free (self-hosted or desktop app) | $40/yr |
| Lifetime option | — | $60 ($60 lifetime (first 500 members; remaining spots not stated)) |
| Free plan | Yes | No |
| Free trial | — | 34-day free trial, no credit card required |
| Platforms | Desktop, Web | Android, iOS, Web |
| Founded | 2022 | 2009 |
| Envelope budgeting | Yes | Yes |
| Automatic bank sync | Yes | Yes |
| Manual transaction entry | Yes | Yes |
| Goal tracking | Yes | Yes |
| Debt payoff tools | Yes | Yes |
| Investment tracking | No | No |
| Bill reminders | No | No |
| Reports & charts | Yes | Yes |
| Multi-currency | No | Yes |
| Family & team access Invite family or teammates to the same budget with their own logins. Sharing one password or sign-in link does not count. Separate logins do not necessarily mean private accounts or transactions. | ||
| Shared / household budgets | Yes | Yes |
| Separate logins for shared budgets | Not confirmed. Check whether each person gets their own login. | Yes. Invite family and team members to shared budgets with their own logins. Manage member access and transfer budget ownership; eligible family members can share the family owner's subscription access. |
| Visit | Visit | |
Prices and features change. Confirm the details on each app’s site. Listings last updated 2026-10-10 and 2026-10-14.
Questions
Is Actual Budget or EnvelopeBudget cheaper?
Actual Budget is cheaper: it has a free plan versus $40 a year for EnvelopeBudget. EnvelopeBudget does offer a lifetime option ($60 ($60 lifetime (first 500 members; remaining spots not stated))).
Which is better, Actual Budget or EnvelopeBudget?
Actual Budget (Free) vs EnvelopeBudget ($4/mo). Actual Budget costs less per year. Pick Actual Budget for people who want real envelope budgeting, full control of their data, and are fine with (or willing to pay a few dollars a month for) self-hosting; pick EnvelopeBudget for people who want hosted envelope budgeting with optional manual entry or bank sync through SimpleFIN or Plaid, plus debt-payoff planning and shared budgets.
Do Actual Budget and EnvelopeBudget have mobile apps?
Actual Budget: Desktop and Web. EnvelopeBudget: Android, iOS and Web. Only Actual Budget has Desktop. Only EnvelopeBudget has Android and iOS.