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Personal Finance · head to head

Banktivity vs Lago

Banktivity logo

Banktivity

Personal Finance

Personal finance for Mac and iOS

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Lago logo

Lago

Accounting

Open-source billing infrastructure for usage-based models

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Lago has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Banktivity runs on macOS, iPhone and iPad only, with no Windows, Android or web version; Lago free tier limited to 10,000 entities per month with 5M event cap
  • They diverge on capability: Banktivity covers Account tracking, Lago covers Real-time usage metering.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Banktivity and Lago actually diverge.

Attributes where Banktivity and Lago differ
AttributeBanktivityLago
Starting priceOn requestFree
Pricing modelsubscriptionFreemium with optional paid tiers
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsMac, IOSWeb, Cloud, Self-hosted, On-premise, VPC
CategoryPersonal FinanceAccounting
Founded2007Unknown

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Banktivity

  • Account tracking
  • Bill management
  • Investment tracking
  • Budget forecasting
  • Bank accounts
  • Investment accounts
  • Mac support
  • IOS support

Only in Lago

  • Real-time usage metering
  • Multiple pricing models
  • Automated invoicing
  • Prepaid credits
  • Entitlements
  • Multi-currency support
  • Payment orchestration
  • Revenue analytics

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Banktivity

  • Personal budgeting and money management on a Macnot Lago
  • Investment and net worth trackingnot Lago
  • Retirement planning projectionsnot Lago
  • Connecting to over 14,000 financial institutionsnot Lago

Lago

  • Building usage-based billing for high-volume APIs and infrastructurenot Banktivity
  • Implementing metered billing for AI and tokenized servicesnot Banktivity
  • Creating subscription and hybrid pricing modelsnot Banktivity
  • Managing multi-currency billing for global companiesnot Banktivity
  • Maintaining billing infrastructure without vendor lock-innot Banktivity

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Banktivity

  • Runs on macOS, iPhone and iPad only, with no Windows, Android or web version
  • Pricing is not shown on the product page and sits behind a separate plans page

Lago

  • Free tier limited to 10,000 entities per month with 5M event cap
  • No specific pricing published for Pro annual plan or Scale plan
  • Self-hosted and on-premise deployments require engineering resources
  • Community support only on free tier
  • Scale plan requires annual contracts and sales engagement

Pricing, plan by plan

Banktivity

On request
  • Monthly$4.99/month
    • Full feature access
    • Cloud sync
  • Annual$39.99/month
    • All monthly features
    • Discounted rate

Lago

Free
  • Build (Free)Free
    • 10,000 managed entities per month
    • 5M usage events per month
    • 1K events per second rate limit
  • Pro$399/month
    • 10,000 entities included (graduated pricing to 100K)
    • 25M usage events included (to 500M with graduated rates)
    • 10K events per second (upgradeable to 100K)
  • Scale$null/custom
    • Custom entity and event volumes
    • 50K events per second (upgradeable to 100K)
    • RBAC and SSO (SAML)

Which should you pick?

Choose Banktivity if

  • You need account tracking.
  • You work on Mac, IOS.
  • You also want bill management.
Banktivity review

Choose Lago if

  • You need real-time usage metering.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Cloud, Self-hosted, On-premise, VPC.
  • You also want multiple pricing models.
Lago review

Questions people ask

Is Banktivity or Lago better?
Neither clearly leads. Banktivity starts at On request and Lago at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Banktivity or Lago?
Lago has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at On request for Banktivity and Free for Lago.
Does Banktivity or Lago run on more platforms?
Banktivity runs on Mac, IOS. Lago runs on Web, Cloud, Self-hosted, On-premise, VPC.
Can I use Lago for free?
Yes. Lago has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Banktivity starts at On request.
What is Banktivity best used for?
Banktivity is most often used for personal budgeting and money management on a mac, investment and net worth tracking, retirement planning projections, connecting to over 14,000 financial institutions. Of those, personal budgeting and money management on a mac and investment and net worth tracking are not what Lago is typically brought in for.
What can Banktivity do that Lago cannot?
Banktivity covers Account tracking, Bill management, Investment tracking, Budget forecasting. Lago covers Real-time usage metering, Multiple pricing models, Automated invoicing, Prepaid credits.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Banktivity: Does Banktivity offer a free trial?

Yes. Banktivity offers a 30-day free trial at any subscription level with no credit card required. This allows you to test the platform before committing.

Source
Lago: Can I use Lago open-source for free?

Yes, Lago is open-source under the AGPLv3 license and can be self-hosted. The cloud-based Build plan is also free with limits of 10,000 entities and 5M events per month.

Source
Banktivity: What devices does Banktivity support?

Banktivity is available on Mac, iPhone, and iPad with cross-device sync. Data is encrypted end-to-end across all devices.

Source
Lago: What payment providers does Lago integrate with?

Lago integrates with Stripe and Adyen for payment processing. It is not a payment processor itself but orchestrates payments through these providers.

Source
Banktivity: How many banks does Banktivity connect to?

Banktivity connects to 14,000+ banks, allowing direct connections to most major financial institutions.

Source
Lago: Does Lago support multiple currencies?

Yes, Lago supports multi-currency billing with automatic currency conversion for global businesses.

Source
Banktivity: What financial planning tools does Banktivity include?

Banktivity includes budgeting, financial reporting, investment portfolio tracking, retirement planning tools, and net worth tracking across all your accounts.

Source
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