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Personal Finance · head to head

Firefly III vs Money Manager

Firefly III logo

Firefly III

Personal Finance

Free, open source, self-hosted personal finance manager with double-entry style accounting

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Money Manager logo

Money Manager

Personal Finance

Personal and household finance tracker

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Firefly III there is no official managed hosting, so a non-technical user has no easy on-ramp the way Actual Budget offers with its paid hosted sync.; Money Manager databases created by version 1.4.x are not readable by current releases and produce the error MMEX database version 13 doesn't work with this MMEX version, requiring a manual conversion procedure
  • They diverge on capability: Firefly III covers Double-entry style ledger, Money Manager covers Expense tracking.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Firefly III and Money Manager actually diverge.

Attributes where Firefly III and Money Manager differ
AttributeFirefly IIIMoney Manager
Pricing modelOpen source, no licence feeopen-source
PlatformsWeb, Linux, DockerWindows, Mac, Linux, IOS, Android
FoundedUnknown2005

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Personal Finance).

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 Firefly III

  • Double-entry style ledger
  • Multi-currency accounts
  • Bill and subscription tracking
  • Rule engine
  • Reports and charts
  • API access

Only in Money Manager

  • Expense tracking
  • Budget tracking
  • Reporting
  • Multi-currency support
  • Import/Export
  • CSV
  • Windows support
  • Mac support

What people use each for

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

Firefly III

  • A self-hoster already running a home server or NAS who wants their financial ledger on the same infrastructurenot Money Manager
  • Someone who wants double-entry style accuracy rather than simple envelope budgetingnot Money Manager
  • A privacy-focused user who refuses to put financial data on any third-party server, hosted or otherwisenot Money Manager
  • A developer who wants API access to build custom bank import scripts for accounts with no standard connectornot Money Manager

Money Manager

  • Free desktop personal finance tracking on Windows, macOS and Linuxnot Firefly III
  • Running a portable personal accounts file from removable media on Windowsnot Firefly III
  • Categorising spending and reporting on personal accounts without a subscriptionnot Firefly III

Where each one falls short

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

Firefly III

  • There is no official managed hosting, so a non-technical user has no easy on-ramp the way Actual Budget offers with its paid hosted sync.
  • The double-entry-influenced model is less intuitive for newcomers than simple envelope budgeting, and the learning curve is real.
  • Automatic bank sync depends on the community-run importer and third-party connectors, and coverage and reliability vary a lot by bank and country.
  • Mobile access is via a web interface rather than a polished native app, which is a step behind Actual Budget or Lunch Money on phones.
  • Because there is no company behind it, security patching and feature development depend entirely on volunteer maintainer time.

Money Manager

  • Databases created by version 1.4.x are not readable by current releases and produce the error MMEX database version 13 doesn't work with this MMEX version, requiring a manual conversion procedure
  • Linux is supported only through Flatpak builds for aarch64 and x86_64
  • The download page states no system requirements, deferring them to a separate compatibility page
  • There is no vendor support contract; the project is distributed as open source with no paid tier

Pricing, plan by plan

Firefly III

Free
  • Firefly IIIFree
    • Full functionality, self-hosted
    • No usage limits
    • Community support, donations accepted

Money Manager

Free
  • Open SourceFree
    • Expense tracking
    • Budget management
    • Reports

Which should you pick?

Choose Firefly III if

  • You need double-entry style ledger.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Linux, Docker.
  • You also want multi-currency accounts.
Firefly III review

Choose Money Manager if

  • You need expense tracking.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Windows, Mac, Linux, IOS, Android.
  • You also want budget tracking.
Money Manager review

Questions people ask

Is Firefly III or Money Manager better?
Neither clearly leads. Firefly III starts at Free and Money Manager at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Firefly III or Money Manager?
Firefly III starts at Free and Money Manager at Free.
Does Firefly III or Money Manager run on more platforms?
Firefly III runs on Web, Linux, Docker. Money Manager runs on Windows, Mac, Linux, IOS, Android.
Can I use Firefly III for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Firefly III best used for?
Firefly III is most often used for a self-hoster already running a home server or nas who wants their financial ledger on the same infrastructure, someone who wants double-entry style accuracy rather than simple envelope budgeting, a privacy-focused user who refuses to put financial data on any third-party server, hosted or otherwise, a developer who wants api access to build custom bank import scripts for accounts with no standard connector. Of those, a self-hoster already running a home server or nas who wants their financial ledger on the same infrastructure and someone who wants double-entry style accuracy rather than simple envelope budgeting are not what Money Manager is typically brought in for.
What can Firefly III do that Money Manager cannot?
Firefly III covers Double-entry style ledger, Multi-currency accounts, Bill and subscription tracking, Rule engine. Money Manager covers Expense tracking, Budget tracking, Reporting, Multi-currency support.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Firefly III: Can I pay someone to host Firefly III for me?

Not through the core project; some third-party providers sell Firefly III hosting independently, but there is no official managed service.

Money Manager: How much does MoneyManager Ex cost?

MoneyManager Ex is completely free and open source software with no charges, subscriptions, or hidden fees of any kind.

Source
Firefly III: Does it support multiple currencies?

Yes, natively, including accounts and transactions in different currencies.

Firefly III: Is it really free with no paid tier?

Yes, the software is free and open source under the AGPL; the project accepts donations but sells nothing.

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