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Personal Finance · head to head

Actual Budget vs Strands

Actual Budget logo

Actual Budget

Personal Finance

Free, open source, local-first envelope budgeting with optional self-hosted sync

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Strands logo

Strands

Personal Finance

Personal and business financial management modules for banks, owned by CRIF

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Actual Budget has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Actual Budget self-hosting the sync server requires basic comfort with running and updating a small application, which is a real barrier for non-technical users.; Strands transaction categorisation accuracy depends on local merchant data, and banks in smaller markets face months of tuning before customers trust the categories shown.
  • They diverge on capability: Actual Budget covers Envelope budgeting, Strands covers Transaction categorisation.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Actual Budget and Strands actually diverge.

Attributes where Actual Budget and Strands differ
AttributeActual BudgetStrands
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelOpen source, no licence fee; optional paid hosted sync and subscription tierquote
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWeb, macOS, Windows, Linux, iOS, AndroidWeb, iOS, Android, REST API

Identical on both: 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 Actual Budget

  • Envelope budgeting
  • Local-first data
  • Self-hosted sync
  • Bank sync via SimpleFIN or GoCardless
  • Rules engine
  • Reports

Only in Strands

  • Transaction categorisation
  • Personal financial management
  • Business financial management
  • Lighthouse
  • Automated savings
  • Account aggregation

What people use each for

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

Actual Budget

  • A former YNAB user who wants the same envelope method without an ongoing subscriptionnot Strands
  • Someone who wants their financial data to stay on hardware they control, using a home server for syncnot Strands
  • A technically comfortable household running a small self-hosted stack who wants budgeting alongside itnot Strands
  • A user who is fine paying a small hosted fee for sync convenience without wanting a full YNAB-style subscriptionnot Strands

Strands

  • A retail bank adding budgeting and spending insight without building a categorisation enginenot Actual Budget
  • A bank wanting personalised product offers driven by observed spending and credit datanot Actual Budget
  • A credit union offering small business customers cash flow forecasting inside online bankingnot Actual Budget
  • A Nordic institution combining Strands insight with open banking account aggregationnot Actual Budget

Where each one falls short

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

Actual Budget

  • Self-hosting the sync server requires basic comfort with running and updating a small application, which is a real barrier for non-technical users.
  • Bank sync depends on SimpleFIN or GoCardless connectors rather than a broad built-in aggregator network, so coverage of smaller banks varies by region.
  • There is no dedicated customer support line, only community Discord and GitHub issues, which suits technical users but frustrates people expecting vendor support.
  • The mobile apps are less mature than the web and desktop experience, and some budgeting workflows are easier on desktop.
  • Because it is a smaller open source project, feature development depends on maintainer time and community contribution rather than a funded product roadmap.

Strands

  • Transaction categorisation accuracy depends on local merchant data, and banks in smaller markets face months of tuning before customers trust the categories shown.
  • It is now a product line inside CRIF, a credit bureau, so roadmap priorities follow group data strategy rather than standalone software competition.
  • Commercial terms are often bundled with other CRIF services, which makes a standalone comparison against a pure PFM vendor harder to run.
  • Money management features have weak measurable impact on bank revenue, so the business case relies on engagement metrics that are difficult to tie to profit.
  • It is a white-label component, so the bank still owns design, support and customer communication, and a poor in-app implementation reflects on the bank rather than the vendor.

Pricing, plan by plan

Actual Budget

Free
  • Actual BudgetFree
    • Full budgeting features
    • Self-hosted sync server
    • Community support only
  • Actual Budget$7.99/month
    • Managed hosted sync
    • Mobile app access
    • No server to maintain

Strands

On request
  • Strands AI Finance Suite$undefined/year
    • Licence scaled by end customers or active users
    • Modules licensed separately for personal, business and Lighthouse
    • Implementation and categorisation tuning charged as a project

Which should you pick?

Choose Actual Budget if

  • You need envelope budgeting.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, macOS, Windows, Linux, iOS, Android.
  • You also want local-first data.
Actual Budget review

Choose Strands if

  • You need transaction categorisation.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android, REST API.
  • You also want personal financial management.
Strands review

Questions people ask

Is Actual Budget or Strands better?
Neither clearly leads. Actual Budget starts at Free and Strands at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Actual Budget or Strands?
Actual Budget has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Actual Budget and On request for Strands.
Does Actual Budget or Strands run on more platforms?
Actual Budget runs on Web, macOS, Windows, Linux, iOS, Android. Strands runs on Web, iOS, Android, REST API.
Can I use Actual Budget for free?
Yes. Actual Budget has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Strands starts at On request.
What is Actual Budget best used for?
Actual Budget is most often used for a former ynab user who wants the same envelope method without an ongoing subscription, someone who wants their financial data to stay on hardware they control, using a home server for sync, a technically comfortable household running a small self-hosted stack who wants budgeting alongside it, a user who is fine paying a small hosted fee for sync convenience without wanting a full ynab-style subscription. Of those, a former ynab user who wants the same envelope method without an ongoing subscription and someone who wants their financial data to stay on hardware they control, using a home server for sync are not what Strands is typically brought in for.
What can Actual Budget do that Strands cannot?
Actual Budget covers Envelope budgeting, Local-first data, Self-hosted sync, Bank sync via SimpleFIN or GoCardless. Strands covers Transaction categorisation, Personal financial management, Business financial management, Lighthouse.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Actual Budget: Is Actual Budget really free?

The core app and self-hosted sync are free and open source; there is also an optional paid hosted sync subscription if you do not want to run a server.

Strands: Who owns Strands?

CRIF, the Italian credit bureau and information services group, which acquired it to combine money management software with credit data.

Actual Budget: Do I need a server to use it?

Only if you want to sync a budget across multiple devices; a single-device budget works without any server at all.

Strands: Is it sold to consumers?

No. It is licensed to banks and credit unions who embed it in their own applications under their own brand.

Actual Budget: Does it connect to my bank automatically?

Yes, through SimpleFIN or GoCardless connectors, though coverage is narrower than commercial aggregators used by YNAB or Lunch Money.

Strands: Does it include account aggregation?

It supports aggregated external accounts, with CRIF and partners such as Enable Banking supplying the open banking connectivity.

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