# Actual Budget - Your Finances — Personal Finance Tracker

> Envelope budgeting and finance tracking system with local data storage. (iPhone/iPad app by Shift Reset LLC.)

- Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/actual-budget-your-finances/id1444818585 (this page in markdown: same URL + `.md`)
- Developer: [Shift Reset LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/287936209)
- Category: Finance, Productivity
- Price: Free with in-app purchases
- Rating: 3.67/5 from 39 App Store ratings · 18 written reviews indexed
- Age rating: 4+
- Requires: iOS 11.0 · 89 MB
- Languages: English
- Released: 2019-01-30
- Data updated: 2026-06-10
- Monetization: free with in-app purchases
- User reviews in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/actual-budget-your-finances/id1444818585/reviews.md

## What is Actual Budget?

Actual is a new system for tracking your finances easily. It provides a budgeting system based on "envelope budgeting," a proven method for managing your spending. You can also track all of your finances, including investment accounts, in one place.

Features:

PRIVACY
Your data is primarily stored locally, but for syncing it may be uploaded to our servers securely. We provide optional end-to-end encryption if you really want to keep it private.

ON THE GO
If you use the desktop app, copy your budget and take it with you. Simply connect your devices and it'll copy it so you can look at it while  you're out. Update by simply copying again ― the process is quick and seamless.

BUDGETING
Actual provides a powerful method for budgeting that makes it easy to see your spending. The idea is you treat categories as funds that money is distributed into, and categorizing transactions pulls money out of a category. If you have a positive balance in a category, you know you have cash to spend. You also have to make up for overspending.

This means your budget is always based on real data; there's no made up numbers. You can't cheat it ― your expenses and income must be reconciled in way that makes sense with your budget. It also makes it obvious when something is wrong and gives guidance for how to fix it. 

The ease and accuracy of this system give you peace of mind when it comes to your finances.

TRACK EVERYTHING
Create accounts off the budget to track anything that doesn't make sense in the budget. These can be investments, mortgages, or anything else. Get a complete financial picture in a single place.

MANAGE TRANSACTIONS
Quickly add or edit transactions with a streamlined user interface. Categorizing transactions shouldn't feel like a burden.

Terms of Service & Privacy Policy: https://actualbudget.com/terms-and-privacy

## Key features

- Envelope budgeting system
- Track investment accounts
- Local data storage
- Optional end-to-end encryption
- Streamlined transaction management
- Cross-device syncing

## Pricing and in-app purchases

Base price: Free.

**Subscriptions**

| Subscription | Price | Period |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Actual | $7.99 | per month |


## Recent user reviews (10 of 18)

All indexed reviews: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/actual-budget-your-finances/id1444818585/reviews.md

### 1/5 — Waste of money

*2024-11-01*

Desktop app is great $8 a month to connect to my local instance? No thanks. I’ll just use a free browser.

### 2/5 — Need option to connect self hosted server

*2024-09-20*

The platform is good but the app does not allow you to specify your own server. 

The web app option worked but no way to secure it using face id. If we can point it to our own server then i can secure the app with ios 18 app protection feature.

### 1/5 — DO NOT use with open source Actual

*2024-08-11*

Please note this does not work with open source Actual (Actualbudget.org). The original paid for Actual is no longer open to subscribers (actualbudget.com) and this app is deprecated

### 1/5 — More expensive than YNAB!

*2024-07-15*

Thought it might be a cheap alternative to the outrageously priced YNAB then found out this is even more outrageously priced! The irony of budgeting apps blasting holes in your bank balance is clearly lost on them.

### 1/5 — Can’t connect to self hosted instance

*2024-07-06*

I have a self hosted actual-server but there doesn’t seem to be a way to connect to it. Creating an account leads me to a thing where I have to subscribe for $7.99/mo and nowhere in the app description does it mention this. Huh?

### 5/5 — Oh no 😟

*2024-02-05*

Doesn't work with Actual server :-(

### 1/5 — How to connect to my local server?

*2023-09-16*

I would like to connect to my local Actual server. How to do that?

### 1/5 — Support

*2023-07-18*

I subscribed and sent a few support emails. I never heard back.

### 5/5 — Simple budgeting app

*2022-02-22, version 0.0.144*

I’ve used YNAB4 and nYNAB for nearly a decade and was displeased with the companies’ direction after rolling out nYNAB. As someone who just needs to maintain my budget, Actual Budget is nearly perfect. It lets me budget as I need to without features getting in the way, and it works across my phone, laptop and desktop so I can budget anywhere. 

Folks new to budgeting entirely may want to look at other options that provide more support/guidance for new users. You will also want to plan on using a desktop or laptop to set up your budget; the app is more for adding transactions on the go than doing everything. If you’re looking for a mobile-first experience, there may be better choices out there.

### 1/5 — Not ready for release.

*2022-01-16*

I have tried numerous times to sign up for the app. It has taken multiple attempts to get a single sign in code. When I finally do get that sign in code, the app simply hangs and proceeds to only show me an infinitely rotating wheel which implies that it’s loading (spoiler alert: nothing is loading). 

Clearly, the app has been rushed through development without any logical sense of testing. It simply doesn’t work. 

If you want to try your luck, go ahead. Prepare to be disappointed.

## Frequently asked questions about Actual Budget

### What is the main budgeting method used by Actual Budget?

Actual Budget utilizes the 'envelope budgeting' method. This system treats spending categories as funds, and categorizing transactions deducts money from these funds, providing a clear view of available spending money.

### How secure is my financial data with Actual Budget?

Your data is primarily stored locally. For syncing, it may be uploaded securely to our servers. Actual Budget also offers optional end-to-end encryption for enhanced privacy.

### Can I track investments with Actual Budget?

Yes, you can create separate accounts to track investments, mortgages, and other financial assets that don't fit directly into your budget categories, providing a complete financial overview.

### What devices does Actual Budget support?

Actual Budget is available for iPhone and iPod. The desktop app allows you to copy your budget and access it on the go.

### How often is Actual Budget updated?

The latest version is 0.0.144, and the app was last updated on November 12, 2021. This indicates a development cycle that may vary.

### What is the cost of Actual Budget?

Actual Budget is free to download and use. There is a subscription plan available for 'Actual' at $7.99 per month, which includes a 1-month free trial.

### What is the user sentiment for Actual Budget based on ratings?

Actual Budget has an average rating of 3.7 stars from 39 ratings. This suggests a mixed but generally positive reception from its user base.

### Is Actual Budget suitable for younger users?

Actual Budget has an age rating of 4+, making it suitable for younger users who are beginning to learn about financial management.

## Version history (last 5 releases)

### 0.0.144 — 2021-11-12

* Fix a critical syncing bug that a recent released introduced in 0.0.141. If you've seen partial syncs, that should never happen again!

* Also fix a few frontend caching issues which makes the budget numbers more robust

* Improve entering amounts. If your system keyboard is set to a different number format than Actual, you will be shown a number input with a decimal separator like "." while Actual expects ",". Previously this made it impossible enter amounts, but now it will work regardless!

### 0.0.142 — 2021-11-04

* Fix creating a new synced file

* Using the "3 month average" budget action now bases the amounts on spent amounts instead of budgeted for the last 3 months

* Improve demo budget

* Fix the "create account" button that is shown when there are no existing accounts

* Improve reliability when quickly opening and closing files

### 0.0.141 — 2021-10-17

* Completely revamp navigation experience, now leveraging native navigation and animation primitives. This should make the app feel much better

* The above revamp should fix a bunch of issues with layout of the app

* Complete rewrite of how caching works. This improves robustness and makes it easier to implement new features in the future

* Performance fixes, and a few other small fixes like removing auto-capitalization in certain text fields

### 0.0.133 — 2021-06-09

* Track recurring bills, subscriptions, and more with scheduled transactions. While you can only create and manage scheduled transactions on the desktop app right now, the mobile app will show upcoming, due, and missed transactions in the account screen.

### 0.0.131 — 2021-03-30

* Syncs with the latest desktop app that implements account reordering

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*Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-06-10.*