Actual Budget vs ChainForensics
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted budgeting & finance options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
Actual Budget
Local-first envelope budgeting app
VS
ChainForensics
Privacy-focused Bitcoin blockchain analysis & UTXO privacy scoring
| Feature | Actual Budget | ChainForensics |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Budgeting & Finance | Budgeting & Finance |
| License | MIT | free |
| Language | TypeScript | Python |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal, source | docker, one-click |
| GitHub stars | ★ 28,019 | — |
| First released | 2022 | 2022 |
| Replaces | YNAB, Mint | — |
Why pick each one
Choose ChainForensics if…
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- One-click install on common self-host platforms
- Written in Python
Frequently asked questions
Is Actual Budget or ChainForensics better?
Neither is universally better. Actual Budget has the larger community; both share a easy setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Actual Budget and ChainForensics free and open-source?
Yes. Actual Budget is licensed under MIT and ChainForensics under free. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Actual Budget and ChainForensics with Docker?
Actual Budget: yes. ChainForensics: yes.