Beancount vs Hospitable Ledger
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted budgeting & finance options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | Beancount | Hospitable Ledger |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Read-the-docs project | Read-the-docs project |
| Health score | 88 · Excellent | 83 · Excellent |
| Category | Budgeting & Finance | Budgeting & Finance |
| License | GPL-2.0 | BSD-3-Clause |
| Language | Python | C++ |
| Setup difficulty | Hard | Hard |
| Min. RAM | 128 MB | 64 MB |
| Deployment | binary, source | bare-metal, binary, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 6,028 | ★ 6,043 |
| First released | 2008 | 2003 |
| Replaces | QuickBooks, Xero | QuickBooks, Quicken |
What are Beancount and Hospitable Ledger?
Beancount
Beancount is a double-entry plain-text accounting system that parses ledger files written in its own syntax. It includes a SQL-like query language and integrates with the Fava web interface.
- Plain-text ledgers
- SQL-like query language
- Strict validation
- Fava web companion
Hospitable Ledger
Ledger is the original command-line, double-entry plain-text accounting tool. It reads human-readable journal files and generates balance sheets, registers, and reports with powerful query options.
- Command-line accounting
- Plain-text journal files
- Powerful reporting queries
- No database required
Beancount vs Hospitable Ledger: key differences
Beancount is written in Python, while Hospitable Ledger is built with C++. Licensing differs — GPL-2.0 for Beancount versus BSD-3-Clause for Hospitable Ledger. Hospitable Ledger is the lighter option, starting around 64 MB of RAM against 128 MB for Beancount. Hospitable Ledger is the more established project (first released 2003), while Beancount arrived in 2008.
Why pick each one
Choose Beancount if…
- Released under the GPL-2.0 license
- Mature project with 6k GitHub stars
- Written in Python
- Tiny footprint — runs in 128 MB RAM
Choose Hospitable Ledger if…
- Extremely portable data
- Scriptable and version-controllable
Watch out for
- CLI only
- Steep learning curve
Frequently asked questions
Is Beancount or Hospitable Ledger better?
Neither is universally better. Hospitable Ledger has the larger community; both share a hard setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Beancount and Hospitable Ledger free and open-source?
Yes. Beancount is licensed under GPL-2.0 and Hospitable Ledger under BSD-3-Clause. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Beancount and Hospitable Ledger with Docker?
Beancount: check the project docs for container support. Hospitable Ledger: check the project docs for container support.
Which is lighter on resources, Beancount or Hospitable Ledger?
Hospitable Ledger has the smaller minimum footprint at 64 MB of RAM, compared to about 128 MB for Beancount. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.