hledger-web vs Lago

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?
Featurehledger-webLago
CategoryBudgeting & FinanceBudgeting & Finance
LicenseGPL-3.0AGPL-3.0
LanguageHaskellGo
Setup difficultyMediumHard
Min. RAM128 MB2,048 MB
Deploymentbare-metal, binary, sourcedocker, kubernetes, source
GitHub stars★ 4,620★ 10,308
First released20102022
ReplacesQuickBooks, QuickenStripe Billing, Chargebee

Why pick each one

Choose hledger-web if…

  • No database needed
  • Data is plain text and portable
hledger-web details

Choose Lago if…

  • Powerful for SaaS billing
  • Developer-friendly
Lago details

Frequently asked questions

Is hledger-web or Lago better?

Neither is universally better. Lago has the larger community, while hledger-web is simpler to set up (medium difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.

Are hledger-web and Lago free and open-source?

Yes. hledger-web is licensed under GPL-3.0 and Lago under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.

Can I run hledger-web and Lago with Docker?

hledger-web: check the project docs for container support. Lago: yes.

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