Self-host Actual Budget

updated Jul 2026deployed by usprices checked · Jul 2026Install verified on Ubuntu 26.04 · Sep 2026 · how we test

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A fast, local-first envelope-budgeting app with optional self-hosted sync. Most people are up and budgeting in minutes — privacy without the spreadsheet.

Key facts

CategoryPersonal finance

LicenseMIT

StackJavaScript, Node.js

Min RAM512 MB

Official imageyes

Measured idle RAM241 MB

Difficulty

Sourcegithub.com/actualbudget/actual

Websiteactualbudget.org

Our recommendation

Pick Actual when you want envelope budgeting that works offline and syncs when it can: the app is local-first, the MIT-licensed sync server is one container with a single volume, and releases arrive roughly monthly as `YY.M.0` (26.9.0 as of September 2026). Nothing leaves your box unless you enable it — bank sync, for instance, is manual and uses provider keys you supply. It is the friendliest personal-finance install in the catalog; the trade-off is that by default it is a one-password server, and the docs still expect you to bring HTTPS.

Follow the Actual Budget deploy guide →

What you need

Any VPS with at least 512 MB of RAM
A domain you control — most self-hosted setups need HTTPS in front of them
Under an hour if you've used Docker before

Where to host itaffiliate disclosure

Hetzner Cloudrun it on

From $23.59/mo · 2 vCPU / 4 GB / 80 GB · EU + US

Get Hetzner Cloud

Kamaterafree trial

From $4/mo · 1 vCPU / 1 GB / 20 GB · US + EU + Asia

Start free on Kamatera →

DigitalOceanalso works on

From $6/mo · 1 vCPU / 1 GB / 25 GB · US + EU + Asia

Deploy on DigitalOcean →

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Install

Run these commands on your server:

# Actual Budget — sync server
docker run -d --name actual \
  -p 5006:5006 -v actual-data:/data \
  actualbudget/actual-server:latest
# open http://SERVER_IP:5006

deploy guideHow to Deploy Actual Budget on a VPS vps picksBest VPS for self-hostingbenchmarked quarterly · re-priced monthly

What you take on

Actual's docs are frank about what the server does and does not do for you:

non-negotiableWithout a server you get budgeting but not sync, mobile or browser use, bank syncing or the API (install docs); with one, the docs say "You'll need to enable HTTPS on your server in order to safely use all of Actual's features" — a proxy with a certificate, a self-signed pair in config.json, or Tailscale/Caddy for non-public hosts.

non-negotiableAuthentication is one server password by default. Multiple users require an OpenID provider (loginMethod: "openid", described as "in preview"); the header method is "for advanced use and if not done correctly could have security implications".

non-negotiableEnd-to-end encryption is optional, extra and irreversible: "It is not possible to turn off encryption", and if you lose the encryption password with no local copy "you can never recover your data". Bank-sync tokens are stored on the server and "are not covered by end-to-end encryption".

non-negotiableBank sync needs your own credentials with Akahu, Enable Banking, GoCardless ("not accepting new accounts"), SimpleFIN or Pluggy, and "Actual does not sync bank data automatically" — you press Bank Sync. Backups are an export from Settings (or the desktop app's Backup Now); if a large budget will not restore, the docs say to Reset Sync first to compact the file.

non-negotiable26.9.0 moved the container images to Node 24 and dropped 32-bit ARM from the Ubuntu images — use :26.9.0-alpine there. Data lives in /data (server-files/account.sqlite with the hashed password; user-files with the budgets). The 512 MB floor is our estimate; upstream publishes no RAM figure.