Actual Budget
Copilot Money
| Feature | Actual Budget | Copilot Money |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free / from $0/mo | From $10.99/mo |
| Free Plan | ✓ Yes | ✗ No |
| Rating | 4.5 / 5 | 4.6 / 5 |
| Best For | budget-conscious-individuals, self-hosters, ynab-migrants, privacy-focused-budgeters | apple-users, millennials, budget-trackers, investors |
| Founded | 2019 | 2019 |
| Envelope Budgeting | ✓ | ✗ |
| Bank Sync | ✓ | ✗ |
| Reports | ✓ | ✗ |
| Goal Tracking | ✓ | ✗ |
| Rules | ✓ | ✗ |
| Scheduled Transactions | ✓ | ✗ |
| Self Hostable | ✓ | ✗ |
| Auto Categorization | ✗ | ✓ |
| Budgets | ✗ | ✓ |
| Investments | ✗ | ✓ |
| Recurring Detection | ✗ | ✓ |
| Insights | ✗ | ✓ |
| Net Worth | ✗ | ✓ |
✓ Actual Budget Pros
- Open-source with no subscription fees
- Local-first with optional sync
- Beautiful and fast interface
- Bank sync via SimpleFIN/GoCardless
✗ Actual Budget Cons
- Self-hosting required for sync features
- Smaller community than YNAB
- Mobile experience less polished than native apps
✓ Copilot Money Pros
- Beautiful design
- Automatic categorization
- Investment tracking
- Smart insights
✗ Copilot Money Cons
- iOS only
- No free tier
- US banks only
The Verdict
Actual Budget is built for budget conscious individuals and self hosters, with a focus on envelope-budgeting and bank-sync. Copilot Money targets apple users and millennials and leads with auto-categorization and budgets.
On pricing, Actual Budget is the clear winner for budget-conscious users — starting at $0/mo compared to $10.99/mo for Copilot Money. That $10.99/mo difference adds up quickly for growing teams.
Actual Budget has a free plan, which gives it a meaningful edge for individuals and small teams exploring their options. Copilot Money requires a paid subscription from day one.
Feature-wise, Actual Budget offers broader built-in capabilities (7 features vs 6), while Copilot Money takes a more focused approach — which can mean a simpler, faster onboarding experience.
This is a genuinely close comparison. If you can, sign up for both free trials (where available) and run a one-week test with your actual team tasks before deciding.