Actual Budget
Tiller Money
| Feature | Actual Budget | Tiller Money |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free / from $0/mo | From $79/mo |
| Free Plan | ✓ Yes | ✗ No |
| Rating | 4.5 / 5 | 4.3 / 5 |
| Best For | budget-conscious-individuals, self-hosters, ynab-migrants, privacy-focused-budgeters | spreadsheet-users, power-users, freelancers, accountants |
| Founded | 2019 | 2016 |
| Envelope Budgeting | ✓ | ✗ |
| Bank Sync | ✓ | ✓ |
| Reports | ✓ | ✓ |
| Goal Tracking | ✓ | ✗ |
| Rules | ✓ | ✗ |
| Scheduled Transactions | ✓ | ✗ |
| Self Hostable | ✓ | ✗ |
| Google Sheets | ✗ | ✓ |
| Excel | ✗ | ✓ |
| Auto Categorization | ✗ | ✓ |
| Templates | ✗ | ✓ |
| Daily Email Digest | ✗ | ✓ |
✓ 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
✓ Tiller Money Pros
- Unmatched customization via spreadsheets
- Cheaper than YNAB and Monarch Money
- Supports both Google Sheets and Excel
- Strong security with 256-bit encryption
✗ Tiller Money Cons
- No mobile app
- Steeper onboarding than typical budget apps
- Requires spreadsheet literacy
The Verdict
Actual Budget is built for budget conscious individuals and self hosters, with a focus on envelope-budgeting and bank-sync. Tiller Money targets spreadsheet users and power users and leads with bank-sync and google-sheets.
On pricing, Actual Budget is the clear winner for budget-conscious users — starting at $0/mo compared to $79/mo for Tiller Money. That $79/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. Tiller Money requires a paid subscription from day one.
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.
