hledger

Overview

hledger is an accounting system built around editable plain-text records, with command-line, terminal and web interfaces. It is best suited to people who want local control over multi-currency books and are comfortable making text files part of their workflow.

That approach can cover personal finances through business and institutional accounting, but it is not a conventional invoicing package: hledger does not create invoices. Its project has been supported and improved since 2007, and aims to serve technical and non-technical users alike.

Key features

Multi-currency, double-entry accounting is the core, but hledger can also track investments, cryptocurrencies, time and other countable items. It generates balance sheets, income statements and cashflow reports, including reports over multiple periods. These make it useful for reviewing both a current position and changes over time without limiting records to ordinary income and expenses.

CSV import gives users a route for bringing in transaction data. Reports and other output can be exported as text, HTML, CSV, JSON or SQL, and hledger can interoperate with Ledger and Beancount formats. That flexibility suits people who want to process records with scripts or other tools; it also means the value of the system depends on being willing to work with its file-based approach.

Alongside the command-line and terminal interfaces, hledger-web provides a browser-based interface and can serve a JSON API. It normally runs as a local web app accessible only from the user's machine, rather than offering remote access by default. The project describes combining it with editors, version control, scripts, LLMs and bank data imports. Bank feeds, automated reconciliation and inventory tracking are supported, but the absence of invoice creation is a meaningful gap for businesses that issue invoices as part of their accounting workflow.

Local, offline operation keeps the plain-text data under the user's control. That is a strong fit for people who prioritize privacy and want records they can handle directly; it is less suitable for anyone seeking a hosted service or a native mobile app.

Pricing

hledger costs free. It is Free Software under GNU GPLv3+ and has no purchase price or monthly fees. There is no free trial to evaluate, because the software is free to use. The project describes no paid tier or seat-based plan, making it a straightforward option for individuals and organizations that want to avoid recurring software charges.

Platforms

Official release binaries are provided for Linux x64, Mac x64 and arm64, and Windows x64; there are no official Linux ARM binaries. The web interface is a local app by default, and mobile access is web-only rather than through a native mobile platform. Users who need native phone or tablet apps should choose a different tool.

Support is available through Matrix chat, described as the best place for quick help, as well as IRC, a mailing list and issue trackers. This community-oriented support model may suit users comfortable seeking help through project channels, but it is unlike a commercial product with a dedicated support desk.

Who it's for

Choose hledger if you want multi-currency double-entry accounting in files you can read, edit and keep locally, and you value reports, imports and output formats that work with scripts and other tools. It can serve personal use as well as business or institutional accounting, provided the people maintaining the books are comfortable with the text-based workflow.

It is a weaker fit for teams that need built-in invoice creation, native mobile apps or remote access out of the box. Its broad tracking capabilities do not remove the need to manage records in plain text.

Pros and cons

• Pro: Local, offline plain-text records. Users retain direct control of their accounting data without relying on a hosted service.
• Pro: Broad accounting and reporting. Multi-currency double-entry records, multi-period statements, CSV import and several export formats support flexible workflows.
• Pro: More than money tracking. Investments, cryptocurrencies, time and other countable items can be recorded alongside finances.
• Con: No invoice creation. Businesses that need to issue invoices from their accounting software will need another product or workflow.
• Con: No native mobile platform. Mobile use is through the web interface, and hledger-web normally serves only the local machine.
• Con: Text files are central to the workflow. That is an advantage for users who want editable records and scripting, but a poor match for those who prefer a conventional hosted bookkeeping interface.

Alternatives

Frappe Books is also free and open source, and its listed platforms include Android and iOS as well as desktop and web options; consider it if native mobile availability matters more than hledger's plain-text workflow.

Beancount is another free bookkeeping option for users comparing plain-text accounting software. Ledger is free BSD-licensed command-line accounting software, a reasonable alternative for readers specifically seeking that licensing and interface combination.

GnuCash is free desktop software for personal and small-business accounting. BUSY offers a free billing and accounting plan for multiple companies and financial years, with invoices and receipts among its included functions, making it a better fit when billing is central.

GNUKhata is free and open source, with Docker installation supported by its current v8.0. FrontAccounting is free accounting software under the GNU General Public License, while LedgerSMB is free open-source software for self-hosted installation.

For broader comparisons, see General Ledger Software and Bookkeeping Software.

Verdict

hledger is a strong choice for people who want free, locally controlled accounting built on human-readable files, with multi-currency records and flexible reports. Its main trade-off is practical: users must accept a text-file-centered workflow, and businesses that need invoice creation or native mobile access should look elsewhere.