What each week held
Withheld: something was read in 1 week of the last 12. A series needs at least 2 to say anything a single reading does not.
What it declares
- Envelope/zero-based budgeting
- Local-first architecture
- Multi-device sync
- Optional end-to-end encryption
- Bank sync (GoCardless, SimpleFIN, Pluggy.ai)
- Custom reports / net worth tracking
- Mobile app (iOS/Android, beta)
- Self-hosted or managed deployment
As the company’s own pages describe it. Forge did not test any of these.
What users raised
- Bank sync unreliability / region-specific availability
Themes people raised in public. A complaint is somebody’s opinion, not a measurement of the product.
Everything on record
4 observed claims. Newest first; the tag on each row is what kind of claim you are reading.
- COMPLAINTUSER OPINIONOct 1, 2026
Bank sync reliability is flagged as a weak point; one review noted availability is region-specific and can break when banks change login flows, making CSV/OFX/QIF import a necessary fallback.
Prospective self-hosters relying on automated bank feeds may need to budget for manual import workflows.
opensourcetools.org/category/personal-finance/ - PRODUCTFACTOct 1, 2026
Recent release notes (25.9.0 and 25.10.0) added a mobile view for the rules and payees pages, an experimental Pluggy.ai bank connector, API endpoints for schedules, expanded display currencies, and a balance-over-time graph on account pages.
Incremental feature additions expand bank-connectivity options and reporting depth for existing and prospective self-hosters.
actualbudget.org/docs/releases/ - PRODUCTFACTOct 1, 2026
A native Mobile App (Beta) for iOS and Android shipped in release 26.4.0, along with client-side rule execution and a redesigned Schedules page.
Mobile-native support addresses a historical gap versus competitors with dedicated mobile apps.
x.com/PikaPods/status/2040955887095861476 - PRICINGFACTOct 1, 2026
Actual Budget remains fully free and open-source with no subscription fees or premium tiers; users can optionally pay small amounts (~$2/month via PikaPods or ~$1.50/month via Fly.io) for managed sync hosting, or self-host for free via Docker.
Buyers evaluating against paid tools like YNAB ($109/year) see zero licensing cost, with optional low-cost hosting.
github.com/actualbudget/actual
A record of what Forge read in public about Actual Budget — its own pages and what people wrote about it. Nothing here is a test of the product, a ranking or a score, and Forge has no relationship with this company.