Actual Budget

Actual is a local‑first personal finance engine that exposes a rich, programmatic API while keeping all data on the client. Built in Node.js with a modular package structure, it separates concerns into loot-core (business logic), desktop-client (UI framework), and desktop-electron (Electron wrapper). The core runs on any platform that supports Node, enabling lightweight deployments as a CLI or web service. Data is stored in an encrypted SQLite database that can be replicated across devices via a custom sync protocol or third‑party services such as Fly.io, Docker Swarm, or self‑hosted servers.

• Language & Runtime: JavaScript/TypeScript on Node.js (v18+), compiled with ES modules.
• Core Engine: loot-core provides the budgeting, transaction, and reporting logic. It exposes a REST‑like JSON API over IPC for external tooling.
• UI Layer: desktop-client is a React‑based SPA rendered inside Electron (desktop-electron). The UI consumes the core via IPC, enabling hot reload and live editing.
• Persistence: Local SQLite database with optional AES‑256 encryption. Schema is versioned and migrations are handled by the core.
• Sync: A lightweight, event‑driven sync layer that can push changes to a remote HTTP endpoint or a peer‑to‑peer server. It supports conflict resolution and optional end‑to‑end encryption.

• Budgeting Engine: Envelope budgeting, rolling forecasts, and real‑time balance calculations.
• Transaction API: CRUD operations, tagging, categorization, and recurring rules exposed via a JSON‑over‑IPC interface.
• Reporting: CSV/JSON export, chart data streams, and customizable dashboards that can be consumed by external analytics tools.
• Extensibility: Plugins are plain Node packages that register hooks into the core lifecycle (onTransaction, onSyncStart). The plugin API is documented in the community docs and can add new UI panels, importers, or export adapters.
• Webhooks: Optional webhook endpoints can be configured to notify external services on data changes, enabling integrations with Zapier, IFTTT, or custom microservices.

Actual can run in multiple contexts:

• Desktop App: Electron bundles for Windows, macOS, and Linux. Self‑contained, no external dependencies.
• Docker: Official image exposes /data as a volume for persistence and /sync for remote endpoints. Ideal for CI pipelines or lightweight VPS hosting.
• Fly.io / Kubernetes: The app can be deployed as a stateless service behind a reverse proxy, with persistent storage mounted via volumes. The sync layer scales horizontally by running multiple replicas that coordinate through a shared database or a message broker.
• Serverless: The core can be packaged as an AWS Lambda or Cloudflare Worker for lightweight API endpoints, though the UI remains client‑side.

• API: The IPC JSON API can be wrapped in a REST or GraphQL layer for external consumption. SDKs are available in JavaScript and Python, simplifying integration into existing stacks.
• Plugins: Add new data sources (e.g., bank feeds via Plaid), custom visualizations, or automation scripts. The plugin registry supports dynamic loading at runtime.
• Webhooks & Callbacks: Configure URLs that receive POST payloads on transaction creation, budget adjustments, or sync events.
• Custom UI: Because the desktop client is React‑based, developers can fork the UI or embed it in a web application using react-dom and the core’s IPC bridge.

• Documentation: Comprehensive community docs cover architecture, API contracts, and plugin development. Inline TypeScript types aid IDE autocompletion.
• Community: Active Discord channel, GitHub discussions, and a Weblate project for translations. Issue templates enforce consistency for feature requests.
• Testing: The core is unit‑tested with Jest, and integration tests run against a headless Electron instance. CI pipelines enforce linting and coverage thresholds.
• Licensing: AGPL‑3.0, ensuring that any derivative work remains open source while allowing commercial use under the same terms.

1. Personal Finance SaaS – Deploy a private budgeting service for clients, exposing the API to a custom front‑end while keeping data on your infrastructure.
2. Embedded Finance – Integrate budgeting logic into a larger application (e.g., a personal CRM) by importing the loot-core package and exposing transaction endpoints.
3. Automation Pipelines – Use webhooks to trigger external workflows (e.g., send a Slack message when a budget is exceeded).
4. Data‑Driven Analytics – Export transaction streams to a data warehouse for custom reporting or machine‑learning models.

• Performance: Native Node.js engine with minimal overhead; SQLite queries are fast for typical personal‑budget workloads.
• Flexibility: Full control over data storage, encryption, and sync mechanism. No vendor lock‑in.
• Open Source: AGPL guarantees that improvements benefit the community, while still allowing commercial deployment.
• Extensible Architecture: Plugin system and IPC API make it trivial to add new features or integrate with existing services.
• Privacy‑First: Local storage and optional end‑to‑end encryption give developers confidence when handling sensitive financial data.

Actual offers a developer‑centric platform