Akaunting is a free, self-hosted online accounting app for small businesses and freelancers that tracks income, expenses, and cash flow from a web browser. Invoicing, bills, banking, and reports run against your own bank and cash accounts, with a hosted Cloud option for teams that prefer not to manage a server.[1][2]
Quick verdict
Small businesses and freelancers that want free, self-hosted bookkeeping with full control of their data benefit most from Akaunting. Its concrete strength is browser-based invoicing, expense and bank-account tracking with multi-currency totals, recurring records, and a client portal for payments. The material constraint is paid apps and plan limits: the free on-premise tier allows one company, two users, and 1,000 invoices, and add-on costs accumulate. If you need free self-hosted accounting with optional paid extensions, choose Akaunting; if payroll, inventory, or double-entry books must be included free, choose a fuller suite or a paid plan.[1][2][3]
Key features
Browser invoicing Create and send professional invoices and collect online payments through gateways including Stripe, PayPal, and Mollie.[1][2]
Bills and expenses Record bills, receipts, and payments, and categorize income and expenses so spending stays organized.[1][2]
Bank accounts and transfers Manage bank and cash accounts with deposits and transfers, and connect bank accounts for automatic feeds.[1][2]
Multi-currency tax and discounts Bill in any currency with tax rates, discounts, and recurring schedules for repeat invoices and bills.[1][2]
Contacts and items Manage customers, vendors, and products or services with transaction categories, and run multiple companies from one panel.[1]
Client portal Share invoices and history through a client portal where clients view records and pay, including bulk payments.[1]
Reports and dashboards Review cash flow with dashboards, widgets, and financial reports that summarize income, expenses, and profit and loss.[1][2]
Apps roles and languages Extend the core with 50 plus apps covering areas such as inventory, projects, payroll, and CRM, with role permissions for staff and accountants and an interface in 50 plus languages.[1][2]
Who will love it
Small business bookkeeping Small businesses tracking income, expenses, and cash flow get a complete free core: invoicing, bills, banking, and reports without a subscription.[1][2]
Freelancer invoicing Freelancers sending invoices and collecting client payments benefit from the portal, online gateways, and recurring schedules.[1][2]
Self-hosting operators Operators who want full data control can run the books on their own server via one-click install or Docker instead of a vendor cloud.[1][2]
Who should avoid it
Free tier caps The free on-premise Standard plan is limited to one company, two users, and 1,000 invoices, so larger teams must move to a paid tier.[1]
Add-on costs accumulate Advanced capability arrives through separately sold apps, and a reviewer warns these add-on costs can add up, which weakens the free-core story for demanding setups.[1][2]
Advanced modules are extras Double-entry books, inventory, projects, and payroll are premium app extensions rather than included free features, so buyers should budget beyond the core.[1][2]
What the reports suggest
Two G2 reviewer reports for Akaunting inspected on the 2026 pros-and-cons listing: one 5-star and one 4.5-star review.
1 cited community source. Small inspected sample of two reviewer reports from one G2 listing page; counts are not a satisfaction or prevalence measure. No original Reddit report was accessible within the research budget, so forum experience remains a recorded gap.
Simplicity praised The inspected reviewers praise how simple and intuitive Akaunting feels compared with traditional accounting software, with one calling it a perfect fit for small business accounting needs.[1]
Apps need expansion The critical note in the sample is that apps and integrations could be improved and expanded, which aligns with the separately-sold app model documented on official pages.[1]
Deployment and fit
Self-host or cloud Run Akaunting on your own server with a one-click installer or Docker, or choose hosted Cloud with monthly or yearly USD billing when you prefer not to manage infrastructure.[1][2]
Browser and language reach The app works from desktop and mobile browsers and supports 50 plus languages with multi-currency billing, which suits distributed small teams.[1]
How people experience it
Exact excerpt
how simple and intuitive it is compared to traditional accounting software
5-star G2 review shown on the Akaunting pros-and-cons listing, inspected October 2026.
Exact excerpt
the apps and integrations could be improved and expanded
4.5-star G2 review shown on the Akaunting pros-and-cons listing, inspected October 2026.
Questions worth asking
What is the best Akaunting alternative for non-technical users?
If server administration is the blocker, Akaunting Cloud runs the same books as a hosted service with monthly or yearly USD billing, so no self-hosting is needed. If even hosted bookkeeping feels heavy, a simpler invoicing-only tool may fit better, though that choice was not separately researched.[1][2]
Is Akaunting really no-code?
How much does Akaunting cost per month?
The on-premise Standard plan is free within limits of one company, two users, and 1,000 invoices; paid on-premise tiers are one-time fees that raise those limits. Hosted Cloud plans were listed at $20, $40, and $60 per month when billed annually, with apps sold separately. Recheck current pricing before deciding, as plans change.[1]
Sources and editorial review
Source research. Reviewed on October 7, 2026. Written by Sanjib Sah. AI assisted; reviewed by a human editor.
We have not run or tested this product.
Two G2 reviewer reports for Akaunting inspected on the 2026 pros-and-cons listing: one 5-star and one 4.5-star review. Small inspected sample of two reviewer reports from one G2 listing page; counts are not a satisfaction or prevalence measure. No original Reddit report was accessible within the research budget, so forum experience remains a recorded gap.
- Akaunting homepage
official · Observed October 7, 2026
Official homepage: free online accounting positioning, invoices/expenses/bank feeds, payment gateways, 50+ apps, multi-currency and languages, cloud vs self-hosted, trial terms.
- Akaunting pricing
official · Observed October 7, 2026
Official pricing page: free Standard on-premise limits, one-time Premium/Enterprise fees, Cloud monthly/annual tiers, per-tier invoice/app allowances, apps sold separately.
- Akaunting features
official · Observed October 7, 2026
Official features page: invoice/expense/banking/portal/reporting capabilities, 50+ apps, multi-user roles, multi-currency, recurring records.
- Akaunting download
official · Observed October 7, 2026
Official download page: self-host via one-click or Docker versus hosted Cloud; premium add-ons available for self-hosted installs.
- Akaunting pros and cons on G2
community · Observed October 7, 2026
G2 pros-and-cons listing for Akaunting: inspected 5-star and 4.5-star reviewer excerpts on simplicity and app costs; small two-report sample.
Compared with these products
No explicit proprietary baseline is recorded.