LineLedger costs nothing.
There’s no catch.

Coming from QuickBooks? See the side-by-side → or project what you’d stop paying →

Is it really free?

Yes. LineLedger is open source under the GNU AGPLv3 and you run it yourself, so there is nothing to pay us — no plans, no seats, no paid edition held back, and no upsell waiting a few months in. Every feature listed on this site is in the version you download.

Then what does it actually cost to run?

A server. LineLedger installs with Docker and needs a machine to sit on: a small VPS runs about $10–20 USD a month, and an office box or home server you already own costs you nothing extra. That bill comes from your hosting provider, not from us.

What do I need to install it?

Docker and Docker Compose, and about five minutes. You fetch one compose file, set a few values in a .env, and start it — the prebuilt image handles migrations, storage, and the background workers on first boot. Upgrades are one command. No server yet? A DigitalOcean Droplet installs the whole stack from a one-line script when it first boots, with every secret generated for you.

Can I try it before installing?

Yes. The live demo, linked from the footer of every page, gives you a private copy of fully set-up sample books: a Canadian business, a registered charity, a US business, a UK VAT-registered company, and an Isle of Man company. There is no sign-up. Change anything you like; nobody else sees your copy, and it is deleted after 24 hours or when you sign out. It is for exploring, not for keeping real records, so please don’t enter real personal information.

How do you make money, then?

We don’t. LineLedger is software we wrote and gave away, and there is nothing here to buy. That means no telemetry, no data to resell, no growth targets pushing a price up — and it also means you should judge the software on the code rather than on a support contract we’re selling.

Can you see my books?

No. LineLedger runs entirely on your server, so your ledger never touches ours — we have no account for you, no database with your figures in it, and no way to reach your data. That is a property of where the software runs, not a promise you have to trust.

What happens if you stop working on it?

Your install keeps running — it does not phone home and there is no licence to expire. The AGPLv3 gives you the source, the right to modify it, and the right to hand it to someone else to maintain. Nothing about your books depends on us still being here.

Can I get my data out?

It never leaves your server, so it is already out — but yes: export any company to a self-contained portable ZIP, plus CSV and XLSX from every report. The audit chain stays verifiable across a backup and restore.

Is there a version for non-profits?

There is no separate version, because there is no price to waive. Non-profits, charities, clubs, and associations get the same install as everyone else — including net-asset subtypes, restricted funds, interfund transfers, and donation receipts.