Zero Budget Local is a zero-based budgeting app that lives entirely on your computer. No cloud sync, no monthly fees, no account required — just a clear picture of where your money goes.
Zero-based budgeting means giving every dollar a job — assigning your income to categories until $0 is left unassigned. Not $0 in the bank. $0 without a purpose. It's a powerful shift that makes every purchase intentional.
The budget grid is the heart of the app. Organize spending into category groups, allocate each month, and see at a glance how much is available in every area of your life.
Set a savings goal on any category. Zero Budget Local tracks your progress month-by-month and shows how much you still need to assign.
Target types
Add transactions as you spend — manually, via bank import, or from a scheduled template. Inline editing keeps you in flow, and powerful filters let you find anything instantly.
Zero Budget Local stores everything in a single SQLite file on your own machine. We have no servers, no user accounts, and no telemetry. Your budget is yours — completely.
All budgets, transactions, accounts, and settings are stored in a single .db file on your computer. You always know exactly where your data is.
Add a lock screen to prevent unauthorized access when you step away from your computer. Your password is stored as a secure hash — we never see it.
Export the entire database to a .db file at any time. Moving to a new computer? Copy the backup file over and restore with one click.
Four built-in reports give you an instant overview of your finances. Need something specific? Build a custom chart and save it alongside the built-ins.
Spending by Category
Last 3 months · All accounts
Custom reports — choose a data source, chart type (bar, line, or pie), date range, and optional category filters. Saved reports persist across sessions.
A focused set of tools that cover the full personal finance workflow — without the bloat.
Track recurring bills and income. Set any frequency — daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly, or yearly — with an Active toggle to pause without deleting.
See all your upcoming scheduled transactions laid out on a monthly calendar. Plan ahead and make sure funds are in the right account on the right day.
Manage accounts in USD, EUR, GBP, JPY, and 150+ currencies. Fetch live exchange rates on demand and cache them locally — or enter your own fixed rates for fully offline use.
Merge duplicate payees from bank imports. Create normalization rules that automatically clean up payee names during future imports.
YNAB-style credit card behavior. Every categorized CC charge automatically funds your CC payment category, so you always know exactly how much debt is covered.
Define rules that automatically assign a category when a payee name matches a pattern. Applied on every manual entry and bank import.
Organize accounts into collapsible named groups in the sidebar — e.g., "Credit Cards", "Loans", "Savings". Each group shows a running subtotal.
Light, Dark, System, Slate, Warm, and Midnight — pick the look that suits your workflow. The app respects your OS light/dark preference automatically.
Manage completely separate budgets — personal, household, business — each with their own accounts, categories, and transactions. Switch instantly from the sidebar.
Already using YNAB or Actual Budget? Import your full budget — accounts, categories, payees, transactions, and allocations — in minutes. Nothing gets left behind.
YNAB Web / YNAB 5
Export from YNAB Settings → Export Budget. Zero Budget Local reads the ZIP and imports everything, including credit card account detection.
YNAB 4 (legacy)
The classic .yfull ZIP from the YNAB 4 desktop app is fully supported.
Actual Budget
Use Actual's Settings → Export data ZIP. Accounts, categories, transactions, and payees all transfer over.
You're never locked in
Every budget can be exported back to YNAB-compatible formats at any time. Switch away whenever you want — your data leaves with you.
Bank imports — Upload OFX/QFX files from any bank directly, or use the CSV mapper to handle any export format your bank provides.
Coming Soon
Zero Budget Local is now available! Download and use it free for 35 days — no credit card, no account required. Then a one-time license unlocks it forever, with a 7-day money-back guarantee.