openaccounting.io

What It Is

Open Accounting is an open-source accounting platform from Open Accounting, LLC. Its core focus is double-entry bookkeeping via a web interface and mobile apps. It supports access to data from any device and provides a REST API as well as access to the source code, making it suitable for individuals and small organizations that want control over their data structure, need basic accounting features, or plan to build custom integrations.

Core Features and Collaboration

The product is built around standard double-entry accounting. Users can create asset, liability, equity, income, and expense accounts, and record opening balances, regular transactions, and split transactions. The dashboard shows major spending categories and recent transactions, while reports include a balance sheet and profit and loss statement. Multi-user support is mainly available through paid subscriptions, with up to 5 users supported; Enterprise plans can be arranged more flexibly. However, the reviewed materials do not disclose team governance features such as role-based permissions, approvals, or audit logs. On mobile, Android is already available, while iOS is still listed as Coming soon.

Pricing and API

Pricing is extremely low: the single-user Personal plan is free; Personal Plus costs $0.99/month for personal use with up to 5 users and email support; Business costs $4.99/month, also with up to 5 users and email support; Enterprise requires contacting the company and includes phone and email support. Paid accounts require a credit card, are generally billed in advance, and partial-month fees are not refunded. Developer support is a highlight: the REST API can access and create data such as users, organizations, transactions, accounts, and prices, with API documentation and source-code access available.

Security, Compliance, and Deployment

The platform is provided as a cloud-based website and app. Its terms also mention that hosted services and third-party service providers may be used for storage, authentication, and service operation. Although the project is open source, the reviewed materials do not clearly explain a self-hosting deployment method. Security disclosure is relatively limited: the terms state that users are responsible for protecting their own accounts and that the company values privacy, but also note that technical processing and transmission may be unencrypted, and that it does not guarantee data will not be corrupted or lost. Users are advised to maintain their own backups. No compliance certifications such as SOC 2, ISO, or GDPR were found.

Pros, Cons, and Who It’s For

Its strengths are a practical free plan, very low paid pricing, clear double-entry bookkeeping logic, and developer-friendly API and open-source attributes. Its limitations include the lack of bank syncing, invoicing, tax features, advanced permissions, and enterprise-grade compliance disclosures. It is best suited for personal bookkeeping, basic accounting for micro and small businesses, developer experiments, or custom accounting systems. If you need local Chinese finance and tax features, automated tax filing, direct bank-enterprise connectivity, or Chinese-language support, alternatives such as 用友畅捷通 or 金蝶精斗云 may be worth considering. Availability of access and payments from China is not stated in the materials, so it is recommended to test network connectivity and credit card payment first.