Ledger

Ledger Plugin

Ledger is a powerful, double-entry accounting system for the command line. All data is stored in plain text files.

Commands

Self

• ledger self version — Print ledger version

Reports

• ledger report balance -f <journal> [query] — Print account balances
• ledger report register -f <journal> [query] — Show transaction register
• ledger report accounts -f <journal> [query] — List all account names
• ledger report payees -f <journal> [query] — List all payees
• ledger report commodities -f <journal> — List all commodities
• ledger report print -f <journal> [query] — Print transactions in ledger format
• ledger report stats -f <journal> — Show journal statistics
• ledger report csv -f <journal> [query] — Output register as CSV
• ledger report json -f <journal> [query] — Output register as JSON (machine-readable)

Passthrough

• ledger _ _ <args> — Raw passthrough (xml, equity, prices, tags, etc.)

Usage Examples

• "show account balances from my ledger file"
• "show transaction register for Expenses"
• "list all accounts"
• "output transactions as JSON"
• "show journal statistics"

Installation

brew install ledger
# or
apt install ledger

Key Features

• Double-entry accounting with plain text files
• Multiple report types: balance, register, accounts, payees, commodities, print, stats, csv, json, xml
• Flexible query system for filtering transactions
• Automated account balancing and reconciliation
• Commodity and currency conversion support
• Budget and forecasting reports
• Python scriptable via --python

Requirements

• Ledger binary installed
• A journal file (plain text, .ledger or .dat extension)
• Set $LEDGER_FILE or pass -f to each command

Example Journal

; ~/finance/main.ledger
2025/01/01 Opening Balance
  Assets:Checking          $1000.00
  Equity:Opening

2025/01/15 Grocery Store
  Expenses:Food             $85.50
  Assets:Checking