# Akaunting vs Invoice Ninja

> Pick Akaunting for general small-business bookkeeping with bills, banking and reports, within its free-use limits; pick Invoice Ninja if your main job is quoting, invoicing and getting paid, with native desktop and mobile apps. Neither is OSI open source: Akaunting uses the Business Source License and Invoice Ninja the Elastic License 2.0.

## Verdict

Invoice Ninja is the stronger pick for freelancers and agencies whose workflow is quotes, invoices, recurring billing and online payments: the self-hosted edition includes all Pro and Enterprise features, and its license only stops you from reselling it as a hosted service. Akaunting covers wider accounting (sales, purchases, banking and reports) but its BSL 1.1 terms allow free production use only up to two users, one company and 1,000 invoices, so check that limit before you build on it. If you need a fully OSI-licensed option, look at Bigcapital (AGPL-3.0) or InvoiceShelf (AGPL-3.0).

- Best for Akaunting: Sole traders and very small businesses wanting simple bookkeeping inside the free-use limits
- Best for Invoice Ninja: Freelancers and agencies focused on quotes, invoices and online payments

## Key differences

| Aspect | Akaunting | Invoice Ninja |
|---|---|---|
| License | Business Source License 1.1: free production use for up to 2 users, 1 company and 1,000 invoices; each version converts to GPLv3 four years after release | Elastic License 2.0: free to self-host and modify, but you may not offer it to others as a hosted service; $40/year white-label license removes branding |
| Language/stack | PHP 8.1+ on Laravel, with Vue and Tailwind | PHP on Laravel (version 5), with Flutter-based desktop and mobile apps |
| Database | MariaDB, MySQL, PostgreSQL or SQLite | MySQL or MariaDB |
| Focus | Small-business accounting: invoices and bills, customers and vendors, bank accounts and financial reports, extended through the Akaunting App Store | Invoicing: quotes, invoices, recurring billing, payments, expenses and a client portal |
| Apps | Web app | Web app plus official iOS, Android, macOS, Windows and Linux apps that work with self-hosted servers |
| Install options | Composer and npm install on a PHP host | Server or VM install guide, official Docker image, Cloudron, Softaculous, YunoHost |

## GitHub numbers

| Metric | Akaunting | Invoice Ninja |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | 10,159 | 10,223 |
| Forks | 2,994 | 2,736 |
| Commits, last 12 months | 518 | 2,002 |
| Last commit | Oct 4, 2026 | Oct 6, 2026 |
| Latest release | 3.2.4 | v5.13.43 |
| License | BSL 1.1 | Elastic License 2.0 |
| License type | Source-available | Source-available |
| Language | PHP | PHP |
| Docker image | No | Yes |
| Repository | https://github.com/akaunting/akaunting | https://github.com/invoiceninja/invoiceninja |

App pages: [Akaunting](https://appsgit.com/apps/akaunting), [Invoice Ninja](https://appsgit.com/apps/invoice-ninja)

## FAQ

### Is Akaunting free for my business?

Only within its license terms. The Business Source License lets you use it in production for free with at most two users, one company and 1,000 invoices. Beyond that you need a commercial on-premise plan from Akaunting, Inc.

### Is Invoice Ninja open source?

It is source-available under the Elastic License 2.0, not an OSI-approved license. You can self-host, use and modify it freely; the main restriction is that you cannot sell it to others as a hosted service.

### Can either replace QuickBooks?

For invoicing and basic bookkeeping, yes. For full double-entry accounting with multi-company books, an ERP such as ERPNext or a dedicated accounting app such as Bigcapital is a closer match.

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