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LedgerSMB

ledgersmb.org

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Spec score 8.7 #6 of 29 in Financial Management

What it is

LedgerSMB is free, open-source ERP and accounting software for small and mid-size businesses. It combines double-entry general ledger functions with quotations, sales and purchase orders, invoices, receivables, payables, and cash management. The application also supports inventory, light manufacturing, and fixed-asset depreciation and disposal. Transactions can use multiple currencies, while budgets can be tracked by project or department with variance reports. LedgerSMB produces PDF, HTML, CSV, and Office documents, can email documents from inside the application, and includes 45 languages. A web services API enables programmatic interaction; connecting an online store is not available out of the box and requires custom integration. The web application is intended for installation on the user’s own infrastructure, with Linux installers and production Docker images available. Official release tarballs are GPG signed. Free volunteer support is available through a users mailing list and Matrix, with paid professional support also offered. The project began in 2006 as a fork of SQL-Ledger.

Spec sheet

What it does
LedgerSMB is a web-based, open-source ERP and accounting system for small and midsize businesses.Read 15 Oct 2026 · ledgersmb.org
Purpose
LedgerSMB is open source ERP and accounting software for small and mid-size businesses, combining accounting, invoicing, order processing, and related operations.Read 9 Oct 2026 · ledgersmb.org
Deployment
LedgerSMB is a web application intended to be installed and operated on the user's own infrastructure; the maker provides Linux installers and production Docker images.Read 9 Oct 2026 · ledgersmb.org
API
LedgerSMB exposes a language-independent web-services API documented with versioned OpenAPI files.Read 15 Oct 2026 · ledgersmb.org
Security
Official release tarballs are GPG signed so users can verify their integrity.Read 9 Oct 2026 · ledgersmb.org
Support
Free community help is offered through mailing lists and Matrix, while paid providers offer hosting, installation, training and customization.Read 15 Oct 2026 · ledgersmb.org
Founded
2006Read 28 Sep 2026 · ledgersmb.org
Accounting and sales
Built-in functions include double-entry general ledger, quotations, sales and purchase orders, invoices, receivables, payables, and cash management.Read 9 Oct 2026 · ledgersmb.org
API example
The integration documentation demonstrates authenticated JSON POST requests to endpoints such as /erp/api/v0/invoices/.Read 15 Oct 2026 · ledgersmb.org
Bank feeds
YesRead 21 Sep 2026 · ledgersmb.org
Bank statement import
Built-in reconciliation importers support CAMT.053, OFX and CSV bank statements.Read 15 Oct 2026 · book.ledgersmb.org
Cash management
Cash management supports checks, receipts and reconciliation with bank statements.Read 15 Oct 2026 · ledgersmb.org
Company history
LedgerSMB began in 2006 as a fork of SQL-Ledger, motivated partly by disagreements over security-bug handling.Read 15 Oct 2026 · ledgersmb.org
Contact management
Contact management stores customer and vendor relationships and orders.Read 15 Oct 2026 · ledgersmb.org
Currencies and budgeting
Users can enter transactions in multiple currencies and track budgets by project or department with variance reports.Read 9 Oct 2026 · ledgersmb.org
Current release policy
The project maintains stable 1.13 and old-stable 1.12 branches and targets at least 24 months of community support per 1.x series.Read 15 Oct 2026 · ledgersmb.org
Document output
Documents can be produced in PDF, HTML, CSV and Office formats and emailed from the application.Read 15 Oct 2026 · ledgersmb.org
Documentation
Documentation includes installation and upgrade instructions, a free manual, videos and a work-in-progress business book.Read 15 Oct 2026 · ledgersmb.org
Documents and languages
The application can produce PDF, HTML, CSV, and Office documents, email documents from within the application, and includes 45 languages.Read 9 Oct 2026 · ledgersmb.org
Extensibility
The project describes an open architecture, add-ons and custom integrations, including a custom product-configuration plugin.Read 15 Oct 2026 · ledgersmb.org
Fixed assets
Fixed-asset accounting covers depreciation and disposal.Read 15 Oct 2026 · ledgersmb.org
General ledger
Double-entry general-ledger and journal-entry functions manage accounts and transfers.Read 15 Oct 2026 · ledgersmb.org
Hardware guidance
The system-requirements page says up to ten users can run on a 32-bit server with 1 GB RAM or a 64-bit server with 2 GB RAM.Read 15 Oct 2026 · ledgersmb.org
Independent architecture description
Wikipedia describes LedgerSMB as libre double-entry accounting and ERP software using PostgreSQL with a browser interface.Read 15 Oct 2026 · en.wikipedia.org
Independent feature coverage
Softpedia describes support for multiple addresses, contacts, bank accounts, taxes, currencies, audits, warehouses, manufacturing and receipts.Read 15 Oct 2026 · softpedia.com
Independent historical criticism
Wikipedia records that the early 1.2.0 release was withdrawn after serious integration problems and was criticized for attempting too much without adequate review.Read 15 Oct 2026 · en.wikipedia.org
Installation scope
The official installer supports Debian-family and Fedora-family package managers and falls back to CPAN for Perl dependencies.Read 15 Oct 2026 · get.ledgersmb.org
Integration
LedgerSMB provides a web services API for programmatic interaction, while attaching an online store is not available out of the box and requires custom integration.Read 9 Oct 2026 · ledgersmb.org
Inventory and assets
It supports inventory management, light manufacturing, and fixed asset depreciation and disposal.Read 9 Oct 2026 · ledgersmb.org
Inventory and manufacturing
Inventory management handles goods, services and assemblies, including light manufacturing.Read 15 Oct 2026 · ledgersmb.org
Languages
The project says the application ships with 45 languages and lets users and documents use different languages.Read 15 Oct 2026 · ledgersmb.org
Licence
The source repository identifies LedgerSMB as GPLv2-licensed.Read 15 Oct 2026 · github.com
Limit: CSV customization
The development book says CSV bank-import formats vary widely and may require customization for unusual banks.Read 15 Oct 2026 · book.ledgersmb.org
Limit: mobile usability
Although browser clients can run on phones and tablets, the official requirements say the current interface works best on a large screen.Read 15 Oct 2026 · ledgersmb.org
Limit: setup complexity
The documentation advises Docker installation over tarball installation because tarball setup is more complex.Read 15 Oct 2026 · ledgersmb.org
Maker history
The LedgerSMB project began in 2006 as a fork of SQL-Ledger.Read 9 Oct 2026 · ledgersmb.org
Multi-currency
Transactions, invoices and payments can use different currencies and conversion rates.Read 15 Oct 2026 · ledgersmb.org
Online-store limitation
An online store connector is not included out of the box; the FAQ points to a community custom integration instead.Read 15 Oct 2026 · ledgersmb.org
Praise: usability and support
Trustburn reviewers repeatedly describe the interface as easy or intuitive and praise responsive customer support.Read 15 Oct 2026 · trustburn.com
Production setup
The maker's production installation guidance recommends a reverse proxy, which can guard Starman from public exposure and add TLS.Read 9 Oct 2026 · ledgersmb.org
Purchasing
Purchasing tools track vendors, purchase orders and vendor invoices.Read 15 Oct 2026 · ledgersmb.org
Rating on GoodFirms
5.0 out of 5 from 1 review.Read 15 Oct 2026 · goodfirms.co
Rating on Softpedia
3.3 out of 5 from 4 votes.Read 15 Oct 2026 · softpedia.com
Rating on Trustburn
4.2 out of 5 from 9 reviews.Read 15 Oct 2026 · trustburn.com
Recent release
LedgerSMB 1.12.20 was announced July 6, 2026 with a trial-balance bug fix and updated Docker security packages.Read 15 Oct 2026 · ledgersmb.org
Reporting and budgeting
The product includes reporting plus budgets by project or department with variance reports.Read 15 Oct 2026 · ledgersmb.org
Sales
The software manages customers, quotations, sales orders and invoices.Read 15 Oct 2026 · ledgersmb.org
Security limitation
The project warns that versions before currently maintained releases may contain unresolved security issues, with older versions requiring restricted networks.Read 15 Oct 2026 · ledgersmb.org
Security practice
Official releases are GPG-signed and the project publishes security advisories and a security-reporting process.Read 15 Oct 2026 · ledgersmb.org
Self-hosting
Official downloads provide tarballs, Docker images and installers, allowing deployment on the operator's infrastructure.Read 15 Oct 2026 · ledgersmb.org
Support lifecycle
The maker says LedgerSMB 1.13 and 1.12 are the active community-supported releases, with planned end-of-life dates of October 4, 2027 and December 14, 2026, respectively.Read 9 Oct 2026 · ledgersmb.org
System requirements
The documented server stack uses PostgreSQL, Perl, a PSGI server such as Starman and a reverse proxy such as Apache or Nginx; LaTeX is used for PDF output.Read 15 Oct 2026 · ledgersmb.org
Target users
The project describes most installations as having 50 to 500 transactions per month, while noting known deployments with substantially larger data volumes.Read 9 Oct 2026 · ledgersmb.org
Time tracking
Time tracking records billable hours and can generate invoices.Read 15 Oct 2026 · ledgersmb.org

Plans and prices

Free open-source software Free self-hosted deployment · commercial hosting/support optional Read 15 Oct 2026 · goodfirms.co
LedgerSMB Free open source software · self-hosted installation Read 9 Oct 2026 · ledgersmb.org

Every LedgerSMB plan and price →

Strong points and limits

Strong points

  • Free open-source plan at free
  • Broad accounting, invoicing, and order functions
  • Inventory and light manufacturing support
  • Multiple currencies and project budgets
  • Web services API and 45 languages

Limits

  • Online-store connection requires custom integration
  • Self-hosted installation requires user infrastructure
  • Professional support is paid

Who it suits

LedgerSMB suits small and mid-size businesses that need self-hosted accounting, invoicing, inventory, budgeting, and related operations. It also fits organizations able to operate Linux or Docker infrastructure.

Verdict

LedgerSMB provides a wide accounting and ERP feature set with self-hosted deployment and API access. Its main planning considerations are operating the infrastructure and integrating an online store separately.

Where Specifiction places it

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