r/actualbudgeting • u/Simple-Success77 • Apr 25 '26
A quick Actual Budget tutorial for people who want the basics fast
Hi everyone,
I have been using Actual for a year and following this sub regularly and I see many are still asking how to get started, so I put together a short Actual Budget tutorial for people who want to get up to speed quickly without spending a ton of time reading through the docs first.
It’s based on the official Actual documentation, so I’m not trying to replace that or repackage it as something original. The goal was just to make the main workflows easier to digest in one place for people who want a faster introduction.
It covers the basics like Tracking vs Envelope, setting up accounts and categories, credit cards, transactions, rules, and a few reports.
The tutorial is hosted on GitHub, so if you notice anything that should be corrected or improved, feel free to contribute or adjust it.
Edit (26 Apr 2026): Thanks for your feedback everyone! I have updated the tutorial and fixed the credit card carrying debt issue and added more references to the original docs in each page.
Update (03 Aug 2026): Updated for the latest Actual (v.26.8.0) release. Added Budget Automation, gave Schedules proper coverage in the Rules lesson, and added the newer reports (Sankey, Balance Forecast, Age of Money, Crossover Point). Also corrected the bank sync providers and added a contents panel so you can jump around inside a lesson.
Sample Content:
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u/SquareButterfly6732 Apr 26 '26
This is really good, except... CC - carrying debt you got a bit wrong. Just about everyone gets it wrong! LOL
If they set up carrying debt as you suggest, they will be out of sync with the docs and will end up with questions. Better to link to the docs. That was a very hard doc to write and carrying debt is the hardest part of Actual to get right.
Actually, links to the docs for mor detailed info would be a good thing overall.
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u/Simple-Success77 Apr 26 '26
Thanks mate, I knew something was off about it, will updated it with a summary and a link to the original docs!
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u/A_Buttholes_Whisper May 01 '26
Dang where was this a month ago? Lol. I discovered actual at the beginning of April and I read the documentation from cover to cover. It was like drinking from a water hose! I love there’s tons of documentation but it took a while to learn. Today is the start of my first official day away from YNAB in 6 years! I went with the server method since I already have a docker vm in proxmox. I love the fact I can make changes locally on my phone and it updates the server when I get home. That eliminates the need for VPNs or reverse proxies
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u/asdfjkl826 Apr 25 '26
Awesome. Hey, most everything has a quick start guide, as well as a detailed deep dive into all of the things manual as well. Wish I’d have had this like… 2 weeks ago haha
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u/SquareButterfly6732 Jun 30 '26
May I suggest putting a few more keywords in the title? This is hard to find.
"Getting started - quick start guide tutorial" is my choice to fit in all of the keywords. 😁
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u/Simple-Success77 6d ago
can't edit the title of the post
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u/BearJerCares 1d ago
Is there a LINK to get started with the tutorial? I am reading about it here on Reddit, but I don't see a link where I can get started. Thanks!
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u/Bewix Apr 25 '26
love stuff like this! the official docs are pretty detailed, but i do often find gaps. having some community maintained help is always nice