Install hledger with Homebrew, apk, apt, dnf, MacPorts, Nix, pacman, scoop, winget, zypper

Project links

• Homepage
• Repository
• Upstream docs
• Package manager page

Commands and aliases

• hledger
• hledger-ui
• hledger-web

Project history

hledger was created as a Haskell response to Ledger, the earlier command-line tool that pioneered plain text accounting. The hledger FAQ says the project was motivated by making finance work more enjoyable, by frustration with Ledger's stalled development and rough edges, and by the desire to build a more usable, robust, documented, cross-platform-installable version in Haskell.

The README describes the codebase as continually improved since 2007, with a focus on reliability, maintainability, and practical everyday accounting. hledger's design keeps the plain-text journal at the center while offering multiple interfaces: hledger for the CLI, hledger-ui for a terminal interface, and hledger-web for a browser UI.

hledger has grown inside the broader Plain Text Accounting ecosystem. The hledger manual states that it is inspired by and largely compatible with ledger(1), and largely interconvertible with beancount(1). The hledger and Ledger page describes hledger as a reimplementation of Ledger's best parts with stronger focus on UX, reliability, consistency, and real-world practicality.

In 2026, the README records a branch split: the former master branch became hledger1 and work began on hledger 2.x in main. The stated 2.x goals include better lot tracking and capital gains calculation, more interoperability, more speed, easier contribution, and continued reliability.

Adoption history

hledger adoption is tied to the plain-text accounting community: users choose editable text files, version control, scripts, and transparent data over database-backed personal finance applications. The README names the Plain Text Accounting ecosystem, documentation, videos, tutorials, editor/IDE integrations, mobile and web interfaces, and a contributor base as part of the project context.

The Homebrew input facts show broad packaging across Alpine, Homebrew, Debian, Fedora, MacPorts, Nix, Arch, Scoop, Ubuntu, WinGet, and openSUSE. That breadth matters because hledger is used by individuals and organizations on Unix, macOS, and Windows workstations.

The hledger FAQ frames the project's mission beyond a single executable: making plain text accounting more usable and useful, reducing finance and financial-technology stress, and supporting a thriving ecosystem of financial software projects.

How it is used

hledger reads journal files containing dated double-entry transactions, then produces reports such as balance sheets, income statements, registers, budgets, and cashflow views. Users can edit data directly in a text editor, import CSV from banks, use terminal data-entry tools, use hledger-web, or integrate it into scripts and version-control workflows.

The manual describes hledger as a robust, user-friendly, cross-platform set of programs for tracking money, time, or any other commodity. The README highlights CSV import/export, text/HTML/JSON/SQL output, multi-currency support, high precision, and scriptability through CLI, HTTP, or API.

Why package nerds care

hledger is important to package nerds because it treats accounting data as durable text. That makes backups, diffs, version control, review, automation, and migration tractable in a way that opaque finance-app databases often are not.

It also anchors one of the most package-manager-friendly corners of personal finance software: a Haskell executable suite with CLI/TUI/web surfaces, docs shipped with the tool, and broad distro packaging. For users who prefer reproducible environments and text-first workflows, hledger is one of the central packages in the plain-text accounting toolbox.

Its relationship to Ledger and Beancount makes it part of a larger lineage rather than an isolated app. Package maintainers and users often evaluate the three together: Ledger for the original format and C++ implementation, Beancount for Python-oriented workflows, and hledger for Haskell, cross-platform installability, and active UX-focused maintenance.

Timeline

• 2007: hledger development lineage begins according to the project README.
• 2008: hledger maintenance and support era is described on the hledger and Ledger page.
• 2013-04-08: The simonmichael/hledger GitHub repository was created.
• 2026: The former master branch was renamed hledger1 and hledger 2.x work began in main.

Related projects

• Ledger: the original plain-text accounting CLI and file-format influence.
• Beancount: a Python plain-text accounting system that hledger documentation names as largely interconvertible.
• PlainTextAccounting.org: the ecosystem portal maintained by Simon Michael for related tools, docs, and community resources.
• hledger-ui and hledger-web: sibling interfaces shipped in the hledger suite.

Sources

• https://api.github.com/repos/simonmichael/hledger
• https://hledger.org/faq.html
• https://hledger.org/ledger.html
• https://hledger.org/manual.html
• https://plaintextaccounting.org/
• https://raw.githubusercontent.com/simonmichael/hledger/master/README.md
• input: source_facts.package-manager