I just created a new GitHub repository for the Python scripts I use for my accounting workflow. It has a new approach to envelope budgeting that doesn't require virtual accounts and automatically updates an envelope every time a purchase is made. The budget process is outlined at Envelope Budgeting - Dexter, and there is a more detailed description at https://conery.github.io/dexter/envelopes_dex/. I used a NoSQL database in my system so it's not strictly a plain text accounting system, but the system imports and exports Journal files and the budget scheme would work in Ledger and hledger. I'm interested to hear what you all think!
Dexter is John Conery's PTA-friendly, open source accounting tool, written in python and requiring MongoDB. It has excellent documentation and an elegant approach to budgeting.
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This is a really interesting approach. Has it caught on? I'm tempted to try it in hledger, but curious to know if anyone else has tried it, and how it turned out for them.
Thanks for surfacing that again.. I reread it. Really great stuff. No, it hasn't caught on yet as the repo had zero stars and no-one knows about it. Here are the links again:
- https://github.com/conery/dexter - the repo
- https://conery.github.io/dexter - the excellent docs
- with detailed explanation of the elegant expense account budgeting method, which could be used with any PTA tool
- and the efficient-looking import process and classification/data entry TUI
I would say the requirement for a mongodb database is a downside. The docs mention an alternate hledger workflow that can also read and write a hledger journal. I don't know if that works today or not.
Recap:
Dexter is a standalone python CLI app, published in 2025, that uses a local mongodb database, imports bank CSVs, converts to double entry transactions with the help of a small TUI, supports a clever budgeting method using expense accounts as envelopes, provides simple register-style reports, and can also import from/export to hledger.