A simple, beginner-friendly tool to export your YNAB (You Need A Budget) budget data for import into Actual Budget.

This tool simplifies the export process described in the Actual Budget migration guide by providing an interactive terminal interface that guides you through each step.

1. Download the binary for your platform
2. Get your YNAB API token from Developer Settings
3. Run the tool from your terminal
4. Follow the prompts to select and export your budget
5. Import into Actual Budget using the exported file

🔒 Secure • 🚀 Fast • 🌐 Cross-platform • 📦 No installation required

Download the latest release for your operating system from the Releases page.

Choose the appropriate binary:

• Windows: ynab-export_*_windows_amd64.exe
• macOS (Intel): ynab-export_*_darwin_amd64
• macOS (Apple Silicon): ynab-export_*_darwin_arm64
• Linux (64-bit): ynab-export_*_linux_amd64
• Linux (ARM64): ynab-export_*_linux_arm64

The binaries are ready to run - no extraction or installation needed!

Download via terminal:

# Linux (64-bit)
curl -L -o ynab-export https://github.com/StephenBrown2/ynab-export/releases/latest/download/ynab-export_linux_amd64
chmod +x ynab-export

# Linux (ARM64)
curl -L -o ynab-export https://github.com/StephenBrown2/ynab-export/releases/latest/download/ynab-export_linux_arm64
chmod +x ynab-export

# macOS (Apple Silicon)
curl -L -o ynab-export https://github.com/StephenBrown2/ynab-export/releases/latest/download/ynab-export_darwin_arm64
chmod +x ynab-export

# macOS (Intel)
curl -L -o ynab-export https://github.com/StephenBrown2/ynab-export/releases/latest/download/ynab-export_darwin_amd64
chmod +x ynab-export

Windows (PowerShell):

Invoke-WebRequest -Uri https://github.com/StephenBrown2/ynab-export/releases/latest/download/ynab-export_windows_amd64.exe -OutFile ynab-export.exe

GOEXPERIMENT=jsonv2 go install github.com/StephenBrown2/ynab-export@latest

git clone https://github.com/StephenBrown2/ynab-export.git
cd ynab-export
GOEXPERIMENT=jsonv2 go build

# Build for current platform
just build

# Build for all platforms
just build-all

# Run directly
just run

# See all available commands
just

Before running the tool, you'll need a YNAB Personal Access Token:

1. Sign in to the YNAB web app
2. Go to Account Settings → Developer Settings
3. Under "Personal Access Tokens", click New Token
4. Enter your password and click Generate
5. Important: Copy the FULL token from the top of the page (under "New Personal Access Token:")
   • Do NOT use the partially obfuscated token shown in the table (e.g., XXXXXXXXXX-Wax0q8)
   • The token is only shown once, so copy it immediately!

Direct link: YNAB Developer Settings

Simply run the downloaded binary:

Linux/macOS:

# Make it executable (if not already)
chmod +x ynab-export

# Run it
./ynab-export

# Or provide your token directly
./ynab-export --token "your-api-token-here"

Windows:

Run from Command Prompt, PowerShell, or Windows Terminal:

ynab-export.exe

REM Or provide your token directly
ynab-export.exe --token "your-api-token-here"

Note: Do not double-click the .exe file - it must be run from a terminal to interact with the application properly.

Recommended: Install Windows Terminal for the best experience. It's free from the Microsoft Store and provides a modern terminal with better colors and font rendering. To install: Open Microsoft Store → Search "Windows Terminal" → Click "Get". Once installed, right-click in your Downloads folder and select "Open in Terminal" to run the executable.

Tip: If you downloaded from the browser, you can rename the binary to simply ynab-export (or ynab-export.exe on Windows) for easier use.

The tool will guide you through:

1. Enter your API token (the token you generated in Step 1)
   • The tool validates the token length (43 characters) as you type
   • Your token is automatically saved for future use
   • On subsequent runs, the tool will use your cached token
2. Select your budget from the list of budgets in your YNAB account
3. Wait for export - the tool downloads your budget data
4. Done! Your budget is saved to ~/Downloads/ynab-export-budget-name-YYYYMMDD-HHMMSS.json

# Linux/macOS
export YNAB_API_TOKEN="your-token-here"
./ynab-export

# Windows (PowerShell)
$env:YNAB_API_TOKEN="your-token-here"
.\ynab-export.exe

# Windows (Command Prompt)
set YNAB_API_TOKEN=your-token-here
ynab-export.exe

Now that you have your exported JSON file:

1. Open Actual Budget
2. Select the dropdown menu and choose Close File
3. Click Import file
4. Select nYnab as the import type
5. Choose the exported JSON file from your Downloads folder
6. Follow any cleanup steps mentioned in the Actual Budget migration guide

See the Demo above for an animated walkthrough of the complete export process.

• Arrow Keys (↑/↓): Navigate through budget list
• / : Filter/search budgets
• Enter: Select/Confirm
• Esc: Clear filter or go back to previous screen
• Ctrl+C or q: Quit the application

Your API token is invalid or expired. Generate a new token from YNAB's Developer Settings. If you had a cached token, it will be automatically cleared.

Your cached token has been revoked or expired. The invalid token has been deleted. Enter a new token when prompted, or provide one via the --token flag.

Make sure you have at least one budget in your YNAB account.

Check that you have write permissions to your Downloads folder.

macOS may block the binary because it's not from an identified developer. To run it:

# Remove the quarantine attribute
xattr -d com.apple.quarantine ynab-export

Or right-click the file, select "Open", and click "Open" in the security dialog.

We welcome contributions! Please see CONTRIBUTING.md

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.

• YNAB for their excellent budgeting software and API
• Actual Budget for the open-source alternative
• Charm Bracelet for the beautiful TUI libraries (Bubble Tea)

• YNAB API Documentation
• Actual Budget Migration Guide
• Actual Budget Website

If you encounter any issues or have questions:

1. Check the Troubleshooting section above
2. Review the Issues page
3. Create a new issue if your problem isn't already listed

Note: This tool is not affiliated with YNAB or Actual Budget. It's a community project to help users migrate their data.