Portfolio Performance Review (2026)
Portfolio Performance is a free, open-source desktop app for Windows, Mac and Linux that calculates your true time-weighted return and IRR from a file kept on your own computer. It suits long-term investors willing to enter or import every transaction, since there is no broker sync and much of the community and its PDF importers are German. The desktop app is free; an optional mobile Premium costs $3 a month or $25 a year.
By Wealthy Pot Editorial · Facts checked October 19, 2026
Facts checked October 19, 2026 against Portfolio Performance's own pricing, help and policy pages (12 sources, listed below). We re-check prices about once a month. We do not earn a commission from Portfolio Performance.
Portfolio Performance at a glance
| Desktop app | Free and open source; Windows, macOS and Linux [3] |
|---|---|
| Mobile app | Free companion for iPhone (iOS 12+) and Android (7+) that opens your desktop file from cloud storage; editing is not supported yet [2] |
| Mobile Premium | $3.00 a month or $25.00 a year in the US App Store; adds dashboards on mobile [4] |
| Performance method | True time-weighted rate of return (TTWROR) and internal rate of return (IRR) [1] |
| How holdings get in | Manual entry, PDF statement importers (mainly German and European banks), CSV, Interactive Brokers Flex Query; no broker aggregation [6] |
| Price feeds | Yahoo Finance, CoinGecko, HTML and JSON pages and more; a built-in provider for German and US stocks with a free Portfolio Performance ID [1] |
| Built-in provider limits | Historical prices only, no current quotes, and rate-limited (maintainer's forum post, May 2025) [10] |
| Currencies | Foreign currency accounts converted with ECB reference rates [1] |
| Where data is stored | A local file on your computer; the mobile app processes it on the phone, AES256-encrypted if password-protected [2] |
| Other features | Rebalancing against your own asset allocations, configurable dashboards, dividend and interest earnings charts [1] |
| Open-source license | Eclipse Public License 1.0 (EPL-1.0) [7] |
| GitHub | portfolio-performance/portfolio, 4,118 stars on October 19, 2026; repository started in 2012 [8] |
| Who makes it | Desktop app maintained by Andreas Buchen, Mannheim, Germany; mobile app by MSM Mannheimer Software-Manufaktur UG, Mannheim [12] |
What Portfolio Performance costs
| Plan | Paying monthly, 1 year | Annual plan, 1 year | 3 years (cheapest way) | Annual plan saves |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Desktop app | $0 | - | $0 | - |
| Mobile Premium (optional)in-app purchase, US App Store | $36 | $25 | $75 | $11 (31%) |
Our arithmetic from the listed prices, before sales tax, assuming today's prices hold; subscriptions can renew at a different rate. The desktop app and the basic mobile app are free. Mobile Premium is billed through Apple or Google and renews automatically; refunds go through the App Store or Google Play. Monthly, it costs $3 x 12 = $36 a year.
How Portfolio Performance works
Portfolio Performance is a desktop program, not a website. You create a file, add your accounts and securities, and record every buy, sell, dividend, deposit and fee, either by hand, through PDF importers for broker statements (mostly German and European banks), from CSV, or with an Interactive Brokers Flex Query. The app then pulls prices from feeds such as Yahoo Finance and CoinGecko, or from its own built-in provider for German and US stocks, which needs a free Portfolio Performance ID and gives historical prices only. Nothing is synced from a broker, and the file stays on your computer. The mobile app for iPhone and Android opens that same file from your cloud storage and processes it on the phone, but cannot edit it yet. It is not self-hosted software: there is no server to run.
The project is open source under the Eclipse Public License 1.0, has been on GitHub since 2012, and had 4,118 stars on October 19, 2026. The latest release, 0.89.0, came out on October 11, 2026. It is maintained from Mannheim, Germany, and the website, forum and much of the community are German-first, though an English manual exists. We found no US tax reports, so for capital gains you still rely on your broker's forms.
The reason to use it is the return math. A hypothetical year: you invest $10,000 on January 1. By June 30 it is worth $11,000 (+10%), and you add another $10,000, making $21,000. In the second half the market falls 10%, leaving $18,900. The true time-weighted return chains the two halves: 1.10 x 0.90 - 1 = -1%, which measures your investments regardless of when you added money. The IRR weights each dollar by how long it was invested: solving $10,000 x (1 + r) + $10,000 x (1 + r)^0.5 = $18,900 gives roughly -7.3%, because more of your money was in during the drop. Portfolio Performance shows both, so you can tell a bad pick from bad timing.
Pros
- Free, open-source desktop app for Windows, Mac and Linux
- Shows both true time-weighted return and IRR
- Your data stays in a local file, processed on your own devices
- Rebalancing against allocations you define
- Actively maintained since 2012, with a release on October 11, 2026
Cons
- No broker aggregation; every transaction is entered or imported
- PDF importers mostly cover German and European banks
- The mobile app can view but not edit your data
- Site, forum and community are German-first
Who Portfolio Performance fits, and who should skip it
A good fit if
- You want time-weighted and IRR returns calculated properly, for free.
- You want your portfolio in a file on your own computer, not in a company's cloud.
- You hold accounts at German or other European banks whose PDF statements it can import.
Look elsewhere if
- You want holdings to update from your US broker automatically: Wealthfolio offers read-only broker sync on its paid Connect plans.
- You want a web app you can open from any browser: Ghostfolio, self-hosted or in its cloud.
- You need dividend and capital-gains tax reports: Sharesight.
Limitations to know
- There is no broker sync; holdings come from manual entry, PDF or CSV import, or an Interactive Brokers Flex Query. [6]
- The built-in price provider gives historical prices only, not current quotes, and is rate-limited. [10]
- You cannot yet edit your data in the mobile app. [2]
- The mobile app was released first in European countries; it is listed in the US App Store with prices in dollars. [3]
- We found no US tax reports such as Form 8949 output.
Portfolio Performance compared with alternatives
| Tracker | Price | Sync and import | Platforms |
|---|---|---|---|
| Portfolio Performance | Free desktop app; optional mobile Premium $3/mo or $25/yr | No broker sync: manual, PDF, CSV, IBKR Flex; data stays on your computer | Desktop, iOS, Android |
| Ghostfolio | Free (self-host or cloud Basic); cloud Premium $48/yr, does not auto-renew | No broker sync: manual entry or CSV/JSON import | Web, Android, Self-host |
| Wealthfolio | Free app; Connect sync $2.99/mo ($29/yr), broker sync from $7.99/mo ($79/yr) | Broker sync paid, from $79/yr (SnapTrade, read-only); free app manual or CSV | Desktop, iOS, Android, Self-host |
| getquin | Free; Premium €89.99/yr, Wealth €149.99/yr (EUR, yearly only) | Open Banking sync free (EU focus); CSV, PDF, manual | iOS, Android, Web |
| Sharesight | Free (10 holdings); Starter $7/mo yearly or $9.33 monthly; Standard $18 or $24; Premium $23.25 or $31 (USD) | Broker email forwarding, file import, some direct links; manual | Web, iOS, Android |
- Pick Ghostfolio if you want an open-source web app you can self-host or use in the cloud.
- Pick Wealthfolio if you want a local-first desktop and mobile app with optional paid broker sync.
- Pick getquin if you are in Europe and want time-weighted returns with free bank and broker sync.
- Pick Sharesight if you need dividend and capital-gains tax reporting across global markets.
Security and privacy
- All processing in the mobile app happens on your phone, without any server involvement, the app's site says. [2]
- The mobile app's privacy policy says it does not sell your data, and basic use needs no personal data; an email is needed only for the optional price service. [5]
- The mobile app uses Sentry for error reports plus the app stores' own analytics. [5]
- No broker or bank login is ever stored, because the app does not connect to accounts. [6]
- When you open a password-protected file in the mobile app, it is encrypted with AES256. [2]
Recent changes
| Date | What changed |
|---|---|
| Oct 11, 2026 | Release 0.89.0. [9] |
| May 1, 2025 | Version 0.76.0 beta adds a built-in historical price provider for European and US stocks, with a free login. [10] |
| Feb 19, 2024 | iPhone and Android companion app launched. [11] |
Portfolio Performance FAQ
Is Portfolio Performance free?
Yes. The desktop app for Windows, macOS and Linux is free and open source, and the basic mobile app is free too. Only the optional mobile Premium costs money: $3 a month or $25 a year in the US App Store.
Does Portfolio Performance sync with my broker?
No. You enter transactions by hand or import them from PDF statements (mainly German and European banks), CSV files or an Interactive Brokers Flex Query.
What is the difference between TTWROR and IRR?
True time-weighted return measures how your investments did regardless of when you added or withdrew money. IRR includes the timing of your deposits, so a large deposit just before a drop pulls it down. Portfolio Performance shows both.
Where does Portfolio Performance store my data?
In a file on your own computer. The mobile app reads that file from your cloud storage and processes it on the phone, encrypted with AES256 if you set a password.
Portfolio Performance vs Ghostfolio?
Portfolio Performance is a desktop program with TTWROR and IRR and a local file. <a href="/portfolio-trackers/ghostfolio/">Ghostfolio</a> is a web app you host on a server or use in its cloud, measuring Return on Average Investment. Neither syncs with brokers. See all options in our <a href="/portfolio-trackers/">portfolio tracker comparison</a>.
How we researched this review
We did not get paid or receive a free account for this page. We read Portfolio Performance's own pricing page, help center, security and privacy pages and app-store listing on October 19, 2026, quoted each fact from those pages, and link every one below. We did not run a long-term hands-on test, so we do not score the app; where a point rests on what the company says rather than something we can check, we attribute it to Portfolio Performance. Cost figures are our own arithmetic. We re-check prices and plans about once a month and log changes in the table above.
Sources
- Portfolio Performance, Home (English), checked October 19, 2026.
- Portfolio Performance mobile app, Home, checked October 19, 2026.
- Portfolio Performance mobile app, FAQ, checked October 19, 2026.
- Apple App Store (US), Portfolio Performance, checked October 19, 2026.
- Portfolio Performance mobile app, Privacy policy, checked October 19, 2026.
- GitHub, portfolio-performance/portfolio (README), checked October 19, 2026.
- GitHub, portfolio-performance/portfolio LICENSE (EPL-1.0), checked October 19, 2026.
- GitHub API, portfolio-performance/portfolio repository data (stars on October 19, 2026), checked October 19, 2026.
- GitHub, Portfolio Performance release 0.89.0, checked October 19, 2026.
- Portfolio Performance forum, New price provider directly from Portfolio Performance (German, May 2025), checked October 19, 2026.
- Portfolio Performance forum, The first version of the app (German, February 2024), checked October 19, 2026.
- Portfolio Performance, Impressum, checked October 19, 2026.
This review is for general information, not investment advice. A tracker shows what you hold; its returns and dividend forecasts are estimates. Prices change; check the vendor's site before you subscribe.