Stessa vs Baselane vs SealedFolio: Which Portfolio Tracker Is Right for You?

Three tools dominate the conversation when landlords talk about portfolio tracking software: Stessa, Baselane, and SealedFolio. They all help landlords manage their properties. They all track income and expenses. But they're built on fundamentally different philosophies and serve different investor profiles.

This guide breaks down each tool honestly, strengths, weaknesses, pricing, and who it's actually built for. By the end, you'll know which tool fits your situation without needing to trial all three.

Quick snapshot: what each tool does

Stessa: the free baseline

Stessa launched in 2017 as a simple, free income and expense tracker for rental property owners. Its free tier attracted hundreds of thousands of users who wanted something better than a spreadsheet without paying for it.

What Stessa does well

• Bank account syncing that automatically imports transactions from your financial institution
• Automatic transaction categorization (with some manual correction needed)
• Basic income statement and cash flow reports
• Schedule E preparation support
• Online rent collection via Stessa Cash Management accounts
• Mobile app for on-the-go access

Stessa's limitations

• Acquired by Roofstock, creating data monetization concerns
• Advanced reporting (rent rolls, detailed analytics) moved to paid tiers
• No mortgage comparison tool
• No legal form templates
• No maintenance tracking or work orders
• No Canadian tax (T776) support
• No local storage or encryption, all data on Roofstock's servers

Stessa pricing

Stessa has a free tier and a "Stessa Pro" paid tier (approximately $15/month or $144/year). Some features that were previously free have moved to the paid tier. The free tier remains functional for basic tracking but limits more detailed reporting and analytics.

Best for: A beginner landlord with 1-2 properties who wants to track income and expenses without spending money on software. Understand that your data is inside a real estate marketplace with monetization incentives.

Baselane: banking-first

Baselane raised $44.3M to build integrated banking for landlords. It's less a portfolio tracker and more a landlord-focused financial institution: bank accounts, debit cards, and rent collection built into one product, with basic expense categorization attached.

What Baselane does well

• Dedicated landlord banking accounts (FDIC-insured via Thread Bank)
• Online rent collection, tenants pay via bank transfer or card
• Automatic transaction categorization from bank transactions
• Tenant screening (credit, background, income verification)
• Debit card for property expenses
• Basic financial reporting tied to banking activity

Baselane's limitations

• 3.49% fee on card rent payments, on a $2,000 rent, that's $70/month per unit
• $2 per ACH transfer
• No Schedule E or T776 tax reports
• No mortgage tracking or amortization
• No local storage, all data on Baselane's cloud servers
• No AI document scanning
• Limited to banking-adjacent analytics, not deep portfolio intelligence
• VC-backed with fee pressure from investors

Baselane pricing

Baselane offers free banking accounts with a premium tier for additional features. However, the transaction fees (3.49% card, $2 ACH) mean the "free" banking product has a real cost for active landlords. On a 5-unit portfolio with $2,000/unit in monthly rent, ACH fees alone total $120/month, $1,440/year.

Best for: Landlords who want all-in-one banking and rent collection and don't mind cloud storage. Best suited to US-based landlords who need to set up dedicated property banking accounts.

SealedFolio: intelligence that stays on your device

SealedFolio is built on a different philosophy: your real estate financial data is sensitive, and it belongs on your device, not on a cloud server owned by a VC-backed company with conflicting incentives.

What SealedFolio does well

• Complete portfolio analytics: ROI, cap rate, cash-on-cash, equity tracking, occupancy rates
• 13+ report types including Schedule E (US), T776 (Canada), rent roll, CapEx, general ledger, income statement, balance sheet
• Mortgage comparison tool, model up to 3 scenarios side by side
• What-if scenario analysis for investment modeling
• AI document scanning, local LLM reads mortgages, receipts, leases, tax bills
• Legal form templates for leases, notices, and addendums
• Full tenant management with payment ledgers
• Encrypted local vault, no hosted SealedFolio portfolio database
• Core workflows work offline
• CSV/OFX/QFX import, with optional Plaid bank import
• Multi-profile team access with role-based permissions

SealedFolio's limitations

• No built-in online rent collection (use Venmo/Zelle/check, record manually or import via CSV)
• No built-in banking account or rent-collection product; optional Plaid import requires your Plaid credentials
• Mac only, no Windows, mobile, or web app currently
• Not free, paid license required

SealedFolio pricing

SealedFolio is a paid desktop application with simple monthly or annual subscription pricing. No transaction fees. No data monetization. No moving features behind paywalls over time. The pricing is transparent and doesn't escalate based on usage or portfolio size.

Best for: Investors with 3+ properties who care about data privacy, want deep analytics and tax reports, need Canadian T776 support, or are frustrated with the limitations of cloud tools.

Feature matrix

Which tool matches your investor profile?

The beginner: 1-2 properties, just getting started

You've just closed on your first or second investment property. You want to track income and expenses without spending money on software. Bank account syncing is appealing so you don't have to manually enter every transaction. Tax reporting matters but you're not managing a complex multi-property portfolio yet.

Recommendation: Stessa (free tier), It does the basics well and it's free. Just be aware of where your data lives and understand the risk that features could move behind a paywall as the platform matures.

The banking-focused landlord: active rent collection, online-first

You want rent collected automatically via ACH or card. You want separate bank accounts for each property. You want a debit card tied to your property management. Tenant screening is part of your workflow. You're comfortable with cloud tools and don't have strong privacy concerns.

Recommendation: Baselane, It's built for exactly this use case. Just model the ACH and card fees into your cost structure before committing. On a large portfolio with monthly transactions, those fees can be substantial.

The serious investor: 3+ properties, privacy-conscious, needs real analytics

You have a growing portfolio. Tax reports are a significant annual undertaking. You want to model investment scenarios before buying. You're concerned about where your financial data lives and who can access it. You use a Mac and want a purpose-built desktop application that doesn't require uploading your net worth to a startup's servers.

Recommendation: SealedFolio, The depth of analytics, the 13+ report types, the local encryption, and the complete feature set are built for this profile. You'll need to collect rent through other means (Venmo, Zelle, check) and import transactions via CSV, but the privacy and analytical depth are unmatched in the market.

The Canadian investor

You own rental properties in Canada and need T776 (Statement of Real Estate Rentals) for your tax return. Neither Stessa nor Baselane supports Canadian tax reporting.

Recommendation: SealedFolio, The only tool in this comparison with T776 support.

Can you use more than one?

Yes, and many landlords do. Baselane for banking and rent collection, SealedFolio for analytics and tax reports, is a common combination. Export your transactions from Baselane monthly as a CSV, import to SealedFolio, and get the deep analytics without surrendering your portfolio intelligence to a cloud platform.

Bottom line

There is no universally "best" tool, only the right tool for your situation. Stessa is good for beginners. Baselane is good for landlords who want integrated banking. SealedFolio is good for investors who want deep analytics, tax reports, and complete data sovereignty.

The market is moving toward landlords understanding that their data has value, and asking who benefits from storing it. As that awareness grows, local-first software with genuine encryption becomes a more compelling choice for serious investors who've outgrown the "free cloud tool" phase.