Budgets
Updated
What Are Budgets?
A budget in Wallet Savvy is a spending target tied to a category. When you log a transaction in a category, it counts against that category's budget. At a glance you can see how much you've spent, how much remains, and whether you're on track.
Creating a Budget
On iPhone & iPad
- Go to Budgets from the tab bar
- Tap the + button
- Choose or create a category
- Set a budget amount and period (monthly is the default)
- Tap Save
On Mac
Press ⌘ ⇧ N or choose File → New Budget. Fill in the category, amount, and period, then press Return.
Budget Fields
| Field | Description | |---|---| | Category | The spending category this budget applies to | | Amount | Your target spend for the period | | Period | Monthly (more period options available) | | Notes | Optional notes about this budget |
Tracking Progress
Each budget card shows:
- Spent — total transactions in this category for the current period
- Remaining — budget amount minus spent
- Progress bar — visual indicator that turns red when you've exceeded the target
Tap any budget card to see the full list of transactions that count towards it.
Category Transactions View
Drilling into a budget shows every transaction in that category for the period, along with the total spent versus budgeted. This is the fastest way to understand what's driving spending in a particular area.
Editing and Deleting Budgets
- Edit: Tap or click the budget card and choose Edit
- Delete: Open a budget and tap Delete Budget at the bottom of the form
Deleting a budget does not delete the transactions linked to its category — only the budget target is removed.
Tips
- Start broad — create a few big categories (Housing, Food, Transport, Subscriptions) before getting granular. You can always split a category later.
- Review monthly — open Budgets at the start of each month to reset your expectations and check last month's actuals.
- Use Insights — the Insights view shows budget performance over time, so you can spot categories that consistently run over.