Frequently Asked Questions

Getting started is easy! Follow these steps:

1. Click the Settings icon (⚙️) and enter your current bank balance
2. Set your pay period type (weekly, bi-weekly, etc.) and start date
3. Add your upcoming bills by clicking "Add Bill"
4. Add expected income by clicking "Add Income"
5. Check your Safe Daily Budget to see how much you can spend

For a detailed walkthrough, see our Quick Start Guide.

Enter the actual amount of money in your bank account right now. You can find this by:

• Checking your bank's website or app
• Looking at your latest bank statement
• Calling your bank's automated balance line

Use the available balance (not pending balance) for the most accurate budgeting.

No! You only need to enter known, scheduled expenses (bills). These include rent, utilities, subscriptions, loan payments, etc.

Daily spending like groceries, gas, and entertainment comes out of your Safe to Spend amount. You don't track those individually—BudgetPro gives you a daily budget to cover all that discretionary spending.

One-time: Expenses that only happen once (medical bills, repairs, one-time purchases). When paid, they're done.

Recurring: Bills that repeat on a schedule (monthly rent, bi-weekly subscription, yearly membership). When paid, the next due date is automatically set.

Varied: Bills that recur but with unpredictable timing (utility bills that arrive at different times each month). When paid, you manually enter the next expected date.

Learn more in Bill Schedule Types.

When you mark a bill as paid:

• The bill amount is removed from your "Pending Bills" total
• Your Safe to Spend increases by that amount
• The bill shows as "Paid" on the calendar
• For recurring bills, the next due date is automatically calculated
• The payment is recorded in your payment history

Important: Don't forget to also update your Current Balance in Settings to reflect the actual money leaving your account.

Simply click on the bill's status again to toggle it back to "Pending." For recurring bills, the due date will automatically revert to the previous date. All calculations will update accordingly.

For bills that change each month:

1. Enter your best estimate or recent average when adding the bill
2. When you receive the actual bill, click on the amount to edit it
3. Update to the actual amount before marking as paid

Over time, you'll get a better sense of your average and can use that for future estimates.

Enter your take-home pay (after taxes and deductions). This is the actual amount that gets deposited into your bank account.

For example, if your salary is $60,000/year but your bi-weekly deposit is $1,850 after taxes, enter $1,850.

Mark income as received when the money actually appears in your bank account. For most people with direct deposit, this is on your payday.

After marking income as received, remember to also update your Current Balance in Settings to reflect the new total in your account.

A pay period is the time between one paycheck and the next. BudgetPro organizes your budget around these periods instead of calendar months because that's how your money actually flows.

For example, if you get paid every other Friday, your pay period is the 14 days between one Friday and the next.

Learn more in Pay Periods Explained.

Bi-weekly: Paid every 2 weeks (every 14 days). You get 26 paychecks per year, always on the same day of the week.

Semi-monthly: Paid twice per month on specific dates (like the 1st and 15th). You get 24 paychecks per year, and the period length varies (13-16 days).

If you're unsure which you have, check with your employer's payroll department.

Enter your most recent payday. BudgetPro uses this as an "anchor" to calculate all past and future pay periods.

For example, if you're paid bi-weekly on Fridays and your last payday was November 15, enter November 15. BudgetPro will calculate that the next period starts November 29, and the previous started November 1.

1. Go to Settings (⚙️)
2. Change the Interval Type to match your new schedule
3. Update the Start Date to your first payday at the new job
4. Update your income entries with the new amounts and dates
5. Save Settings

You may need to review bills to ensure they're in the correct pay periods after the change.

Safe to Spend is the amount of money you can freely spend on anything (groceries, entertainment, shopping) without affecting your ability to pay bills or maintain your safety cushion.

It's calculated as: Current Balance - Pending Bills + Expected Income - Minimum Reserve - Future Period Reserve

For the complete explanation, see Safe to Spend Calculation.

A negative Safe to Spend means your bills exceed your available funds (after accounting for reserves). This is a warning that you need to:

• Wait for expected income to arrive
• Delay some discretionary spending
• Consider which bills can be delayed (contact creditors if needed)
• Temporarily reduce your minimum reserve (not recommended long-term)

It's a safety cushion—an amount you always want to keep in your account as a buffer. This money is excluded from your Safe to Spend.

Think of it as money that "doesn't exist" for spending purposes. It protects you from unexpected expenses and overdrafts.

You can set this amount in Settings.

Look-Ahead Periods tells BudgetPro to check future pay periods for potential shortfalls. If a future period has more bills than income, BudgetPro reserves that difference from your current Safe to Spend.

This prevents the "feast and famine" problem where you spend freely now only to come up short later.

Set to 1 for basic protection, or higher if you want more conservative planning.

Daily Budget = Safe to Spend ÷ Days Remaining in Pay Period

For example, if your Safe to Spend is $700 and there are 7 days left, your Daily Budget is $100.

As days pass, the Daily Budget adjusts. If you spend less than your daily budget, it increases. If you overspend, it decreases.

• Purple/highlighted background: Days within your current pay period
• Red/orange markers: Bills due on that day
• Green markers: Income expected on that day
• Today indicator: Special highlight on the current date

The numbers at the bottom of each day show your projected closing balance for that day.

That's your projected closing balance—what BudgetPro expects your bank balance to be at the end of that day, after accounting for any bills due or income received that day.

If this number turns red, it means you'd have a negative balance that day—a warning to take action!

Daily balance projections are typically shown only for days within your current pay period. Days outside the period (past or future periods) may not show balances because they're not part of the active budget view.

Navigate to a different pay period using the Previous/Next buttons to see projections for other periods.

BudgetPro stores your data in a database on your server. The security of your data depends on your hosting configuration. We recommend:

• Using HTTPS for all connections
• Keeping your server software updated
• Using strong passwords
• Regularly backing up your database

BudgetPro never transmits your financial data to external services.

BudgetPro is designed for tracking a single household budget. For household budgeting:

• Enter the combined balance of accounts you're tracking together
• Add income from all household earners
• Include all household bills

Everyone in the household can view and update the same dashboard.

No, BudgetPro does not connect directly to bank accounts. You manually enter your balance and mark bills/income as paid/received. This approach:

• Keeps your bank credentials private
• Works with any bank or credit union
• Gives you control over what's tracked
• Helps you stay aware of your financial situation

We recommend:

• Daily (quick check): Glance at your Safe to Spend before making purchases
• When paid: Update Current Balance, mark income as received
• When paying bills: Mark bills as paid
• Weekly: Quick review to ensure everything is accurate
• Monthly: Add any new recurring bills, review for accuracy

If your question isn't answered here, try:

• Troubleshooting Guide - Solutions to common issues
• Glossary - Definitions of terms used in BudgetPro
• Browse the other chapters in this Help Center using the sidebar