Classic Budgeting
Classic Budgeting is the traditional way to budget: estimate your income for the month and allocate it across categories such as rent, groceries and utilities. Simple and intuitive, it assigns income to categories without linking the budget to your bank accounts' balances.
Best for
- Simplicity seekers: a straightforward budget without frequent adjustments.
- Low-maintenance budgeters: it needs less ongoing attention, so it suits people with a stable, predictable income who want to set it and get on with life.
Benefits
- Easy to set up: enter your expected income and allocate it to your categories.
- Predictable: you know from the start of the month where your money is meant to go.
- Less time-consuming: no need to keep your budget matched to your account balances.
Classic Budgeting adapts less easily to changes in income or unexpected expenses, because the plan is based on what you expect to earn rather than the money you actually have.
How income works in a classic budget
In a classic budget, the money you allocate comes from income categories (categories in an income group).
When you record an income transaction, choose the income category it belongs to. The Auto allocate switch on the transaction decides what happens next:
- On: the income is automatically allocated to that income category, ready to be assigned to your spending categories.
- Off: track your progress towards the income you expect manually, and allocate when you're ready.
The amount you can still assign is shown as Ready to allocate. If your allocations add up to more than the income you've entered, the Budget health check warns you about overallocation.
Quick example
You expect two sources of income this month:
- Salary: $2,500
- Freelancing: $1,000
That's $3,500 to work with. You allocate it like this:
| Category | Allocated |
|---|---|
| Rent | $1,200 |
| Groceries | $400 |
| Utilities | $300 |
| Debt repayment | $500 |
| Entertainment | $300 |
| Savings | $600 |
| Miscellaneous | $200 |
| Total | $3,500 |
Steps in the app
- Enter your income: record your salary ($2,500) and your freelancing income ($1,000) as income in your income categories. You now have $3,500 to allocate.
- Allocate it: on the Budget tab, tap each spending category and enter its amount, starting with $1,200 for rent, until Ready to allocate reaches zero.
You can change your categories at any time from the side menu: Groups and categories. See Groups and categories.
In a classic budget you can also choose, per category, whether unspent money carries over to the next month. See Carry over amounts.
A budget's type is chosen when you create it. To try zero-based budgeting, create a new budget and copy your categories into it. See How to switch from classic to zero-based budgeting.