How to use SpendSense, and the math behind every number.

How to use it

1. 1Open the Dashboard: the big number is what’s free to spend this month.
2. 2Add spending as it happens in Transactions, and refunds too: a refund lowers spending in its category.
3. 3Put money aside with a savings deposit; it comes off free to spend right away.

The logic behind it

Free to spend starts from the pay received this month, plus anything carried over from last month. Bills come off first, then the savings deposits you make, then any leftover already moved out. Everyday spending comes off as you add it; what remains is left to spend. Your savings goal is a plan, not money locked away: only real deposits lower the number.

How to use it

1. 1In Household, open Members and choose each person’s pay frequency: every two weeks, monthly or yearly.
2. 2For pay every two weeks, enter any known payday; every other payday is worked out from it.
3. 3Choose how those paydays count: windfall (recommended), actual paydays, or a smoothed average.

The logic behind it

Pay every two weeks means 26 paycheques a year, so two months a year have three paydays. In windfall mode, the budget always counts two paycheques a month and the third goes straight to savings: it never inflates what you can spend, and it counts toward your goal. Actual mode counts every payday in the month it lands. Smoothed spreads the year evenly, 26 paycheques over 12 months.

How to use it

1. 1Open Paystubs and generate the year: every payday is created from each member’s pay date.
2. 2Move a paycheque to another month by dragging it (or with the ‹ › arrows on a phone): a paycheque on the 30th can pay next month’s bills.
3. 3Select a paycheque to set a custom amount, or mark it as a windfall that goes to savings.
4. 4Regenerate any time: received and edited paystubs are always kept.

The logic behind it

For pay every two weeks, paystubs are the source of truth for income. Each paycheque counts in the month it’s assigned to, which is its payday’s month unless you move it, and only once its payday has arrived. A custom amount replaces the usual pay for that paycheque only. A paycheque marked as a windfall never counts as spendable income: it’s deposited to savings and counts toward your goal.

How to use it

1. 1In Household, open Bills and add each bill with its amount, category and frequency.
2. 2Give a yearly bill its payment date, or leave the date empty to spread it over the year.
3. 3Turn on “Set aside monthly” for a big yearly bill.
4. 4Each month, on the Dashboard, mark bills paid, change this month’s amount, or skip a bill for this month only.

The logic behind it

A monthly bill counts every month. A yearly bill with a payment date counts in full in that month; without a date, a twelfth counts every month. Set aside monthly puts a twelfth aside each month, so the payment month only counts what is still missing. A skipped bill counts nothing that month, and an edited amount replaces the usual one for that month only.

How to use it

1. 1On the Savings page, set the year’s goal.
2. 2Your first year starts from what you had saved before SpendSense; later years can carry over what you saved beyond last year’s goal.
3. 3Log deposits and withdrawals as you make them, and follow the monthly target to stay on pace.
4. 4Switch between the whole family and one member to see each one’s savings and progress.

The logic behind it

What the year still needs is the goal minus what was carried into it. Extra paycheques sent to savings cover part of that; the rest is spread over the months you use SpendSense that year. Every deposit counts toward the goal, extra paycheques and saved leftovers included, and withdrawals count against it. Carrying savings into a new year moves them: they count toward the new year, not the old one. Viewed by member, each one sees their personal accounts and their part of the shared savings, and the members’ figures add up to the family’s.

How to use it

1. 1On the Savings page, add buckets: your country’s account types, an emergency fund, or your own funds.
2. 2Give a personal account its holder, and optionally a monthly target.
3. 3Move money between buckets with a transfer.

The logic behind it

General savings always holds whatever isn’t in another bucket. Bucket monthly targets share your yearly plan, so together they can’t go over it. A transfer is neither saved nor spent: your total doesn’t change. Delete a bucket and its money, with its history, moves to General savings.

How to use it

1. 1In Household, open Members and add each person with their own income and paydays.
2. 2Invite your partner by email to share one budget.
3. 3Assign a bill to one person, or keep it shared by the family.
4. 4On the Savings page, choose a member to see just their savings.

The logic behind it

The household’s pay is the sum of every member’s pay for the month, each by their own pay rules. Bills, savings and the goal belong to the household; personal accounts and starting savings keep their holder, so each member’s figures add up to the household’s.

How to use it

1. 1When a month ends with money left, the Dashboard asks what to do with it.
2. 2Send it to next month, or move it to savings.
3. 3Changed your mind? Undo the decision.

The logic behind it

A month’s leftover can be assigned once the month is over. The amount is exactly what is still unassigned, so the decision always matches the numbers you saw. Sent to next month, it adds to that month’s free to spend as carried in. Moved to savings, it becomes a real deposit that counts toward your goal.

How to use it

1. 1Open Analytics and choose a month, or the whole year.
2. 2See where your income went: every dollar, in one picture.
3. 3Check how you’re tracking against your plan, then compare members: each one’s income, spending and savings beside the family’s.

The logic behind it

Analytics reads the same budget as the Dashboard, so the numbers always match. Every dollar that came in lands in exactly one place: bills, saved, spent, carried to next month, or still left. Savings rate is what you saved, less withdrawals, as a share of what came in; extra paycheques count on both sides. Months before you started using SpendSense are left out.

How to use it

1. 1In Account, open Security to download all your data in the format you choose.
2. 2Sign out of all your devices at once.
3. 3Delete your account and all its data, confirmed with your password.

The logic behind it

You enter your numbers yourself: SpendSense never asks for your bank login. Your sign-in is kept in memory on your device and renewed through a secure cookie that page scripts can’t read. Your money data runs your budget and nothing else: no ads, no selling data.