Budget Periods and Work Cycles
Choose how often your budget resets, set up an earning and spending cycle, move between periods, and plan a period before it starts.
Overview
A budget runs in periods. By default a period is one calendar month, but you can pick a different cycle when you create a budget, and change it later from the budget menu. Pay cadences such as weekly or bi-weekly suit people paid that way. Longer or custom cycles suit contractors and seasonal workers who earn for a stretch and then live on what they put away.
Every period you've finished is kept as a snapshot. The current period shows live numbers. Periods that haven't started yet can be planned ahead of time.
Cycles You Can Pick
When the wizard asks "How often does your budget reset?", these are the options:
| Cycle | What it means | Plan |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly | One period per calendar month. | Every plan |
| Weekly | A fresh period every week. | Every plan |
| Bi-weekly | A fresh period every two weeks, matching a fortnightly payday. | Every plan |
| Semi-monthly | Two periods a month, split on the 1st and the 16th. | Every plan |
| Quarterly | One period every three months. | Pro and up |
| Every 6 months | One period every six months. | Pro and up |
| Custom | Build your own cycle, including separate earning and spending phases. | Pro and up |
Custom cycles with earning and spending phases work with the Envelope, Zero-Based, Build Your Own and Pay Yourself First methods. On other methods the Custom option is greyed out and the picker tells you which methods support it.
For a weekly, bi-weekly or semi-monthly budget you can enter Expected income per cycle. It's optional. If you leave it blank, the app works it out from your monthly income.
How to Set Up a Work Cycle
A work cycle is for people who earn for some months and then live on that money for others. You set it up in step 2 of the budget wizard.
Pick Custom
Choose Custom in the cycle picker. The Work cycle card appears below it.
Set the two stretches
Use Months earning and Months spending to describe your pattern. A summary line under them reads back the cycle in plain words, for example three months earning, then three months spending, repeating every six months.
Enter one earning month's income
In Expected income per month while earning, enter what a single earning month brings in, not the whole cycle. Pay Yourself First needs this figure, because it sets each spending month's limit from it.
Pick the start date
Tap the cycle start card and choose the Cycle start date. A half-month phase has to start on the 1st or the 16th.
If your pattern doesn't fit two even stretches, tap Advanced: build custom phases. The editor starts from the cycle you described and lets you change each phase's length and unit (days, weeks, months or half-months). Once you edit a phase, the card shows Using custom phases instead of the steppers. Reset to guided throws the custom list away and goes back to the two steppers. Every phase needs a length of at least 1, and at least one phase has to be an earning phase, otherwise the budget has nothing to spend.
Change the Cycle Later
Open the budget menu on the Budget tab and tap Budget cycle. You can change the shape and the start date there.
Moving Between Periods
The period navigator sits at the top of the Budget tab. Use the arrows to go to the previous or next period. A small badge tells you what you're looking at:
- LIVE is the current period, with real numbers.
- SNAPSHOT is a finished period. It's read only.
- PLANNING is a period that hasn't started yet.
On a work cycle the navigator also shows which leg you're in, such as "Earning month 1 of 3", and how much was carried into the current phase.
How to Plan a Period Before It Starts
Go to the future period
Use the navigator to move ahead to a period marked PLANNING.
Start or resume the plan
Tap Plan this period. If you already began one, the button reads Resume plan.
Set your amounts
Assign your expected income across your groups. Nothing changes in the current period. The amounts apply when the new period begins.
Confirm when it arrives
When the period starts, a sheet titled Confirm your rollover plan shows your expected income, what's left to budget and what's carried into each group. Tap Confirm plan, or Adjust first if something changed.
Tips
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I plan more than one period ahead?
You can plan any period that hasn't started yet. Move the navigator to the one you want and tap Plan this period.
Why can't I pick Quarterly or Custom?
Those cycles need Pro or Premium. The picker shows "Needs the Pro plan." under the option.
Related Articles
Budgeting Overview
The eight methods and how a budget is built.Pay Yourself First
The method that works best with earning and spending phases.Zero-Based Budget
Give every unit of income a job each period.Switching Budget Methods
What happens to your data when you change methods.Need more help? Email us at [email protected] and we will get back to you.