Multi-Currency Support

Overview

Forbidden Finance supports multi-currency tracking so you can manage finances across different currencies in one place. Track the currencies you hold accounts in, and the app automatically converts all values to your base currency for consistent totals in budgets, net worth, and reports. Exchange rates are updated automatically, so your converted balances stay current without manual effort.

Two different things, and only one of them is limited by your plan:

• Tracked currencies — the currencies you can hold accounts, assets, and liabilities in. This is what your plan's limit applies to.
• Transaction currencies — the currency any individual transaction is recorded in. This is never limited: on every plan you can record a transaction in any supported currency, so travel spending never counts against your limit.

Tracked-Currency Limits by Plan

Your base currency is always free. It never counts against your limit. What your plan sets is how many additional currencies you can track alongside it:

So on Free, with a base currency of USD, you can also track one foreign currency such as EUR. On Pro you can track ten alongside your base.

How Currencies Become Tracked

A currency joins your tracked list in two ways:

• Automatically — create or connect an account in a new currency and that currency is tracked from then on. This is how it works on every plan, and it is the only way on Free.
• By hand (Starter and up) — reserve a currency ahead of time in Settings > Currencies, before you have an account in it. Tap Add Currency and search by name or code (e.g., "Euro" or "EUR").

Either way, a tracked currency is immediately available when adding accounts, assets, or liabilities.

How Currency Conversion Works

All monetary values in Forbidden Finance are displayed in two ways:

• Original currency — The actual currency of the transaction or account (e.g., EUR 50.00).
• Base currency equivalent — The converted value in your base currency (e.g., USD 54.25), shown alongside or beneath the original.

Totals in budgets, net worth, and reports are always calculated in your base currency. This gives you a single, consistent view of your finances regardless of how many currencies you use.

Exchange Rates

Exchange rates are updated automatically on a regular basis. You do not need to enter or update rates manually.

Key details about exchange rate behavior:

• Transactions convert at their own date's rate — When a transaction in another currency is saved, its base-currency equivalent is computed using the exchange rate for the transaction's date and stored with it. Budgets, reports, and totals use that stored equivalent, so a purchase made in March keeps March's conversion even when you view it in June.
• The currency view uses current rates — Choosing a display currency from the dropdown converts what's on screen at the most recent available rate. These conversions are estimates for viewing, marked with ≈, and are never stored.
• Rate refresh — Rates are updated multiple times per day to reflect market movements. If a rate is more than a day old, the app shows a staleness indicator beside converted amounts.

Setting Your Base Currency

Your base currency is set automatically when you sign up, from the country you sign up in. If it ever looks wrong — for example, you see USD but live in the UK — the dashboard shows a one-tap suggestion to switch, and you can change it any time in your profile settings. The base currency is used for all aggregate calculations: budget totals, net worth, report summaries, and dashboard widgets.

To change your base currency:

1. Go to Settings > Profile.
2. Change the Base Currency field.
3. Save. All displayed values are recalculated using the new base currency and current exchange rates.

Changing your base currency does not alter your underlying data. Transactions, account balances, and asset values remain in their original currencies. Only the displayed conversions change.

Switching your base currency also does not use up one of your tracked-currency slots. Whichever currency is your base is the free one, so moving from USD to GBP simply moves which currency is not counted.

Using Multiple Currencies Day-to-Day

Currencies appear as options throughout the app:

• Adding transactions — Choose any supported currency from the picker; your currencies (the selected account's, your home currency, and everything you track) are listed first, and everything else is searchable below. The form defaults to the selected account's currency. Recording a transaction in a currency you don't track is always allowed — it converts to your base currency automatically.
• Charged in another currency? — When a purchase settled in your account's currency but the merchant charged you in another (a card purchase abroad, for example), you can record the original charged amount on the transaction and see the effective exchange rate you paid.
• Manual accounts — Set the account's currency when you create it. This is what uses a tracked-currency slot.
• Connected accounts — The currency is determined by the bank account and cannot be changed. If a linked bank has accounts in more currencies than your plan can track, those accounts are skipped and the app tells you how many.
• Assets and liabilities — Set the currency when adding the entry.
• Budget — Your budget always uses your base currency. Transactions in other currencies are converted automatically.

Tips

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I see what exchange rate is being used?

Yes. Tap any converted amount to see the exchange rate applied and the timestamp of the last rate update.

Does my base currency use one of my currency slots?

No. Your base currency is always free. The limit on your plan counts additional currencies only, so a Free account tracks its base currency plus one other, and a Pro account tracks its base plus ten.

What happens if I remove a currency?

You cannot remove a tracked currency while you still hold accounts in it — delete or re-link those accounts first. Your base currency cannot be removed, and past transactions in a removed currency keep their original amounts. Transactions never require tracking a currency, so removing one does not stop you recording spend in it.

Are exchange rate gains or losses tracked?

Forbidden Finance does not currently calculate realized or unrealized foreign exchange gains or losses. It shows all values converted at the latest rate for simplicity.

Can I manually override an exchange rate?

No. Exchange rates are managed automatically to ensure consistency. All conversions use the same rate source.

Related Articles

Need more help? Contact us at [email protected].