Budget Planner - Documentation

Core Concepts

Items

Every entry is a scheduled item. You can create income or expenses, set a start date, and optionally define a recurrence schedule.

Occurrences

Recurring items generate occurrences on the calendar. You can edit just one occurrence or update the current and all future ones.

Overrides

Balance overrides let you correct the calculated daily balance for a given date without changing the underlying items.

Adding Items

Use the Items tab to create a scheduled entry. Each item has a type, amount, recurrence, and category. Recurring items can include a price history to change the amount starting on a specific date.

Example: Recurring Rent

Description: Rent
Type: Expense
Amount: 1200
Recurrence: Monthly
Date: 2026-01-01
Category: Housing :: Rent

Editing Occurrences

In the calendar view, click the edit button on an occurrence to update it. Choose between editing a single date or applying the change to that date and all future occurrences. This is the best way to handle one-off changes like a different paycheck amount or a shifted bill date.

Example: One-Time Adjustment

Open a calendar day.
Click Edit on the occurrence.
Select "This occurrence only".
Save a new amount for that date.

Views And Navigation

Month, quarter, year, and custom range views are available.
Use the focus selector to jump to a specific date.
Calendar density controls how much detail is shown per day.

Import And Export

Use Import CSV to map your file columns to Budget Planner fields. You can also import JSON exports to fully restore settings, items, overrides, occurrences, and categories.

CSV Example

kind,id,type,amount,recurrence,category,date,description
item,1,expense,1200.00,monthly,Housing::Rent,2026-01-01,Rent
item,2,income,3000.00,biweekly,Income::Salary,2026-01-03,Paycheck
override,,,2500.00,,,,2026-01-10,Manual balance

JSON Snapshot Example

{
  "settings": {
    "startDate": "2026-01-01",
    "startingBalance": 1500,
    "warningThreshold": -200,
    "themePreset": "sandstone",
    "themeMode": "light",
    "language": "en",
    "buttonStyle": "icon",
    "fontFamily": "space",
    "calendarDensity": "simple",
    "currencyCode": "USD",
    "currencyDisplay": "symbol",
    "dateFormat": "",
    "timeFormat": "24"
  },
  "items": [],
  "overrides": {},
  "occurrences": {},
  "categories": []
}

Demo Mode

Demo mode keeps its data separate from your real data. Use the "Open Demo Data" button at the top of this page to launch the app in demo mode with sample content.

Data And Privacy

All data is stored in localStorage inside your browser.
No server is required; it works offline after the page loads.
To serve locally, run python -m http.server from the project root.

Troubleshooting

If something looks wrong, try exporting JSON and re-importing it.
Use the developer console page for inspecting localStorage and error logs.
When you see an error reference, share it with your administrator.