Card payments look like spending
You buy groceries on a card, then pay the card from checking. Count both and the groceries cost twice.
BudgetBuilt: the purchase counts once; the payment is settlement.
Private pilot · free while it runs
Know if your household got ahead this month, and why.
BudgetBuilt connects your accounts, keeps shared and personal money in separate lanes, sets aside the transfers and card payments that throw other budgets off, and checks every month against your real balances.
No card required · Read-only bank connections · Works on phone and desktop
Real screens, shown with a synthetic sample household.
Read-onlyBudgetBuilt can never move money.
Shared + personalOne household, separate lanes.
No double countingTransfers and card payments set aside.
ReconciledChecked against your balances.
Why budgets drift
Most budget apps count the same dollar twice.
Money in a real household moves between checking, savings, cards, and people. Treat every movement as spending and the totals stop meaning anything.
Transfers look like expenses
Moving money to savings changes where it sits, not what the household spent.
BudgetBuilt: movement between your own accounts is set aside.
Everyone's money gets mixed
One partner's personal spending lands in the family budget, and nobody trusts the number.
BudgetBuilt: each person's personal lane stays separate from the shared household.
The product
Everything a household needs to run the month.
Every screen below is the real app, shown with a synthetic sample household.
Overview
The whole month at a glance.
Open the app and know where the month stands before you scroll.
- Budget used against the month's income
- Projected surplus after the bills still to come
- A spending chart with planned bills dotted through month end
- A card for each lane: recurring bills, joint spending, and each person's personal spending
Transactions
Every transaction lands in the right lane.
Accounts carry a default lane, so most transactions sort themselves. You review the exceptions.
- Assigned automatically by account and recurring bill
- Card payments and transfers set aside, never counted twice
- Group a refund with the purchase it offsets
- "Why?" explains how any row was counted
Reconcile
Prove the month, to the penny.
BudgetBuilt works the month out two ways and compares them.
$0.00difference: expected and actual match
- Expected: opening balances plus the month's real income and spending
- Actual: what your accounts hold right now
- When they match, close the month and carry a trusted starting point forward
- When they don't, Ask BB explains the likely cause without changing your data
Money flow
See where every dollar went.
Follow income through the household into recurring bills, flexible spending, and the categories beneath them, with the surplus that's left at the end.
- Actual and still-planned money shown side by side
- Refunds netted against what they offset
- Click any flow for the details behind it
Net worth
Everything you own and owe.
Connected balances sit alongside the things banks don't report.
- Checking, savings, cards, investments, and loans in one list
- Track a home, vehicle, or loan by hand
- Export a clean PDF when you need one
How money is organized
Built for households with shared and personal money.
Every account belongs to a lane. Shared money is budgeted together; personal money stays personal.
Recurring HouseholdShared
Bills that repeat: mortgage or rent, utilities, car payments, subscriptions.
Joint DiscretionaryShared
Flexible family spending: groceries, dining, kids, home.
Alex PersonalPersonal
One partner's own accounts and cards, tracked on their own.
Jordan PersonalPersonal
The other partner's lane. Rename each one to fit your family.
Household income minus recurring bills and joint spendingleaves a projected surplus, shared between personal lanes by the split you choose.
On your phone
The same answers, in your pocket.
Every screen is laid out for the phone, not squeezed onto it.
How it works
Set it up yourself, with help when you want it.
Create your household
Sign up with your name and email. Your household is ready in seconds, and your sign-in invitation arrives by email.
Connect accounts
Link checking, savings, cards, and loans through a secure, read-only connection.
Map and plan
Add the bills and paychecks you expect. Invite your partner, and each of you can track personal spending.
Close the month
Reconcile, close, and start next month from numbers you trust.
Private pilot
Free while the pilot runs.
Pilot households get the full product at no cost in exchange for honest feedback.
Limited pilot
BudgetBuilt Private Pilot
$0 during the pilot
No card required · leave any time
- Overview, Transactions, Reconcile, Money flow, and Net worth
- Read-only account connections with daily syncing
- Shared household and personal lanes for each partner
- Feedback straight to the founder from inside the app
For a small number of pilot households.
After the pilot: active pilot households that close three distinct months and send five pieces of honest feedback qualify for the Founding Family rate of $4.99/month if they choose to continue. The planned regular price is $9.99/month. Nothing is charged without your approval, and you can leave at any time.
Start your household
Create your private BudgetBuilt workspace.
Start with the person who will manage the household. We create your household right away and email you a secure sign-in invitation.
- Only your name and email to begin
- No account connections until you're ready
- Invite a partner later from Family settings
Questions
Straight answers.
Can BudgetBuilt move my money?
No. Connections are read-only. BudgetBuilt reads balances and transactions to organize them; it cannot start transfers or payments.
How do my accounts connect?
Through Plaid, the connection service used by many banking and budgeting apps. You sign in to your bank on Plaid's screen; BudgetBuilt never sees your bank password.
Who is it best for?
Households with several accounts and cards, shared and personal money, regular transfers, or reimbursements: the situations generic budget apps get wrong.
Do both partners get their own login?
Yes. Invite your partner from Family settings. Each person signs in separately, and once there are two of you, each can have their own personal budget.
Does it work on my phone?
Yes. BudgetBuilt runs in your phone's browser with a layout built for small screens. There is nothing to install.
Are the screenshots real?
Yes. They are the current app running a synthetic sample household, so no real family's finances are shown.
What happens after the pilot?
Active pilot households that close three distinct months and send five pieces of honest feedback qualify for the Founding Family rate of $4.99/month if they choose to continue. The planned regular price is $9.99/month. You will get notice before the pilot ends, and nothing is charged without your approval.
Is this financial advice?
No. BudgetBuilt is an organizing and reporting tool. It does not give investment, tax, legal, or financial-planning advice.