How to use this glossary
Each table covers one family of terms. The definition is ours, written in plain language; the app column uses the wording from each vendor's help pages, with sources numbered at the end. Example numbers are invented. Where an app's documentation did not mention a concept, we leave it out rather than guess at the name.
If you are switching apps, read the app column first: half of the confusion in a migration comes from two apps using the same word, such as Available, for slightly different numbers.
Planning money
These terms describe money before it is spent: how much you have, how much you have given a job, and what is left.
| Term | Plain definition | Example | In the apps |
|---|---|---|---|
| Zero-based budgeting | Give every dollar you have a job until nothing is unassigned. | $3,000 in the bank, $3,000 assigned, $0 left. | YNAB: zero-based planning [1] |
| Envelope system | The cash-in-envelopes method that zero-based apps imitate digitally. | $400 in a groceries envelope; when it is empty, you stop. | YNAB compares categories to envelopes [1] |
| Unassigned money | Money in your accounts not yet given to a category. | $1,000 in accounts, $750 assigned, $250 unassigned. | YNAB: Ready to Assign [1]; Lunch Money: Left to Budget, Available to Budget [2] |
| Overassigning | Assigning more than you actually have. | $1,000 in accounts, $1,100 assigned: $100 over. | YNAB: red Ready to Assign [1]; Lunch Money: Overbudgeted [2] |
| Budgeted or assigned | What you plan to spend in a category this period. | Groceries budgeted at $600. | YNAB: Assigned [1]; Lunch Money: Budgeted [2]; Monarch: Planned [3] |
| Activity | What actually happened in a category this period. | $540 of grocery spending so far. | YNAB and Lunch Money: Activity [1][2]; Monarch: Actual [3] |
| Available | What is left to spend in a category. | $600 budgeted minus $540 activity = $60. | YNAB: Available [1]; Lunch Money: budgeted minus activity plus rollovers [2]; Monarch: Remaining [3] |
| Target | An amount a category should receive or reach over time. | $1,200 by December for gifts. | YNAB: Targets [4]; Monarch Non-monthly: target amount and frequency [5] |
| Flex budgeting | Budgeting variable spending as one number rather than per category. | One $1,100 Flex number for groceries, dining and shopping. | Monarch: Flex budgeting, with Fixed, Non-monthly and Flex buckets [5] |
| Budget period | The span a budget covers before it resets. | Monthly, or a custom period starting on payday. | Lunch Money: Budgeting period [2]; PocketSmith: budget period [6] |
Carrying money between periods
These terms explain what happens at the end of a month. Our rollover guide works through a three-month example in each app.
| Term | Plain definition | Example | In the apps |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rollover | Unspent (or overspent) category money carried into the next period. | $30 left in groceries starts next month at $180 on a $150 budget. | YNAB: positive Available carries over, negative does not [1]; Monarch: Rollover [3]; Lunch Money: Rollover [2]; PocketSmith: Rollover budgeting, currently a beta opt-in [6] |
| Overspending carryover | An overspend that reduces next period's budget. | $25 over this month leaves $75 of a $100 budget next month. | Monarch: negative rollover [3]; PocketSmith: rollover when above [6]; Lunch Money same-category option [7] |
| Rollover starting balance | An opening amount for a rollover category. | Car repairs category starts with $600. | Monarch: Starting Balance [3] |
| General pool | A shared pot that leftover money can flow back into. | $30 unspent on dining returns to the pool. | Lunch Money: General Pool [2] |
| Sinking fund | Saving a monthly slice for a known non-monthly bill. | $960 yearly insurance saved at $80 a month. | Monarch: Non-monthly bucket with rollovers [5]; see our sinking funds guide |
| Cash vs credit overspending | Overspending paid from a bank account versus from a card. | Red negative category (cash) or yellow (credit). | YNAB [8] |
Transactions
Most double-counting mistakes come from the last three rows of this table.
| Term | Plain definition | Example | In the apps |
|---|---|---|---|
| Split transaction | One payment divided across categories. | $120 at a superstore: $80 groceries, $40 household. | YNAB [9]; Monarch [10]; Lunch Money: split, parts must sum to the original [11]; PocketSmith: no un-split [12] |
| Transfer | Money moving between two of your own accounts. Not income, not spending. | $300 checking to savings shows -300 and +300. | YNAB [13]; Monarch: Transfers group [14]; Lunch Money: Payment, Transfer [15] |
| Transaction group | Two or more transactions shown as one entry. | Both sides of a transfer, netting to $0. | Lunch Money: group [11] |
| Exclude from totals | A category flag that keeps transactions out of spending and income totals. | A transfer category with this on. | Lunch Money: Exclude from totals [15] |
| Rule | An automatic instruction that edits matching transactions. | Payee contains "Corner Market": set Groceries. | Lunch Money: Rules [16] |
Accounts and balances
Balances look simple until the app and the bank disagree. These terms are the vocabulary of fixing that.
| Term | Plain definition | Example | In the apps |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pending transaction | Authorized at the bank but not yet posted. | A $45 fuel hold that posts two days later. | YNAB: Pending Transactions [1] |
| Cleared balance | The sum of transactions both you and the bank know about. | Bank shows $1,842.60 posted. | YNAB: Cleared Balance [1] |
| Working balance | Cleared plus uncleared transactions. | $1,842.60 cleared minus a $45 uncleared purchase = $1,797.60. | YNAB: Working Balance [1] |
| Reconcile | Confirm the app's balance and transactions match the bank. | Monthly check against the statement. | YNAB: Reconcile [17] |
| Balance adjustment | A correction entry or edit that forces the app balance to match. | A $12.40 adjustment after an unexplained gap. | YNAB: Reconciliation Balance Adjustment [17]; Monarch: edit balance history [18]; Lunch Money: change Current Balance on manual accounts [19] |
| Tracking account | An account you watch but do not budget from. | A retirement account or mortgage. | YNAB: Tracking Account [1] |
| Net worth | Assets minus liabilities. | $42,000 of assets minus $15,000 of debt = $27,000. | YNAB [1]; Lunch Money: positive loan or credit balances subtract [19] |
| Forecast | Projected future balances from planned income and bills. | Checking projected to dip to $210 before payday. | PocketSmith: budgets apply to the forecast [20]; YNAB uses forecasting for planning with money not yet received [1] |
Credit cards
Our guide to credit cards in budgeting apps walks through a $1,200 card month paid in full and carried.
| Term | Plain definition | Example | In the apps |
|---|---|---|---|
| Credit card payment category | A category holding money set aside to pay the card. | $350 waiting to pay the card. | YNAB: Credit Card Payment category [1]; Monarch: Credit Card Payment transfer category [14] |
| Funded spending | Card spending covered by money already in the category. | $50 of gas from a funded category moves $50 to the payment category. | YNAB [1] |
| Credit card float | Using this month's income to pay last month's card spending. | Paying September's card with October's paycheck. | YNAB [1] |
Getting data in
For the column rules each app applies to CSV files, see our guide to importing a spreadsheet into a budgeting app.
| Term | Plain definition | Example | In the apps |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bank feed or direct import | Automatic transaction download from a connected bank. | Transactions appear a day or two after they clear. | YNAB: Direct Import [1]; PocketSmith: bank feed [21] |
| File-based import | Uploading a file exported from your bank or another app. | A CSV of last month's card transactions. | YNAB: File-Based Import [22]; PocketSmith: bank files [23] |
| OFX, QFX, QIF, CSV | Common transaction file formats. | OFX follows a defined specification; CSV layouts vary by bank. | PocketSmith prefers OFX and uses CSV only if others are unavailable [23] |
Questions before you decide
What is the difference between Ready to Assign and Available?
In YNAB, Ready to Assign is money in your accounts not yet given to any category, while Available is what is left to spend in one category. Lunch Money uses Left to Budget for the first idea and Available for the second.
Is a rollover the same as a sinking fund?
Not quite. A sinking fund is the habit of saving a slice each month for a known future bill; a rollover is the app feature that keeps unspent category money from one period to the next, which is what lets a sinking fund build up.
Why is a credit card payment not an expense?
Because the spending was already counted when you made each purchase. Monarch, Lunch Money, PocketSmith and YNAB all document card payments or transfers as money moving between your own accounts, excluded from spending totals.
Follow the sources
- YNAB help: YNAB Glossary Checked Oct 30, 2026
- Lunch Money help: Budgeting reference glossary Checked Oct 30, 2026
- Monarch help: Rollover Budgets Checked Oct 30, 2026
- YNAB help: How to Use Targets Checked Oct 30, 2026
- Monarch help: Using Flex Budgeting Checked Oct 30, 2026
- PocketSmith Learn Centre: Rollover budgeting Checked Oct 30, 2026
- Lunch Money help: Setting up your budget (rollover options) Checked Oct 30, 2026
- YNAB help: Handling Overspending in YNAB Checked Oct 30, 2026
- YNAB help: Split Transactions Checked Oct 30, 2026
- Monarch help: Splitting Transactions Checked Oct 30, 2026
- Lunch Money help: Transaction Types (split and group) Checked Oct 30, 2026
- PocketSmith Learn Centre: Splitting transactions Checked Oct 30, 2026
- YNAB help: Transfer Transactions Checked Oct 30, 2026
- Monarch help: Transfers and Credit Card Payments Checked Oct 30, 2026
- Lunch Money help: Category Properties Checked Oct 30, 2026
- Lunch Money help: Rules Checked Oct 30, 2026
- YNAB help: Reconciling Accounts Checked Oct 30, 2026
- Monarch help: Manually Edit an Account Balance Checked Oct 30, 2026
- Lunch Money help: Accounts FAQ Checked Oct 30, 2026
- PocketSmith Learn Centre: Creating a new budget Checked Oct 30, 2026
- PocketSmith Learn Centre: Importing bank files into PocketSmith Checked Oct 30, 2026
- YNAB help: File-Based Import Checked Oct 30, 2026
- PocketSmith Learn Centre: Preparing your bank files, accepted file types Checked Oct 30, 2026
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