YNAB Setup In The Middle Of The Month

[@nancykwan4288]

Oh my freaking god! Thank you!!!!! I think I've reset my budget 5 times already!!! I hope I get the hang of this soon! Keep up the great work! :)

[@mappedoutmoney]

Nancy Kwan hahahah thanks Nancy! Im glad that the video helped :) good luck and let me know if you ever need anything!

[@kelliefletcher5512]

I’m literally feeling like a failure already. I’m trying so hard to understand this but starting in the middle of the month AND when you’ve been living in a biweekly world (ie paycheck to paycheck), it’s really hard to switch my thinking. I’m going to stick with it and hopefully over the next few months it will all level out for me. I need this!!

[@charlsiesturm]

Watch all of Nick’s videos and Hannah’s videos on YNAB’s channels. The software is life changing! Hard to adapt but priceless once you’re in the groove

[@MarkHarbert]

We are just starting to use YNAB and wow Nick, your videos are off the charts good. Thanks buddy for all this value.

[@mappedoutmoney]

Glad to hear it Mark! Really appreciate it. Pumped that the videos are helpful for you my friend.

[@emilyantonivich1121]

Every question I've thought of since getting started, you've already created a detailed video answering. Thank you for all the resources!

[@mappedoutmoney]

haha, so glad it's been helpful!

[@rayeyeshe5473]

I was really struggling with getting YNAB set up and working for me. I found a recommendation for your video in a YNAB FB group and I gotta say ... between your beginner’s video and this one, it’s finally starting to make sense. Thank you for taking the time to put these together!

[@mappedoutmoney]

Woot woot! That’s what I love to hear Raye! So glad that my videos have been helpful for you. Thanks so much for taking the time to comment and let me know. Good luck YNABing!

[@maukakane85]

I really needed this video. I took part in a YNAB webinar and asked if I should wait to the beginning of the next month to start budgeting. They implied that was silly without really explaining why or how to deal with a mid-month start. Your video nails it. Only 1 recommendation Nick: slow down a little :)

[@mappedoutmoney]

haha, thanks John! Glad it was helpful for you. Really appreciate you watching and for the comment man :)

[@josephhogue]

Love YNAB but agree some of the features and setup can be confusing. Great walk-through on how to use the budgeting software.

[@mappedoutmoney]

Thanks Joseph! Glad you like YNAB as well, I appreciate you watching man!

[@electricant55]

After you said that the goal is to stop living paycheck to paycheck the system finally clicked for me. I get paid between 7th and 14th of every month, so budgeting each specific month has always been a chore. Thanks a lot

[@mappedoutmoney]

For reference, you can download my YNAB beginner's checklist here: mappedoutmoney.com/ynab-checklist/ Please leave any questions you have about YNAB below and I'll answer them all. Thanks for watching! :)

[@houtzwife]

Thank you for your instructional videos. I was loyal to YNAB-4 and COULD NOT mentally make the switch to the new format, even after 3 attempts. Unfortunately, my software was getting updated and would no longer support YNAB-4, so I forced myself to change a few weeks ago. It was very confusing to me until I found your videos. The first one I watched, you had suggested to just 'start a fresh budget' Even though it was mid-April, I still started a new one. Gratefully, you had THIS video about starting mid-month, which I just watched. The first one I watched was your one about setting up new accounts, etc.. It was VERY helpful. With your videos, I feel I am getting a handle on everything. Thanks so much!

[@mappedoutmoney]

Awesome Alison, I really appreciate you taking the time to comment. So glad that the videos have been helpful for you! Thanks so much :)

[@moonpiedaisymoe3324]

I swear yours is the BEST training for YNAB! Even better than YNAB trainers.

[@mappedoutmoney]

haha, thanks! Glad that the videos have helped :)

[@Buckinghamrabbit]

You are a legend for making this video. I discovered YNAB a few days ago, started to get really excited, and then experienced problems with this exact quandary. Thank you so much!

[@mappedoutmoney]

hahaha, thanks Adam! So glad that you found the video then. It's definitely one of the more confusing aspects, so glad I could help you out man!

[@jillbolzer9295]

I love how you are very down to earth and give excellent examples. My question is: If I am paid once a month in the middle of the month, what is the best way to budget w/ YNAB? It gets a little confusing going between months when budgeting on the day I get paid. Thanks and have a great day!

[@stop08it]

i wish i'd seen this, i basically just stopped using it for this month and started working on next month's budget...it really is very confusing starting in the middle of the month and noone really mentions this. you're really awesome!!

[@gemnilocs]

lord I have started this budget 😅ver so many times because all of the old transactions were showing and making it seem as if I had overpaid for things....i'm glad this is showing up on my feed today...i needed this a few days ago but glad to see it now.

[@DCZeroSeven]

I wish I’ve seen this before I started a couple of months ago! Really helpful! Thanks!

[@mappedoutmoney]

Haha well so glad you found it now!! Thanks for the comment! :)

[@tammyj2086]

Nick, you are truly amazing for making these videos. I discovered your channel an hour ago and I'm already dedicated to binge watching your videos. First thing I noticed at the beginning of this video was the new mortgage category and the different background setting. Congratulations on becoming a home owner!!! My number one goal right now is to save enough money for a home down payment in 2 years, and to watch it happen to you using YNAB to budget your money is truly inspirational. I can't express enough gratitude to you for taking the time to make the notorious YNAB learning curve into an expedited process that's so easy to comprehend. I'm only 3 videos deep into your YNAB playlist and I've already deemed you my financial guru. YOU'RE THE BEST.

[@ComadreMindy]

GREAT video tutorial! YNAB needs you to be the official Instructor!! Bravo!

[@mappedoutmoney]

Thanks Mindy!! I appreciate that :) So glad you found the video helpful!

[@noname5905]

I notice that my "To Be Budgeted' flag at the top of my page does not turn red if I add more funds to a budgeted item than I have available in the "to be budgdeted" section. Instead, the to be budgeted number goes to $0, even thought I budgeted more than what was available. Any reason why this is happening? Thanks!

[@ariellagreenberg1389]

Thanks so much Nick! I literally set up YNAB two days ago and this is perfect for me! Thank you so much for doing this!

[@mappedoutmoney]

Boom! So glad to hear that it was good timing for you. Excited that you're getting YNAB going :)

[@Mrschristinehubert]

I tried to use your affiliate link. I hope it worked because you sold me on this program. Thanks for your help!

[@kinnerets251]

Hello! Delighted to start my YNAB journey and excited to find your channel. Started logging things yesterday (Apr. 16th) and I did budget for past expenses (rent & bills payed), not realizing I needed to start from the mid-month point. Now I think I’ve messed everything up!

[@markjones3964]

Nick, your video's have been so helpful, but I haven't seen how you deal with the import function, as you always demonstrate using manual entry. I would really appreciate some insight on how to effectively use the import function, especially if you are getting started toward the end of the month. Thanks!

[@annalisameow]

These YNAB vids have been insanely helpful! Thank you so much!

[@mappedoutmoney]

Awesome Annalisa! I'm so glad that the videos have been helpful for you :) Thanks so much for taking the time to let me know!

[@Healthhomehappy]

This was super helpful thank you! After being credit card free for the past decade I’m finally seeing the benefits of rewards (and have the ability to pay them off every month!) so I’m moving from the old-school envelope system to ynab with credit cards! I’m going to go watch your CC video next since I’m still not totally sure how to do this.

[@mappedoutmoney]

Hey! Good to see you again, so glad this helped you figure out how to start in the middle of a month :)

[@nikkinicheller8013]

Hi, I love the video. I just downloaded YNAB about 5 days ago now. I still don’t understand budgeting for next month. Ex: i paid rent already, so I’m going to start paying for next month. When I enter an amount it don’t start at zero it adds to what I had in the rent column for last month. Hope I’m making sense.

[@mappedoutmoney]

Hey Nikki, Good question. So if you've already paid the rent BEFORE you started YNAB, you just wouldn't budget money for the rent category that month. Instead, you would go forward into the next month and add it there. That should be starting at zero because you wouldn't have added any for this month. let me know if you're still struggling, I realize you asked this question like a month ago lol

[@eriklundin2051]

Thank's for doing this! I was interested in YNAB and a couple of your videos pushed me over the cliff and I followed your link for two free months right now :)

[@mappedoutmoney]

Awesome Erik! I super appreciate the support man. That means a lot. Thanks for watching and reach out anytime if there's ever anything I can do to help!

[@erikvinicius5]

Funny how I'm like "ugh, how do I do x in ynab? How can I even google it?" Then you have all these situational vids, very helpful!

[@arwoods]

Thank you for all your helpful videos! Your explanations are very good. Maybe I can finally make budgeting work.

[@mappedoutmoney]

No problem Royal! Glad it helped!

[@ATMcPhee]

Nick, you are just fantastic, thank you so much! I'm trying out YNAB, and your videos are proving immensely helpful.

[@mappedoutmoney]

Thanks Andy! I really appreciate that. I'm glad they're helpful for you. Excited that you're giving YNAB a go, it's a great tool my man. Thanks for commenting and letting me know!

[@Journey2FindKay]

LOL I may seem a lil stalker-ish but YESSS!!! One of the few people who actually cover starting in the middle of the month. Thank you again for your content! def a new sub here.

[@JasonMitchellAZ]

Thanks for this video, Nick! It really helps. (I just started using YNAB yesterday, so yeah, middle-ish of the month)

[@VeronicaSanchez-ug9nc]

This app is confusing to use. Several transactions have completely derailed my budget and I don’t know how to fix it w/out getting overwhelmed. It’s definitely not intuitive and I don’t have much time to learn this system. Not sure I’ll continue. Grateful for the video though.

[@shannanoel9158]

Life saver! So glad I stumbled upon your videos!

[@mappedoutmoney]

Awesome Shanna! I'm so glad that the videos have been helpful for you :) Thanks so much for the comment!

[@shellywalton8545]

YNAB need to pay you. Thank you for this.

[@mappedoutmoney]

haha, thanks Shelly! I appreciate it :)

[@ryandavidsheasby4028]

Hey Nick. I noticed you had barely any browser plugins. You should really look at adding more. They really add a lot of useful functionality to your browser. You're not living until you've got triple digits in browser plugins!

[@mappedoutmoney]

hahaha, I've got at least 15+ :) Triple digits seems a bit excessive lol. But I agree there's some really cool stuff out there that I haven't looked in to. Thanks Ryan! :)

[@calebrcannon]

This was exactly what I was looking for! Thank you!

[@nathanielbaker3602]

This is the video I needed thank you

[@mappedoutmoney]

No problem, happy to help

[@freya7084]

Super helpful!!!! I was going to wait until the 1st. Guess I don’t have to procrastinate anymore :D

[@mappedoutmoney]

Woot woot! So glad to hear that :) Pumped that this video was helpful for you. Really appreciate the comment :)

[@freya7084]

Nick True - MappedOutMoney thanks Nick. I sent you a really long email yesterday! (My name is Freya)

[@mappedoutmoney]

Awesome! I'm WAY behind on emails, but I promise I will get to it soon :)

[@gracedesilva8304]

Love your videos! Just curious if you’ve played with undebtit and the ynab sync? I love the idea, but can’t grasp using the 2 together (manually entering payments or just syncing) you’re so clear in your explanations, just thought I’d ask. Thank you!!

[@mappedoutmoney]

Thanks for the kind words! I actually haven't, but it's on my list of things to do. I'm going to setup a test account and mess around with the integration. It's on my list of videos to make once I get it all setup and work through it. So, not promises for anything soon, but it's on the list! Thanks so much for watching and commenting :)

[@markjones3964]

I'm using the undebt.it integration and so far I love it...however, I'm having some issues understanding how to deal with delays in syncing and how to manage implementing my budget torward the end of the month when I've clearly used a debit or credit card for a purchase, but it hasn't yet updated in YNAB...help!!

[@mzlyzs9863]

I've been looking for this vid for a while thia should pop up w the New User video. I struggled so much and alot of back tracking..ty

[@ngocnguyen-fl9lv]

Thank you for doing this

[@mappedoutmoney]

Of course! Thanks for watching :)

[@pamelaturnerpt]

Im starting over as I lost track over holdiays etc.... I still have some categories or should I start fresh? I did not start it the way you described and wonder if it is better to just wipe it clean. I need some of the info for my CPA as they do my taxes and this is my only way of tracking my $ and biz exp for them... ideas

[@martystewart1131]

Great Video! Thanks!

[@mappedoutmoney]

Thank you! Really appreciate the comment :)

[@maryepang]

Thanks again for these videos Nick! I seriously wouldn't be able to use YNAB without these videos and I'm so inspired to do so because I see what a powerful tool it can be. QUESTION: can I apply this concept if I have a biweekly paycheck? So basically instead of looking at it from a monthly basis, check in and reallocate funds everytime my paycheck comes in?

[@jessicaweeks3076]

Thank you for your videos! I watched all the YNAB ones you posted before deciding on trying it, because I get easily confused/frustrated and wanted to see what it was all about. Now I feel like i'll have a lifeline when I get started! I've signed up on your website and added the Alexa skill. I'm ready to get my finances together and budget for the life I want! I just wanted to check, I noticed the link in the description says 2 months free with the affiliate link. When I click it, it just says 34 days. I notice this is an older video though. Is the 2 months still being offered, or has YNAB changed it?

[@mappedoutmoney]

Hey Jessica! I do need to change that sorry, but yes YNAB just recently removed their 2-month trial and everything is one month now. Sorry for the confusion! Glad to hear that the videos have been helpful and I really appreciate you checking out my videos :)

[@jessicaweeks3076]

@@mappedoutmoney Thank you for the response. I used your affiliate link and am starting my journey. I just set up my budget while switching back and forth between your quick start, mid-month, and goal type videos. It was super easy and I feel like I spared myself a huge headache but just watching a part of the video, pausing at each step and doing the same thing in my budget. I barely had to think except to decide what categories I wanted and how I wanted them to work for me. I can't wait to keep learning about YNAB and just general budgeting and finances from your posts. I hope God blesses you and your wife in a HUGE way for how much you have been a blessing to those of us who just need a little financial guidance to reach our own goals! Thank you!

[@mappedoutmoney]

Jessica Weeks hey thanks so much. That means a ton to me. I’m so glad to hear that the videos have been helpful. Please reach out if there’s anything I can help with!

[@jenniferrich3245]

Soooo, love this and thank you! I started to watch this segment and stopped when you said to go back to the "Quickstart Guide" - made a huge difference so thank you! Question though - I've already set up all of my full month goals but now, since i'm actually starting at the endish of the month, according to this segment, I should go back and revise my goals to reflect 1/2'ish of the actual goals for a month. Buuuut, since I've already set up the real goals for each month, I don't want to undo them. Is there a YNAB option to have the goals "stick" to one month and not move to the next? Thank you again for this guide, I was lost and crazy before watching the Beginner's quickstart guide. Now I have it on my phone, my computer, and my IPad so i'll be using it like my Evernote!

[@mappedoutmoney]

Woot woot! so glad you have it across all your devices :) And honestly, Jennifer, I wouldn't worry about it. There's only one week left in Feb. I would probably just leave the goals how they are, and just not fully fund the goals this month. That's no big deal. You'll end the month with some yellow categories, but that's no big deal at all. A goal is a gameplan, it's okay to go off the plan every now and again. Plus this is month 1 and that's always different :) I just wouldn't worry about it. Unfortunately, there's not a way to just "Stick" to one month, so that's why I would just fund what you need for the rest of Feb. and roll with it. Hope that helps! Good luck :)

[@caitlinmaribona2937]

Hi Nick! love your videos and have probably watched them all. I've had to do a fresh start after a weird spending month but didn't see any videos on the best way to set that up. Is there a video I missed? If not, then I've got a video request for you :) Thanks!

[@mappedoutmoney]

Hey Caitlin! Ya, that's a good idea. I don't have any videos about doing fresh starts. Although my main YNAB beginner's guide should work OK, that's a good video request :)

[@caitlinmaribona2937]

@@mappedoutmoney That's good to hear because that's the video I aways go back to! Appreciate the response!

[@allanfaust1011]

Hi... love the videos... moving forward slowly but surely....thx to your help.... it’s working. Now I have a question that wasn’t completely answered in this video. Any way I can ask the question in a more private forum? Ie messenger etc?

[@mappedoutmoney]

Sure Allan! Shoot me an email at nick(at)mappedoutmoney(dot)com and I can answer it! I'm a little slower to respond, right now because of the holidays, but I'll look for your email.

[@allanfaust1011]

Nick True - MappedOutMoney I understand completely... I hope you enjoy your holidays...and I appreciate the help.

[@yanantinfoundation4529]

Thank you so much for all your videos! I have a question... how do you organise your incomes? I haven't seen you talking about that? thank you!

[@gbiedron08]

Clear as mud. Basically it’s a pain to start budgeting in the middle of the month. Doesn’t make any sense.

[@timberwolf753]

Thank you for doing these videos, definitely got me up to speed on how yo use it. Still have me confused about the rent though. I started the 15th and payed my rent before than, now I want to budget rent for next month but don't know where to put it. I would like to use a goal if possible. I get payed weekly if that helps.

[@simplelifemoneymatters3901]

Using Everydollar but need more. I hope I am up to figuring this method out. Don't get me wrong I made tremendous progress with Everydollar and have used it for nearly two years. It's time for me to sit at the adult table

[@mappedoutmoney]

haha, love the analogy! Glad you're here :)

[@tinan7630]

Just learned about YNAB yesterday at work and loved your intro video. I currently have a savings, checking and another checking account through a credit union. Our credit into on checking account has $500/week directly deposited from my paycheck into this account to cover approximately $1950 worth of loans a month. We use the extra $50 to budget for these loans between my travel nurse assignments when I’m not working. I am wondering how I budget for this money monthly without putting it into other categories. Hoping you can guide me in the right direction. Thanks!

[@tinac2254]

okay i got another issue. i have roommates and i got oct rent on September 28 i paid that part of the rent then.. well now i got paid oct 2nd and new month and says im over budget. i have not even used the $check i got oct 2. but i cant fund anything because im already negative

[@Justic3h]

Hey Nick - what do you do if a charge clears on the credit card shortly after you started using YNAB. It is a charge I made before budgeting the amount and had transferred the amount from my checking to the credit card before making the purchase but YNAB doesn't see that - what do I do?

[@openocean09181]

Nick True!!!!!! Wassup dude

[@YKKY]

I would absolutely love to know how to budget and get ahead if you are only getting paid once a month, in a middle of a month (Hello from central Europe!) :)

[@cfawaco346]

So, I wish I had checked this video before starting because I started on April 28 and had money for May but budgeted it all for April. Is there a way to undo that easily, or do I just need to do a restart? I have all of my categories and budgets set up already and don’t want to do a complete reset. What would be the best method? Unfund the categories for April and move them to May?

[@riomanty]

so basically next month we change the goals to be double (so in your example, edit groceries 200 - > 400)?

[@mappedoutmoney]

It’s up to you. You could do that yes, or you could just set goals now for the normal month and consciously choose not to fully fund them. That’s personally what I would do. Set the $400 goal but only budget $200 to the category. But it’s personal preference. Hope that helps!

[@pattyaguilar186]

Hi Nick So I watched this video because im starting this today and some of my bills are already paid. Question once you link your accounts, does ynab pull in the transactions into the categories? Like in Mint? Or is it all manual input? TIA!!

[@cartwheel43]

You probably have your answer by now, but if your accounts are linked to YNAB then yes, it will populate your transactions automatically. You can always click the import button to make sure it's happening. I'm moving from Mint and I'd never have chosen this if it didn't do that.

[@jkquiltsknits]

Now I need to figure out how to reset & start over. 😺😿

[@bonniea8189]

I'm just getting started with YNAB and trying to use your videos as guides, but it's still confusing. One thing I preferred doing was allocating monies to categories directly from the account. As in, going to the savings account and assigning the budget category to that original inflow transaction entry. Typically when you're starting out in YNAB you don't have easy, round numbers to work with and you have to calculate how much from each account you have left to allocate if you aren't doing it from the account itself. Furthermore, I use accounts like envelopes (though with fewer of them) so I have one account for regular, static expenses (rent, insurance, etc.) and another for dynamic expenses (groceries, gas, etc.). So when I got to allocating my checking accounts, I didn't want to allocate for groceries from my rent account, or vice versa.

[@Botzz28]

so update i just realized this video is preety old they have a setting now that you can choose the date its due by so i jus went forward to january and set that month up and i left everything i paid this month blank i guess? idk lol

[@jcwade]

Thank you so much, this almost made me not start it at all.

[@arunsundaramurthy]

Hey Nick, I've just started using YNAB and wouldn't have done it without your amazing videos! Thanks and keep'em coming! I wanted to ask if there is a way I opt for 'auto debit' a certain amount of money (Transaction) on a monthly basis without having to manually inputting it i.e. similar to real life where I have setup direct debit for my electricity for example? Thanks

[@IIIBigMikeIII]

Great videos Nick! I just set up YNAB yesterday and set all of my goals for January since I noticed that they autopopulated those goals to the next months. After watching this video I was going to go back and delete the goals in January for what has already been paid (before signing up for YNAB), but when I do this it deletes the goals in the next months also. I don't want to take the goals out for January, but I am afraid that it will mess up the entire budget for the next month if I do not delete January's goals that have already been paid. What do you think I should do?

[@aboardnow66]

Great video and it is very helpful. I’m coming from using another budgeting app, I loved it, but it doesn’t handle credit card debt well at all, and I now find myself with some of that. One thing I liked was that you were able to categorize income, or incoming money. I would be able to track my income vs. my wife’s income. Both would fund the virtual buckets/envelopes of our budget, but we could run reports that showed who and where the income came from, that helped as my wife is self-employed, and I am part-time self-employed and also have a full-time job. I see that YNAB show incoming money and “to be budgeted." Is there a way to track/categorize incoming money?

[@koDiacc]

hey Nick, I have a question. If I rent an appartment, and pay the full price (lets say 1000 USD), but there are 2 roomates, living with me, which are paying me at the beginning of each month -> should my goal für rent should be 1000 USD or just my part of the rent? Because whenever I take an "report" I think rent is showing up more, than it actually is for me?

[@wendyclark4386]

Thanks Nick, for the great tutorials. Priceless info! Quick question: I keep getting this annoying animated pop up almost every transaction I make that says "Credit card user? You budgeted, you charged it, so we moved the money for you..." etc. I understand the concept-you explained very well thank you. But how do I get the pop up to stop? It's driving me crazy!

[@rgnoel]

Love your videos! They have helped a ton. One quick question. I started my YNAB budget (again) in the middle of Nov. I want to look ahead to see if my goals for Dec are realistic based on what I know I'm going to make in Dec. However, if I change goals in Dec it messes up Nov goals. Any way to separate the two months so I can start planning ahead for Dec?

[@grahmeperez1852]

Hi Nick. I'm starting YNAB mid month after most of my credit cards have been paid (full statement balance). I've linked my checking account and most all of my credit card accounts. The transactions for the credit card payments are downloading to YNAB and asking to be categorized. That is where I am stuck. Can you tell me how these initial CC payments should be categorized?

[@janmessner3717]

I a brand new to YNAB and appreciate your videos. I am a little confused how to handle entering when I wrote a check. Do I add a transaction in the checking account in that amount and then wait until it clears the bank to enter in the Activity column?

[@betsybell381]

linked bank accounts and CC's upload everything from the past. How can I get only the expenses that have happened since I set the budget with the current balances?

[@Christian-rt3kg]

Awesome video, this is my 2nd go at watching it! Quick question....Why is it that in the "My Budget" column to the left, the all blue part I have a negative number where it says Budget? For example, let's pretend I have these number: Budget -$275.74 Checking account $3,139.69 Savings $200 Credit Card #1 -$3,580.00 Credit Card #2 -$35.43 I understand that if I add up my checking and savings then subtract my credit cards I get the -275.74, but how can I make it $0.00 I've had to reconcile my accounts twice since I started YNAB a month ago b/c there were small discrepancies from what my bank/credit card accounts stated. Not sure if that has anything to do with it?? Anyway, keep up the great videos. I wish I would have seen all of them in my twenties, I'm now in my 40's and trying to straighten my finances. Never too late to start, right....

[@mappedoutmoney]

Definitely never too late to start man! I totally agree. As for you question, I think you’re getting caught up in the wrong numbers. Honestly, that particular budget total is about useless. It’s just a total of all credit cards, checking accounts, and savings. Ideally you’ll eventually be building savings to a large number. So then your budget total Is going to be a large positive number. Basically you shouldn’t try to get it to 0. That would mean you owe exactly the amount on your credit cards as you have in savings and checking. So I just wouldn’t pay much attention to that number at all :)

[@monicaherrera8981]

I have tried YNAB several times but I always get stuck on how to handle interest that’s are being charged by my credit cards and maintenance fee that’s being charged by my savings. Nick is it possible to make video explaining all this. Thank you.

[@mappedoutmoney]

Hey Monica! Have you checked out my YNAB credit cards video? I think it will be helpful for you and answer the interest question. As for maintenance fee I would just create a category and monthly goal for it just like you do for netflix, or electric, or rent, or any other bill. Hope that helps!

[@Djack30275]

I have been using YNAB for about a week. I have all my budget categories set and have watched all your videos. I feel like my budget is off because I started off in the middle of the month. Will I essentially get a fresh start on the first of October? I'm worried all these funds from my goals will roll-over because there is no activity to reconcile them.

[@Freeonguitar]

Hey, I'm super grateful for your Ynab videos. I have a question. How can I or can I at all handle fuel and food cards that my company provide as incentive?

[@mappedoutmoney]

Hey there! Okay, so that's sort of hard to do... But if it's happening regularly, it's probably worth it. What I would likely do is create brand new accounts in YNAB for these. You would choose to add account and choose "checking" and then basically set these up as if they are pre-paid cards. (I"m assuming that you're loading these with money and then using them somehow?) But then when you spend on them, add those transactions into those accounts in YNAB just like you would for a credit or debt card account. Let me know how these cards work and how you fund them and we can see if that's the best way to do it or not. Hope that helps!

[@WolfR8]

Maybe I’m just not a very bright person, but the one thing I’m stuck on is savings. Say I already have $2,000 in saving so I budget that 2,000 to savings. Now if I wanted to grow my savings, say for the month I want to put $500 on top of the $2,000 I already have in the savings. I wanted to know how that would work. Also I assume that would just be transferring that $500 from my checking to savings correct? Appreciate any help!

[@janiceschaefer2131]

I added the chrome extension for YNAB but when I refreshed the program, the fourth column "Goals" does not show up - please help to resolve this issue- thanks - love your videos!!

[@mappedoutmoney]

Hey Janice! It’s one of the settings. It’s not default do you’ll need to go to the budget screen settings inside he toolkit and turn on the budget column :) Just go into settings and start playing around with the features.

[@kellymontanaro8329]

If something has been paid by check already but has not cleared at the time of account setup, I will need to setup budget categories to capture those right? In other words I have the cash in my bank account current balance but that cash is already earmarked to something else. Thanks!

[@penekolada]

Do you have to create a new budget every month? Or do you just keep assigning new dollars as they enter your account. I'm a waiter so i often have a lot of cash but have to eventually deposit some cash into my account to pay bills so its a little harder to keep track. Let's say i have $500 dollars in cash and i enter that into the app. But I have to deposit that into my linked account to pay the bill how to i make sure the app doesn't think I have $1000?

[@mappedoutmoney]

Hey John! Good question. But nope, you sure don't! Once you setup your categories and goals, those will stay the same month after month unless you change them. You just assign new dollars to the categories as money comes in. As for your situation, the best thing to do is to create a "wallet" account to represent your cash and enter that as soon as you get it. So let's say you get that $500. You enter it into your wallet account as $500 and the category is to be budgeted. And you budget that money. But then you go and deposit that $500 to your checking account. Now you won't add a transaction with a to be budgeted category. Don't do that. Instead, you'll create a transaction and do a "transfer" from the wallet account to the checking account. You do this by choosing "to/from: Checking" inside the payee column of the transaction. And when you do that, YNAB won't even let you choose a category. That's because this is a transfer from wallet to checking, it's not a deposit of income. Let me know if that makes sense John!

[@miloszeman4208]

Hello, I have paycheck on 23rd and I am paying rent on 28th, is there any elegant way to budget it for it if I don't have savings?

[@ralphm923]

Hi, per your link it says "get 2 months free". But on the website it says 34 days free. How do I get the 2 months? thx

[@mappedoutmoney]

Ralph M hey! Sorry I thought I changed that wording :( I’ll make the edit. Unfortunately at the start of the year YNAB changed all the trials everywhere (even mine) to just 34 days. There’s no longer free 2 months.

[@nikkichitwood9067]

I am just setting up YNAB 2/3/22. I paid all of my Feb bills at the end of Jan. If I follow this video I would allocate funds for March bills- in March. However, I typically pay bills the last week of the month for the coming month. So March bills will hit my account in Feb.. how do I proceed- putting March in March or in Feb?

[@mappedoutmoney]

So you shouldn't care what month the bills are for. Only care about when the money leaves the bank. So put money into Feb for whatever is going to come out of the bank in Feb :)

[@nikkichitwood9067]

@@mappedoutmoney ahh makes perfect sense! And wow, thank you for such a quick reply!

[@matthewrauer7840]

HI Nick, great videos, thanks. How do you handle starting in the middle of the month, with a credit card payment due in the 2nd half of the month? For example, say last months bill is due on the 23rd and its for $5,000. However, since I'm already through more than half of the current months billing cycle on my credit card, my actual credit card balance is say $8,000. But I don't want to pay all that off this month, I only want to pay off the $5,000 (always pay credit card in full on the due date), and then pay the rest off once the billing cycle closes and pay it at the payment due date, which is next month. This part confuses me. Thanks in advance.

[@twoslowcabrio]

Hello Nick, just diving into your YNAB videos after wanting to use YNAB for over a year. How do I handle bills that recur but vary in amount - I live in AZ so in summer our electric is high, and in the winter it’s low. Is it best to come up with an average and use that amount as the monthly funding goal, or is there a better way to manage something like this?

[@mikel6237]

When December rolls around; do you zero out your November budgeted money, that wasn't spent in categories?

[@mappedoutmoney]

Good question. And it depends. If it wasn't spent in a category that I could use down the road, then I just let it roll over. This is especially the case for fun money spending. If I don't spend my fun money this month, I let it roll over to the next (my wife and I both get the same amount each month, this allows us to build it up over time). I also sometimes let pet expenses roll over because I know those can come in larger chunks. If we have some left over and I don't want to roll it over to the next month you have 1 of three options. 1) Put it back in to be budgeted (zero it out like you said) and then use it for a future month to get ahead. 2) Use it to pay down debt. So throw extra money at your credit cards, or mortgage or car loan etc... 3) Send it from that category you have leftovers in to another category you want to spend more in or to savings. Right now Hanna and I are saving for a downpayment on a house. So if I have leftover money, I'll send it to my downpayment category. Hope that helps! Nick

[@Botzz28]

so wont you have to go back in and set you goals all over again at the begining of the month ??

[@Shuggmeister]

Nick, we get paid monthly on the 21st. The fact that YNAB budgets must begin on the 1st drives me bonkers. We pay most of our bills between 21-EOM. Rent will be taken out late, on the 5th. If I could change YNAB, I would add another date column to the register indicating which month the transaction is budgeted in. How do we get through this in YNAB?

[@mappedoutmoney]

Hey Shaun, this is pretty much true for everyone. Everyone has funny pay cycles and schedules and I see 20 people a week that have the same issue as you :) The way to overcome this is to change your mindset about the way you get paid and embrace the months. This means that you only Assign money into the month that the transaction will actually come out. You say that you want to add a column indicating the month the transaction is budgeted in, but all you need to do is actually budget money into that month. Example = You get paid $5,000 on Nov 21st. - You use $500 towards Groceries - $500 towards other bills that haven't come out yet - $200 for fun money. All of that is assigned in November. So you have $3,800 still in Ready to assign and you've achieved all of your goals/targets for the rest of the month. You don't need that $3,800 for the rest of Nov... you need to use that money in December before December 21st. So now, click the arrow key on the budget in the top left, and actually go into the next month and start assigning the $3,800 for rent, and bills, and groceries, and all the things you know you need that will happen before Dec 21st. This may take a bit to achieve, but once you do, you'll be a month ahead and that means you'll show up on December 1st and all your targets are green and you're fully funded. Which means your paycheck in December can just go towards January. Hope that helps, Nick

[@acsowhat6420]

Great video, really great work! I have a question as a begginer. Ex. you have to pay Phone and Internet $218 on 21st. Why to set a Monthly Funding Goal and not just set a budget of $218? Maybe my question is stupid :)

[@somon90]

Hey Nick, do you have any tips on how to get back on track? I started a budget that I managed to keep up for around two months before I fell off it. Now is two months later and I don't really know how to tackle getting back on track. I think one of the problems I had was the mountain of transactions that was growing, making the block to getting back tougher and tougher. Should I just start fresh? I don't think this is a problem that is unique to me, if you were to make a video on that I think it would be very appreciated by people in the same situation.

[@mappedoutmoney]

Hey Aetas! Good question. Yes, I'm hoping to make a video about this specifically soon. But to answer your question, I would just do a fresh start. There's nothing wrong with starting over. I've done that 3 or 4 times myself. It's a real pain to try and go backward and get everything set up correctly so I wouldn't try to mess with that. Just simply do a fresh start and move forward. That would be my advice :)

[@2BOS2]

Another helpful video. I didn't quite get about setting a goal. What's the difference between setting a goal vs. budgeting. At 5:53, you budgeted $40.00 for laundromat, but you did not set a goal beforehand like some other items. Do you need to set a goal for every item or can you just go straight to adding money under the Budget column?

[@mappedoutmoney]

2BOS2 ooo good catch! So you can add go straight to budgeting. You don’t have to set a goal. But it’s a good idea to set a goal. I simply accidentally forgot to show setting the goal for laundry in thus tutorial. In real life I do have a monthly funding goal for laundry. My mistake. As for the difference think of it this way. Setting a goal for a category = planning to spend money on something. But it’s money you don’t yet have. Then once you obtain the money. Adding money to the budget column = setting aside real money you physically have for a certain purpose. Now you’re not just planning. You’re saying that you have the money in your account and you’re setting it aside for that category. Then your available balance in that category goes up and you can see that you in fact do have money ready to spend. So the purpose of setting the goal is to help you remember the plan and also allow you to use the quick budget features and save time down the road. Let me know if that all makes sense!

[@caraelaine4198]

@@mappedoutmoney This is so helpful! I've run through two 30 days trials and didn't "get" the goal setting feature until just now.. fortunately I'm on a 90 day trial and I feel like this is the time it all clicks! (largely because I'm binge watching videos like yours - so thank you)

[@mappedoutmoney]

Cara Elaine haha 😆 glad to hear it! YNAB is definitely confusing at first. But extremely powerful once it clicks. Glad the video was helpful! Thanks for commenting :)

[@jwjody]

Great video! I'm still a little confused with your rent example. That's the exact issue I'm facing. I get paid twice a month and my mortgage is due on the first of each month. So for example, I get paid 9/20. My mortgage is due on 10/01. But I'm not going to make that payment in October, I'm going to make it the day I get paid. How do I enter that in YNAB?

[@Aspecto5]

I’m confused about if your making payments on your credit card, does it automatically calculate the amount of interest involved while giving you an end date?

[@helenagrantham7737]

What do you do if you are in the middle of your month and you are in overdraft?

[@catherinemccurdy6994]

How do you handle YNAB if you budgeted a specific amount for a category, but you didn't use all the budgeted amount? I budgeted x amount of money for my car insurance, but my monthly bill went down so I have a surplus. I moved it to the next month to have a start on December's bill. When I did that, I got a red notice that I overspent in November. Does that make sense to you? If so, can you tell me how to handle this in the future? Also, how do you budget for changing amounts like utilities?

[@mappedoutmoney]

Hey Catherine! So if you have a surplus, you can either do one of two things: 1) Send that money to another category and use it for something else. Maybe you want to use that surplus for extra groceries, or going out, or paydown debt etc... 2) Let the money roll over to the next month and get ahead. It sounds like you chose option 2. That means in December, you'd only need to add enough money to car insurance to get you to the total bill. So you're doing the right thing. As for the red overspending, where are you seeing that? Is it in the car insurance category itself? Or is it in the large to be budgeted bubble at the top of your budget? You shouldn't be getting an overspending inside the car insurance category unless you've already paid your car insurance for December. Let me know where you're seeing that red overspending and I can help pinpoint the issue. But my gut says that this is a separate issue from your car insurance surplus.

[@catherinemccurdy6994]

Thanks for getting back to me, Nick. The amount for car insurance is $87.29, that amount is showing up red. I hadn't finished giving all my money a job when this occurred, so the amount to be budgeted in November is showing 150.62, and December is showing 63.33. That's exactly 87.29 less. I'm confused. Of course that isn't saying anything new, for me!😉

[@mappedoutmoney]

@@catherinemccurdy6994 Gotcha. So when you overspend in cash (or from a checking account) you get a negative red number. And then it will automatically pull that amount from to be budgeted for the next month. So that all makes sense to me, even if it doesn't to you just yet :) rest assured it's ok. As for the problem, it sounds to me like you may have skipped actually budgeting for the car insurance in Nov. Maybe you set a goal, but didn't actually send money there. On the budget screen next to car insurance, you should see three columns. One for budgeted, one for activity and one for available. Is there a positive $87.29 added to your budgeted column? If not, you'll need to add money there and actually "budget" for the insurance. Here's a screenshot of what I'm talking about. cl.ly/83185e87cd34 Alternatively, you can click on that red 87.29 bubble and cover that money from your to be budgeted. If you're still confused, maybe send me a screenshot and I can further see what's happening :)

[@TwistedSlippersGaming]

I'm setting up my budget with 8 days left in April. I'm good to set the goals for April and then change the monthly goals in May?

[@mappedoutmoney]

Yup! Just set the goals in April for the next week, and then you can edit and change all those goals in May if you'd like... It's all changeable. So that's what I would do!

[@TwistedSlippersGaming]

@@mappedoutmoney we are paid weekly. My wife one week then me the next. Do I just have the budget amount be for the week or month? I'm very new at and scared of budgets.

[@mappedoutmoney]

​@@TwistedSlippersGaming No big deal! I understand. Have you watched my getting started video? kzbin.info/www/bejne/roG5dnVtap6aobc If not, be sure to check that out. It will help you a ton. But the key is you only get to budget the amount you currently have. No more. If that gets you out through more than a week, great! If not, then you'll have to budget for the week. Take a look at that video and let me know if that helps!

[@TwistedSlippersGaming]

@@mappedoutmoney yes I did. Just a simple case of me overthinking it :) Thank you

[@mappedoutmoney]

haha, that definitely happens! Happens to me a lot. Glad you got it!

[@smrtzttspanishenglishtutor67]

Is it safe to upload or link all the credit and debit card information?

[@mtafli1]

Hi Nick. Your videos are great, but I’m still confused. I added my credit cards but I can’t figure out to make a payment and have it come out of my checking account.

[@mappedoutmoney]

Hey Megan! Thanks, I'm glad you like the videos. Making cc payments can definitely be confusing. Have you watched this video that I made: kzbin.info/www/bejne/aHrbYX2fl8hjgtk Specifically, check out the portion starting at 26:12 The basic thing to recognize is that when you make a credit card payment, you want to do a "transfer" not an actual "expense". So go into your checking account and add a transaction, then in the Payee section select the actual credit card account you're paying. It should say something like "To/from: Name of cc account" You'll know you've selected the right thing when the category portion of the expense is grayed out and doesn't allow you to even add a category. And that's correct. There's not a category because you're simply transferring money from one portion of the budget to another. But watch that video on credit cards and then let me know if you have a specific question about your payments and I can help you :) Good luck Megan!

[@mtafli1]

Thanks! I did watch that video - but rewatching it made me realize what I was doing wrong. I was adding to the checking account instead of subtracting.... All is good now. Thanks for your help!!

[@mtafli1]

Ps thanks for the world’s fastest response

[@mappedoutmoney]

@@mtafli1 hahah well this one wasn't quite as fast lol ;) But glad that helped Megan! Its easy to get those mixed up. Excited that it worked for you. Good luck YNABing! And let me know if you have anymore questions :)