The Cash Flow budgeting tool is available in the NerdWallet mobile app (iOS and Android) only — it isn't available on the web.
What are Needs, Wants, and Savings & debt?
Needs, Wants, and Savings & debt are the three budget buckets used by the Cash Flow budgeting tool:
Needs are essential spending, like housing, utilities, and groceries.
Wants are discretionary spending, like dining out and entertainment.
Savings & debt is the amount left over after Needs and Wants are subtracted from your income — it isn't a bucket you assign transactions to directly. See "How is my budget calculated?" below for details.
How do I set up my budget?
Open the NerdWallet mobile app and go to the Cash Flow tab.
Open your Budget.
Your budget target is calculated using the income on file for your account.
Choose a split. 50/30/20 is the default, but other presets (such as 60/30/10, 70/20/10, or 40/30/30) and custom targets are available in your budget settings. Your donut chart and targets update immediately to reflect the new split.
How is my budget calculated?
Your budget is shown as a donut chart with three sections — Needs, Wants, and Savings & debt:
Needs and Wants totals are populated automatically based on your transactions' categories.
Savings & debt is calculated as whatever is left over after Needs and Wants are subtracted from your income, rather than a total of transactions assigned to it. In the current, in-progress month, this section is labeled Leftover; once the month ends, it's labeled Savings & debt. If you spend more than your income in a month, Leftover shows $0 rather than a negative number.
How do I move a transaction to a different bucket?
If a transaction is counted in the wrong bucket:
Make sure you're using the most recent version of the mobile app.
Open the transaction from your Cash Flow or budget screen.
Find the budget bucket field on the transaction details screen — this is separate from the category field.
Choose Needs or Wants. Savings & debt isn't a selectable option here — it's always the calculated leftover, never a bucket you assign a transaction to. Your donut chart and totals update immediately to reflect the change.
Why doesn't a transaction show a bucket?
Some transactions won't show a bucket at all:
Income and internal transfers are never counted toward Needs or Wants.
Some spending categories haven't been mapped to a bucket yet. The app deliberately leaves a category unmapped rather than guessing when it hasn't been assigned to Needs or Wants, so a newly added category can't silently misreport your spending. Unmapped categories don't count toward Needs or Wants, which affects your calculated Savings & debt amount, and you can't assign them a bucket manually.
Why does my budget screen look different some months?
No income set. You won't see budget targets until your income is set.
No transactions recorded yet. There's nothing yet to compare against your targets.
Spending far outside your targets in either direction. The guideline marker may not display.
Overspending for the month. Savings & debt/Leftover shows $0 instead of going negative.