No budget is the same. We’re all unique and our budgets should be too.

Income is where it all starts. If you have a regular salary, add it to your budget upon setup so you can track how much is left to spend after all the bills and subscriptions come out.

No problem. If you have more than one source of income, you can use as many of them as you like to support your monthly budget.

That’s absolutely fine. You can still have a monthly budget.

Bills are an important part of the budget tool. Your spend limit is calculated by subtracting bills and subscriptions (basically, any committed payment) from your income, so you don't have to worry about doing the math yourself.

Cleo is great at identifying bills and subscriptions but sometimes, some slip through the net (or... have yet to be paid)

Once your bill or subscription has come out of your account, follow these steps:

Yes. Cleo has its very own category for excluded transactions which you're able to adjust in Budget settings under the Spend tab.

Set a spend limit to see how much you should spend per day (excluding bills) to stay on budget. You can set your spend limit yourself, or get one suggested to you based on recent spending.

Add a spend limit when you first set up your budget. If you want to come back to it later, find it under the Next steps section in Budget within the Spend tab.

Here's how to edit your spend limit from Budget.

Categories are automatically set up in Cleo, which means one less thing for you to worry about. Here are ways you can create your own or move spends around.

Here's how to add a custom category from the Spend tab:

Here's how to recategorise a transaction from the Spend tab:

Yes, you sure can. Category budgets are great for when you want to set limits on specific areas of spending, like shopping or entertainment.

Here's how to set up category budgets:

If you want to set a category as Essential Spending or Other Spending, here's how:

There are two options when it comes to budgeting: monthly or paycheck.

A paycheck budget means your budget resets each time you get paid. A monthly budget will reset per month (on the 1st of every month).

For most people, paycheck budgets are the better choice as they help you monitor your money closely, whether your paycycle is biweekly, monthly, or infrequently. Don't forget: if you want a paycheck budget, you'll need to add your income to the Budget tab.

Bigger bills normally come out once a month (like rent, mortgage, etc) but it’s the little expenses like transportation, groceries, etc, that can really eat into your money.

Budgeting per paycheck can help you set aside money for that big bill that comes out at the end of the month, so you’re not left financially stranded at the very last minute.

Monthly budgets are more traditional but work well for what they do as they can be easier to follow, especially if you’ve irregular income, or no income at all.

So, which one is for you?

A paycheck budget is suitable for those who have:

A monthly budget is suitable for those who have:

The great thing about Cleo is she does all the work for you. Say goodbye to building boring spreadsheets and hello to sassy saving. But although she has the power to provide, it’s up to you to stick to it.

So, if you want to have a budget that makes a difference, here’s a few tips how you can do just that:

You can’t budget without knowing where your money goes... don’t be shooting for the stars here. No, I don’t mean living off of a buck but at the same time, you can’t save if there’s no money left.

This is a GREAT rule to follow if you’re unsure of how to well, budget. Splitting your spending into percentages can easily break down the wants, the needs and the savings:

Remember, savings should be for paying off debt or if you are lucky to be debt free, focusing on larger money goals like a new car, holiday or endless burritos.

Sounds obvious but you don’t realise how much your debt is spiralling into a tornado of more and more debt. A £10 overdraft can easily turn into £100 fees in the blink of an eye (curse you banks). The sooner you pay it off, the easier it’ll be to your future self to get back to a healthier financial you.

It's so easy to forget why we budget, but it’s goals that drive us across the finish line. Close your eyes and imagine sipping on a piña colada in Thailand while Ryan Gosling fans your face and tells you yes you do have eyes like swimming pools and your ex was wrong - you do look great in yellow...

Don’t be so hard on yourself. Every month is different. Some are thrifty, some are spendy. If you stumble at the first hurdle, dust yourself off and slay another day. Sometimes we want that piece of cake; have it. Just make sure you balance life’s unpredictability and keep focusing on the WHY. You totally got this.