Creating manual transactions is a helpful way to keep your budgeting up to date if your financial institution isn’t sending transactions automatically, if you spend cash that you want to keep track of in Monarch, or if you simply want to track a transaction before it gets imported from your financial institution.

Table of Contents

• Creating manual transactions on desktop
• Creating manual transactions on mobile
• Tracking cash spending

Creating manual transactions on desktop

Manual transactions can be added to manual accounts or synced accounts. When you add a manual transaction to a synced account, it will not change the balance of that account. When you add a manual transaction to a manual account, you can choose to change the balance when creating that transaction.

• Navigate to the desired account for the new manual transaction.
  • Alternatively, navigate to Transactions and select Add.
• Select Add transaction.
• Select if the transaction will be a debit or credit.
• Enter the amount.
• Set the merchant.
• Set the date.
• Choose an account.
• Select a category.
• Add a note (optional).
• Add tags (optional).
• Select the toggle to adjust the account balance if you choose a manual account. The toggle is set to adjust the manual account balance by default, so if you don’t want to adjust the balance, you can disable it.
• Select Add transaction.

Creating manual transactions on mobile

• Navigate to the desired account for the new manual transaction.
  • Alternatively, navigate to Transactions and tap the "+"
• Tap the “…” in the top right corner.
• Select Add transaction.
• Select if the transaction will be a debit or credit.
• Enter the amount.
• Set the merchant.
• Set the date.
• Choose an account.
• Select a category.
• Add a note (optional).
• Add tags (optional).
• Select the toggle to adjust the account balance if you choose a manual account. The toggle is set to adjust the manual account balance by default, so if you don’t want to adjust the balance, you can disable it.
• Select Add transaction.

Tracking cash spending

There are two ways to track cash in Monarch. Pick the one that best fits how you use cash.

Option 1: Create a manual cash account

This works best if you want to track a running cash balance, like what’s in your wallet.

1. Create a manual account and name it something like “Cash.” Learn how with Manual Accounts.
2. When you spend cash, add a manual transaction to that account using the steps above.
3. Leave the balance toggle on so your cash balance updates with each transaction.

Option 2: Split your ATM withdrawals

This works best if your ATM withdrawals already sync from a connected account and you just want to know where the cash went.

1. Find the ATM withdrawal in your transactions.
2. Split it into separate transactions for each purchase, and give each one the right category. Learn how in Splitting Transactions.