Creating & Managing Your Envelopes

What is the "Envelope System" of Money Management?

The MoneyWise app uses an envelope style of money management.

A traditional envelope system works by withdrawing cash from your bank and "funding," or physically putting dollar bills into labeled envelopes (i.e., Groceries, Rent, Movies, etc.). When you need to buy something, you take cash out of the appropriate envelope to make the purchase.

When you run out of cash in an envelope, you have to wait to make a purchase in that category until it has money available. You can replenish your envelopes either by withdrawing more cash from your checking account or by transferring funds from one envelope to another.

This method is very successful in helping you become more aware of your spending habits and ensures that you never spend more money than you actually have on hand.

How Do Envelopes Work in the MoneyWise App?

The "envelope system" of money management works in the MoneyWise app by totalling the money in your account(s) and allowing you to allocate it into digital envelopes of your choosing.

We gave you some commonly used envelopes to get started, but you can easily add or delete envelopes to fit your needs.

Basic Users: You can add additional envelopes or envelope groups from the list of provided options. Select "+ Envelope" or "+Envelope Group" to do so. Pro Users: You can create new custom envelopes by selecting "+ Envelope" below each envelope category. Then you can name the envelope anything you’d like. You can also create custom envelope categories. To do this in the mobile app, scroll to the bottom of your Envelopes screen and select "+ New Envelope Group." If you're using the web app, click "+Envelope Group" at the top right of the Envelopes page.

Editing the Envelope Name

In order to change an envelope name:

1. Click on the envelope you would like to rename.
2. Click the menu (three dots) in the upper right corner of the Screen.
3. Select Edit.
4. Change the Envelope Name or Envelope Group and click Save.

Funding Your Envelopes

You need to have at least one account created in order for this system to work. Once you have an account, you will see an "available for funding" amount. This amount will adjust as you fund your envelopes.

For instance, if you have $500 in your checking account and you only fund your grocery envelope with $100, you will have $400 available for funding other envelopes ($500-$100=$400).

If you have questions about how the math works, click the "i" next to "available for funding" on the Envelope Balances screen to see exactly how it's calculated.

If you don’t know the exact amount you should fund into each envelope, make an estimate based on what you think you will need to spend. You’ll likely end up adjusting your envelope’s funding as time goes on, so don’t get hung up trying to get it “perfect” as you get started.

What if I Can’t Fund all of the Envelopes with my Available Money?

It’s okay if you can’t fund all of your envelopes right away. Your “available for funding” shows you the cash you have in your accounts right now. You can fund envelopes only with the money you actually have.

As soon as you get more money in your accounts, you’ll be able to fund more envelopes. It may take some time to fund all your envelopes, so be patient and stick with it!

The Envelopes Screen

The Envelopes screen simply shows you what you have left to spend in each envelope. It takes the amount you have funded into the envelope and subtracts any transaction amounts from it. This happens when you make a purchase and assign the transaction to the appropriate envelope. The envelope's balance will change accordingly.

Tips for Managing Your Envelopes

• Tap the $0.00 to add funds quickly to your envelope.
• “Long press,” or tap and hold, the envelope to quickly access a menu of options.
• Click the name of an envelope to view the activity (funding and transactions) in that specific envelope.
• Transfer funds from one envelope to another using the "Transfer" option.
• Archive or Delete envelopes in the mobile app by swiping the envelope to the left. In the web app, you can archive or delete an envelope by clicking on the envelope then clicking the three dots in the upper right corner. Envelopes must have a balance of $0 in order to be archived or deleted, so you will need to transfer any funds in those envelopes to other envelopes before you archive or delete them. Archived categories will retain the funding and transaction history of that envelope, which you can view or add back to your envelope list at any time.

If you have questions about creating or managing your envelopes, please contact us at support@moneywise.org and we will be happy to help you.