Overview
The "Budget Expenses - Estimate" tab in your Budgetdog template is where you customize expense categories to match your personal finances. This guide shows you how to add, edit, and delete categories, and how to set budget amounts that automatically populate across all months.
Watch the full walkthrough video to see these steps in action: Categories Section Tutorial
Why Categories Matter
The categories you set up in this tab are critical for two reasons:
AI Categorization: Avery's AI reads these categories to automatically categorize your imported bank transactions
Zero-Based Budgeting: Every dollar gets assigned to a category, helping you track whether you're on or off pace with your budget
If you skip customizing categories, Avery may miscategorize your transactions, leading to incorrect totals and reports.
Customizing Your Categories
The template comes with pre-defined categories like Rent, Mortgage, Gas, and Car. You'll need to customize these to fit your situation.
Adding, Editing, or Deleting Categories
Open the "Budget Expenses - Estimate" tab in your Budgetdog template
Locate the categories in column B (rows 2-24)
Edit existing categories by clicking on the cell and typing your changes (e.g., change "Gas" to "Petrol")
Delete categories you don't need by removing the text from the cell
Add new categories by typing them into empty cells in column B
Examples of Customizations
Replace "Mortgage" with "Rent" if you rent instead of own
Add "Car Insurance" or "Pet Care" if those are relevant expenses
Change regional terms like "Gas" to "Petrol"
Think through your actual spending patterns. Review bank statements from the past few months to identify all your regular expense categories.
Setting Budget Amounts
After customizing your categories, you'll set your ideal budget amount for each one.
How Auto-Population Works
Click on the first month's cell for a category (e.g., January for Rent)
Enter your ideal budget amount (e.g., $1,500)
The amount automatically populates across all remaining months in that row
The auto-population feature saves you time by filling in all 12 months at once, so you only need to enter each budget amount once.
Making Mid-Year Adjustments
Life changes, and your budget can change with it. You can adjust budget amounts at any time.
Updating Budget Amounts
Click on the month where the change begins (e.g., June)
Enter the new amount (e.g., increase Rent from $1,500 to $2,000)
The new amount automatically updates for all subsequent months (July through December)
Example: If you move to a new apartment in June with higher rent, update the June cell. Your budget will reflect $1,500 for January through May, and $2,000 for June through December.
How Categories Connect to AI
Once you've set up your categories, Avery uses them to categorize imported transactions.
Your customized categories appear in Avery's categorization system
When you click "Categorize my transactions" in the Avery sidebar, the AI matches transactions to your categories
The categorization process takes 1-2 minutes (you can skip ahead while it runs in the background)
Review categorized transactions in the Transactions tab, Column J
After initial categorization, you can train Avery to improve accuracy by creating rules for recurring transactions. Learn more in Reviewing and Fixing Your Budgetdog Template.
Before You Begin
Make sure you've completed these steps first:
Linked your bank accounts in the Avery sidebar
Completed your look-back analysis to understand your typical spending
Have a clear idea of your ideal budget for each expense category
Next Steps
After setting up your categories and budget amounts:
Run AI categorization in the Avery sidebar
Review the Transactions tab to verify categorizations
Create rules for any miscategorized recurring transactions
Set up daily auto-updates to keep your budget current
For detailed guidance on reviewing and fixing categorization issues, see Reviewing and Fixing Your Budgetdog Template.