What Is It?
VoiceBudget lets you track expenses, income, and investments using just your voice. No app to open, no forms to fill out, no manual categorization.
The key difference: Unlike apps that automatically pull from your bank and categorize for you, VoiceBudget makes you aware of every dollar you spend. When you say "50 on groceries," you're processing that expense consciously. This simple act of acknowledgment creates spending awareness that automatic tracking can't match.
You're not just building a budget - you're building better spending habits.
Categories and subcategories are fixed in this version and cannot be customized. If there are categories you don't want or need just leave them blank. Future updates will include custom editable categories, debt tracking, and a full app/website interface.
Questions? Email voicebudget1.0@gmail.com
Benefits of Manual Budgeting
Getting Started
1. Set Up Your Budget
We'll create a personalized Google Sheet for you. Once you receive our email with the link:
- Open your personalized budget
- Leave it as is or rename it whatever you like
- Fill in your fixed expenses (rent, insurance, subscriptions, etc.)
- Set your target budget amounts under the "Expected" column (Column D)
- Enter your monthly investing amounts (Company Retirement, Roth IRA, etc.)
- That's it! VoiceBudget will auto-copy these each month
2. Install Your Shortcuts
In the same email, scroll down to find the shortcut links from us where you will:
- Open each iCloud link on your iPhone
- Tap "Add Shortcut" when prompted
- Grant necessary permissions during first use
- Start using with Siri!
If you don't like the current shortcut names you can rename any shortcut to whatever feels natural to you! Just long-press the shortcut in the Shortcuts app and select "Rename". Popular alternatives: "Log Expense" → "Add Expense", "Undo Expense" → "Undo Last"
📋 Understanding Your Budget Sheet
How Your Sheets Work Together
📅 Monthly Expense Sheets
JanExpenses, FebExpenses, etc.
Each month has its own expense tracking sheet. VoiceBudget automatically:
- Shows only the current month
- Hides previous months (you can unhide to review)
- Copies your fixed expenses, planned budget, and monthly investments from last month to the next month
- Tracks all voice-logged expenses and investments
💵 Monthly Income Sheets
JanIncome, FebIncome, etc.
Tracks all voice-logged income each month:
- Salary/primary income
- Freelance/side income
- Gifts and bonuses
- Other income sources
📜 ExpenseHistory Sheet
Your undo safety net
Every expense you log via voice is also recorded here with:
- Date and time
- Amount and category
- Batch ID (for multi-item entries)
- Cell location
Why? To help power features like Undo Expense and so you have a overview of all expenses as needed!
📊 Year in Review
Automatic annual summary
This sheet pulls data from all 12 months to show:
- Total spending by category
- Average monthly expenses
- Income vs expenses
- Investment totals
No manual work needed - it updates automatically!
While all cells are editable there are many formulas powering your experience. The only cells you should ever edit are on initial setup your budget amounts, fixed expenses, and recurring monthly investments - exactly what you need! After initial setup, you only need to ever touch your sheet to see insights or make adjustments if you have any changes to one of those categories.
🔧 Initial Budget Setup
You'll need to set up three things once in your template. VoiceBudget will auto-copy these values to each new month!
💰 Fixed Expenses
Bills that repeat every month (rent, insurance, subscriptions). Enter in fixed expenses section:
- Mortgage/Rent
- Property Tax
- Other
- Payment
- Insurance
- Other
- Premiums
- Pharmacy
- Other
- Phones
- Subscriptions
- Other
📊 Target Budget Amounts
Set spending goals for variable expenses in the "Expected" column (Column D):
Examples:
• Grocery: $400
• Dining Out: $200
• Gas: $150
• Clothing: $100
• Drinks: $50
As you log expenses via voice, Column E (Actual) fills in automatically. Column F shows how much budget remains!
Pro Tip: Start with estimates. After a month or two, you'll see your real spending patterns and can adjust budgets accordingly.
📈 Monthly Investment Goals
Set target contributions in the "Monthly" column of the Investing section:
Available accounts:
• Employer Retirement (401k, 403B, etc.)
• Roth IRA
• Brokerage
• Crypto
• Other (HSA, 529, etc.)
When you say "500 to Roth IRA," it adds to your actual contributions. The difference column shows if you're on track!
Note: These targets auto-copy each month, so you only set them once unless goals change.
⚡ How Auto-Copy Works
The Magic Happens Automatically
- You enter values once in January (or your current month)
- At month-end, VoiceBudget unhides next month's sheet
- All fixed expenses, investing amounts, and your planned budget automatically copy to the new month
- You only update if amounts change (rent increase, new subscription, etc.)
💡 Example Workflow
January 15: You enter $1,500 rent in JanExpenses
February 1: VoiceBudget unhides FebExpenses and updates values inputted
Automatically: $1,500 rent is already there!
You: Just track variable expenses via voice
📊 Reading Your Monthly Sheet
Column Guide
- Column C: Category names
- Column D: Your planned budget (editable)
- Column E: Actual spending (voice updates)
- Column F: Difference (auto-calculated)
Green background: Under budget 👍
Red background: Over budget ⚠️
What You Should Edit Manually
- ✅ Fixed expenses (12 specific cells)
- ✅ Your desired budget amounts per category (Column D)
- ✅ Monthly investment amounts
- ❌ Category names
- ❌ Year In Review Sheet
- ❌ ExpenseHistory Sheet
Note: You'll only need to edit fixed expenses, investments, and budget amounts once during initial setup. After that, VoiceBudget auto-copies them each month - you'll only need to update if amounts change (e.g., rent increase, new subscription, adjusted monthly investment amount).
Available Shortcuts
💰 Log Expense
Track daily spending with voice
Siri: "What's the expense?"
You: "20 dollars on soda"
Siri: "Added: $20 to Drinks"
💵 Log Income
Record income sources
Siri: "What's the income?"
You: "3000 salary"
Siri: "Added: $3000 to Primary Income"
📈 Log Investment
Track investment contributions
Siri: "What was the investment?"
You: "500 to Roth IRA"
Siri: "Confirm?"
You: "Yes"
📊 Check Budget
See remaining budget for any category
Siri: "Which category?"
You: "grocery"
↩️ Undo Expense
Made a mistake? Remove the last entry
Siri: Removes last expense automatically
💳 Log Refund
Returned something? Remove the expense
Siri: "What's the refund amount and category?"
You: "50 on clothing"
Voice Input Examples
💰 Expenses
- "20 on soda"
- "50 dollars for groceries"
- "15 at the gas station"
- "100 on dinner"
- Multiple items: "10 on soda and 25 on gas"
💵 Income
- "3000 salary"
- "500 freelance payment"
- "100 birthday gift"
- "50 cash back"
📈 Investments
- "500 to Roth IRA"
- "1000 to employer retirement"
- "200 to brokerage account"
- "100 on crypto"
- Multiple: "500 to Roth 1000 to employer retirement"
📊 Budget Checks
- "grocery"
- "gas"
- "dining out"
- Multiple: "home and car"
🧪 Test It
Siri: "What's the expense?"
You: "10 on soda"
Then check your sheet:
- Open your budget sheet
- Go to "JanExpenses" (current month)
- Find "Drinks" row → Column E should show "10"
✅ Works? You're ready!
❌ Doesn't work? See troubleshooting below.
Category Reference
VoiceBudget automatically categorizes your expenses into these categories:
These categories are currently fixed and cannot be customized. Don't edit the template structure or your voice commands won't work properly.
🏠 Home
Home Goods
Utilities
Home Maintenance
🚗 Car
Gas
Car Maintenance
Car Insurance
🍽️ Food
Grocery
Dining Out
Drinks
🏥 Medical
Co-pay
Pharmacy
Medical Other
👤 Personal
Clothing
Grooming
Dates/Hobbies
Business
Travel
Pets
Gifts
Annual Fees
Personal Other
📈 Investing
Employer Retirement
Roth IRA
Brokerage
Crypto
Other (HSA, 529, etc.)
🔍 Advanced: Troubleshooting Common Issues
• Check if you're looking at the current month's tab
• Verify internet connection
• Try again in 10 seconds (Google Sheets may be busy)
• Use more specific keywords: "grocery" instead of "food"
• Try popular brand names: "Starbucks" → Drinks
• Use "Undo Expense" and try again
• Speak clearly and slowly
• Say "dollars" after the amount
• Use "Undo Expense" then log correct amount
💡 Tips for Best Results
- Log at time of purchase for best awareness and ease of use
- When connected to bluetooth device make sure to speak audibly and clearly
- Be conversational - speak naturally
- Multiple expenses: "10 on soda 20 on gas 50 on groceries"
- Use specific keywords: "grocery" not "food shopping"
- Popular brand names work: "Starbucks" → Drinks, "Chipotle" → Dining Out
🚀 Coming Soon
Future versions of VoiceBudget will include:
Custom Categories
Create your own categories with AI-powered systems that can be customized to whatever expenses you have
Full App/Website
Visual dashboards, spending insights, and easier budget management
Smart Budgeting
AI-powered suggestions and insights based on your spending patterns
Debt Tracker
Track loans, credit cards, and payment schedules in one place
Credit Card Rewards
Monitor points, cashback, and optimize spending across multiple cards
Multi-User Support
Share budgets with partners or family members seamlessly
Want to influence what gets built next? Email us at voicebudget1.0@gmail.com