Instruction Manual
This manual covers every screen and feature from first launch to closing your first month. Read it start-to-finish, or jump to the section you need using the table of contents.
Ridgeline Budget is built on one idea: budget for needs, fund wants from savings.
Every dollar you spend is either something you need (rent, utilities, insurance) or something you want (dining out, hobbies, travel). Your monthly budget covers needs. Wants must come from budget envelopes you've filled over time with surplus income.
At the end of every month, you either have a surplus, broke even, or ran a deficit. Surplus gets distributed to your budget envelopes. A deficit requires a budget withdrawal to reach zero. Then the next month begins fresh.
| Screen | Purpose | Frequency |
|---|---|---|
| 🏠 Dashboard | At-a-glance snapshot of income, spending, and current surplus. Shows favorite budgets. | As needed |
| 💵 Income | All income sources, bank accounts, scheduled transactions | When income changes |
| 📆 Expenses | Recurring planned expenses across all 12 months | Once a year, update as needed |
| 💰 Surplus | Daily tracking — spending, wants, extra income, corrections | Daily |
| 🏦 Budgets | Budget envelopes — balances, targets, and surplus distribution | Monthly review |
| ⚡ Quick View | Streamlined mobile screen: surplus display, spending entry, fast Paid Separately form | Daily (partner-friendly) |
When you first open Ridgeline Budget, a setup wizard guides you through adding your income, expenses, and budgets. You can skip any step and add information later.
The Income screen has two sections: Income Sources and Bank / Spending Sources.
Add every source of income: salary, freelance, rental income, side projects. For each, enter:
Add each credit card, bank account, or cash source you spend from. This is where you'll enter the daily balance on the Surplus page. You don't need to add accounts that you never actively spend from.
The Expenses Calendar is a 12-column table where each row is a recurring expense and each column is a month. Enter the expected amount for each expense in each applicable month.
Click + Add to add a single expense. Choose which months it applies to and enter the amount. For expenses that vary by month (utilities, semi-annual insurance), enter different amounts per cell by clicking directly on the cell.
Click ⬆ CSV to import a batch of expenses from a spreadsheet. Download the template first — it shows the required format with example data. Fill in your expenses and import. The preview screen lets you review everything before committing.
A special budget called Expenses Calendar is automatically created and maintained by the app. It accumulates a balance to cover the amounts you've entered. This budget cannot be deleted or edited — it's part of the core accounting system.
Budgets are the envelopes that hold your savings and fund your wants. Three types are supported.
| Type | Gets surplus? | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| ⭐ Priority (Fill First) | Yes — gets its share first | Goals with a target: vacation, auto maintenance, emergency fund |
| Standard | Yes — shares the remainder | Personal spending money, general savings |
| No Fill | No | Reimbursable expenses, budget-to-budget accounting |
When you close a month with a surplus, it distributes in two stages:
The priority/standard split percentage is adjustable in Settings.
This is your daily screen. It brings together everything to show one number: how much money is left over this month.
Enter the current balance of each credit card and bank account. Clarity calculates the difference from the last entry and uses that as "amount spent." Click into any amount field to edit — the existing value is automatically selected so you can type a new number immediately.
When you make a purchase that comes from a budget envelope rather than your monthly income, add it here. Specify the budget it should draw from and the amount. This:
Expenses from the Expenses Calendar auto-populate here with a Pay Now button for easy entry when the charge arrives.
Use the ⬇ Auto-fill button to populate all expense calendar items for the current month at once.
Record any income that arrived outside your regular monthly income: bonuses, freelance payments, gifts, tax refunds. You can also use this to pull money from a budget to cover a deficit — select a "From Budget" to deduct from an envelope and add to the monthly calculation.
The Keep on Close option persists the entry into the next month. Use this for standing arrangements — like a regular transfer from one budget to another.
Direct budget adjustments that don't affect the monthly surplus calculation. Examples:
Like Extra Income, entries can be flagged to persist into the next month.
At the end of the month, after reviewing all sections:
Quick View is a streamlined screen designed for fast, on-the-go use — especially on a phone. It surfaces exactly what most people need each day without requiring access to the full workspace.
The top of the screen displays a large, color-coded surplus or deficit number for the current month, plus your total available budget and net spent. Green means you're on track; red means you've overspent your needs budget.
Each card and bank account is shown with a +$ input. Enter the increase in what you've spent since your last update — not the total. For example, if you spent $45 on the card since yesterday, type 45. The app adds it to the existing running total automatically.
A compact form lets you log a description, amount, budget, and optional note. Tap the button to submit. The 5 most recently added items appear below the form so you can confirm what was just entered.
If one person in the household manages the full workspace and the other just needs Quick View, enable Simple Mode in Settings → App → View Mode. Simple Mode hides the advanced screens (Dashboard, Income, Expenses, Surplus) and makes Quick View the default home screen. The Budgets, Reports, and Settings screens remain accessible from the menu.
The Reports screen shows historical data from closed months. Three chart types are available:
| Chart | Shows |
|---|---|
| Net Spent | Total spending each month, with prior-year comparison bar in 5-year view |
| Surplus | Monthly surplus or deficit, with prior-year comparison in 5-year view |
| Budget Balances | Balance of selected budgets over time, with optional total line. Defaults to favorite budgets if any are set. |
The History page lists all closed months with their summary data. To undo the last month close, find the most recent entry and click Undo Close.
A workspace is an independent set of data — budgets, income, expenses, history. You can create multiple workspaces (e.g. household budget + personal tracking) and share a workspace with a partner.
Two ways to add a collaborator:
Passkeys let you sign in using your device's built-in authentication (Face ID, Touch ID, Windows Hello, PIN) instead of a password. They are more secure — each passkey is unique to this site and cannot be phished or reused.
To add a passkey: Settings → Passkeys → Add Passkey. Enter a device name (e.g. "My iPhone") and follow your device's prompt. You can register passkeys on multiple devices and delete any at any time.
Three encryption options:
| Mode | Security | Key management |
|---|---|---|
| None | No encryption | No key required |
| Random Key | Strongest | Key generated automatically; must be transferred to new devices |
| Passphrase | Strong (depends on passphrase quality) | You remember the passphrase; enter it on each new device |
To share your encryption key with a new device or collaborator: Settings → Encryption → key transfer options. The key is shown as a QR code, a shareable link, or exportable text.
Export your data at any time from Settings → Data Backup. The export is a JSON file containing all workspace data. Store it somewhere secure — a password manager, encrypted cloud storage, or an external drive.
To restore, use Settings → Data Backup → Import and select the JSON file. All current data is replaced by the backup.
Normal mode shows all screens: Dashboard, Income, Expenses, Surplus, Budgets, Reports, History, Quick View, and Settings.
Simple mode is designed for the partner who only needs Quick View. It hides the advanced screens and defaults to Quick View on launch. Budgets, Reports, and Settings are still accessible from the menu.
Toggle between modes in Settings → App → View Mode.
From Settings → Account you can change your password and permanently delete your account. Deleting your account requires typing DELETE to confirm — this removes all data from the server immediately and cannot be undone.
Guest mode (no account) is free and works on a single device, with limits of 5 budgets, 2 income sources, and 20 expenses. A free account removes data limits on a single device.
Syncing across multiple devices and real-time collaboration with a partner requires a paid plan. Two options:
| Plan | Price | What's included |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly | $3 / month | All current and future features |
| One-time | $35 | All current features and most future ones. Significant new features may require a separate purchase. |
The app has no ads and your financial data is never sold or shared.