When one charge genuinely contains two or more financial purposes, the
Split Transaction workflow lets you divide it into honest pieces —
each with its own Personal Category, Need/Desire, and Memo.
The rule: amounts must add up exactly.
When a Split Is the Right Tool
Use a split when one transaction actually contains more than one financial meaning:
✓
Split this
Costco run: $180 total — $110 household groceries + $70 business supplies
✓
Split this
Amazon order: $95 — $45 personal item + $50 home office equipment
—
Don't split this
A charge that feels vague but actually belongs entirely in one category — use the Memo field instead
—
Don't split this
A row you're avoiding making a real category decision on — that's indecision, not a split
1Find the Row and Open the Overflow Menu
On the row that needs splitting, open the Overflow Menu (⋯) — the
action menu at the far right of the row in the Categorization modal.
⋯
Row Actions → Split Transaction
This opens the split workflow for that specific transaction. The original row stays
visible as the source while you build the split pieces below it.
2Confirm the Row Really Deserves a Split
Pause before continuing. Ask: does this row actually contain multiple distinct
financial purposes that belong in different Personal Categories?
Splits are for one row with multiple true purposes — not for indecision.
If the answer is "it's complicated but probably all one thing," don't split.
Add a Memo and choose the closest category.
Common misuse
Using Split Transaction as if it were a regular Personal Category option
in the dropdown is a structural mistake. It does not function as a label — it opens
the split workflow. Only choose it when you intend to actually divide the transaction.
3Build the Split — At Least Two Lines, Amounts Must Match
The split workflow requires at least two pieces. Assign a Personal Category
and an amount to each piece. The amounts must add up to the original transaction total exactly —
the balance tracker below shows you where you stand in real time.
Once you apply the split, the original row is replaced by the resulting pieces.
Each piece becomes an independent row in the modal with its own Personal Category,
Need/Desire, and Memo — the original single row is gone from the working view.
↓
Original row (replaced)
COSTCO WHOLESALE
Jul 14, 2025 · Single row — no category yet
−$180.00
→
Split piece 1
COSTCO WHOLESALE (split)
Personal Category: Groceries · Need
−$110.00
→
Split piece 2
COSTCO WHOLESALE (split)
Personal Category: Business Supplies · Business Label
−$70.00
Why exact amounts matter
The system uses the split amounts to correctly weight each piece in your reports.
A piece assigned $110 of a $180 transaction contributes exactly $110 to the
Groceries category — not an estimate. If your pieces don't sum to $180.00, the
split cannot be applied.
"A split lets one real-life mixed transaction tell the truth instead of forcing it to wear one category that only tells half the story."