Question 1

How much does BillForecast cost?

Accepted Answer

BillForecast is free to use. Non-admin budgeting, forecasting, receipt, export, and Money Helper workflows are included without a subscription.

Question 2

Do I need to provide credit card information?

Accepted Answer

No. You do not need a card to create an account because BillForecast does not charge for non-admin app features.

Question 3

How do I get started?

Accepted Answer

Create a free account with your email. Once registered, you can add accounts, track transactions, set budgets, upload receipts, and review forecasts.

Question 4

What features does BillForecast offer?

Accepted Answer

BillForecast offers expense tracking, budget management, receipt scanning with OCR, recurring transaction management, financial analytics, multi-account support, auto-categorization rules, and forward-looking cash flow projections.

Question 5

Can I track multiple bank accounts?

Accepted Answer

Yes! You can add unlimited accounts including checking accounts, savings accounts, credit cards, and cash. Track transfers between accounts and see your complete financial picture in one place.

Question 6

Does BillForecast support receipt scanning?

Accepted Answer

Yes. You can upload receipt photos and our OCR technology will automatically extract transaction details like merchant name, amount, and date. Receipts are stored securely for future reference.

Question 7

What is the recurring transaction feature?

Accepted Answer

Recurring transactions let you set up bills, subscriptions, and regular income that repeat on a schedule. You can review and approve them before they're added to your transactions, ensuring accuracy.

Question 8

Can I create custom categories?

Accepted Answer

Absolutely! While BillForecast comes with default categories, you can create custom categories with your own names, colors, and icons. Categories support parent-child hierarchies for better organization.

Question 9

Is my financial data secure?

Accepted Answer

Yes. We use secure authentication (hashed passwords) and encrypted connections (HTTPS). We do not sell your data, we run no ads or third-party analytics, and we do not require bank connections to use the app.

Question 10

Do you connect to my bank accounts automatically?

Accepted Answer

No. BillForecast does not connect directly to your bank. You manually enter transactions, which gives you complete control over your data and avoids banking-credential handoff to third parties.

Question 11

Can I export my data?

Accepted Answer

Yes. You can export transactions to CSV and download a full JSON backup of your data at any time. Your data belongs to you, and we never lock you in.

Question 12

Where is my data stored?

Accepted Answer

Your data is stored in our database on our servers (or your own server if you self-host). Access is protected by authentication, and connections are encrypted (HTTPS).

Question 13

Can I use BillForecast on my phone?

Accepted Answer

Yes. BillForecast is a responsive web app that works on desktop, tablet, and mobile devices. Simply visit the website from any browser and log in to access your account.

Question 14

Is there a mobile app?

Accepted Answer

BillForecast is a Progressive Web App (PWA) that works in your mobile browser. You can add it to your home screen for an app-like experience without downloading from an app store.

Question 15

How do budgets work?

Accepted Answer

Create budgets for specific categories and set spending limits for any time period (monthly, weekly, custom). BillForecast tracks your spending in real time and notifies you when you approach or exceed your budget.

Question 16

What are auto-categorization rules?

Accepted Answer

Rules automatically categorize transactions based on conditions you set. For example, you can create a rule that categorizes any transaction containing "Starbucks" as "Dining Out," saving time on manual categorization.

Question 17

What browsers are supported?

Accepted Answer

BillForecast works on all modern browsers including Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge, and mobile browsers. We recommend using the latest version of your preferred browser for the best experience.

Question 18

Does BillForecast work offline?

Accepted Answer

BillForecast requires an internet connection to sync your data. However, as a PWA, it can cache some content for improved performance when you have a slow connection.

Question 19

How do I get help if I have questions?

Accepted Answer

Check this FAQ first! If you need additional help, contact us at support@billforecast.app or visit our help center. We typically respond within 24 hours.

Question 20

Can I suggest new features?

Accepted Answer

Absolutely! We love hearing from our users. Send your feature suggestions to support@billforecast.app. We review all suggestions and prioritize them based on user feedback.

Question 21

How does BillForecast make money?

Accepted Answer

BillForecast currently provides free access without ads, data selling, or third-party trackers.

Question 22

Is there billing to manage or cancel?

Accepted Answer

No. Subscription billing has been removed, so there is no plan, renewal, or cancellation flow to manage.

Question 23

Do you show advertisements in the app?

Accepted Answer

No. BillForecast does not run ads or third-party trackers.

Question 24

How do auto-categorization rules work in detail?

Accepted Answer

Rules let you automatically categorize transactions based on patterns. For example, create a rule: "If description contains 'Starbucks', categorize as 'Dining Out' and add tag 'Coffee'". Rules can match on description (contains, starts with, equals), amount (greater than, less than, equals), or account. They apply to all future transactions and can be applied to past transactions in bulk.

Question 25

What are financial insights and how are they generated?

Accepted Answer

Insights analyze your spending patterns and flag unusual activity, budget warnings, and savings opportunities. For example: "Your dining spending is 30% higher than last month" or "You have 3 recurring subscriptions totaling $45/month you haven't used in 60 days". Insights update daily based on your transaction history.

Question 26

How does the 6-month cash flow projection work?

Accepted Answer

Our cash flow calendar projects your account balances up to 6 months ahead based on: (1) Current balances, (2) Scheduled recurring income and expenses, and (3) Historical spending patterns. This helps you identify potential shortfalls before they happen and plan for large expenses.

Question 27

Can I set savings goals and track progress?

Accepted Answer

Yes! Create savings goals for specific purposes (emergency fund, vacation, new car) and track progress toward each goal. Link goals to specific accounts or track them separately. The dashboard shows visual progress bars and estimated completion dates based on your contribution rate.

Question 28

How accurate is the OCR receipt scanning?

Accepted Answer

Our OCR technology extracts merchant name, total amount, date, and line items from receipts with 85-90% accuracy. You can review and edit extracted data before creating transactions. Receipt scanning works best with clear, well-lit photos of printed receipts. Handwritten receipts may require manual entry.

Question 29

Can I change my email address?

Accepted Answer

Not yet. For now, email addresses can’t be changed after signup.

Question 30

How do I permanently delete my account and data?

Accepted Answer

Go to Settings > Privacy > Delete Account. This will permanently delete your account and all associated data. Export your data first if you want a backup.

Question 31

What is the best budget app?

Accepted Answer

The "best" app depends on your workflow. BillForecast is a strong option if you want free, privacy-first manual entry, recurring bills, receipt scanning, and cash-flow forecasting.

Question 32

How do budget apps work?

Accepted Answer

Budget apps help you track income and expenses to understand your spending patterns. You add your accounts and transactions, create budgets for different categories, and the app shows you how much you've spent versus your budget. BillForecast also provides insights, recurring transaction management, and forecasting to help you plan ahead.

Question 33

Can I use BillForecast for business expenses?

Accepted Answer

While BillForecast is designed for personal finance, you can track business expenses by creating separate accounts and categories for business transactions. For comprehensive business accounting features, a dedicated business accounting tool may be more appropriate.

Question 34

Does BillForecast work on iPhone and Android?

Accepted Answer

Yes. BillForecast is a responsive web app that works on iPhone, Android, and any device with a modern web browser. You can add it to your home screen for an app-like experience without downloading from an app store.

Question 35

Can I use BillForecast from my phone?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Install BillForecast as a Progressive Web App from any modern mobile browser for the full dashboard experience with offline support. For quick capture, use Money Helper to prepare expenses or budget checks in plain language; it waits for your review before changing records. If your operator enables a local model endpoint such as LM Studio, Money Helper can run without sending financial context to a third-party model provider.

Question 36

What is MCP and how does it work?

Accepted Answer

MCP (Model Context Protocol) is an open standard for connecting external clients to scoped tools and data. In BillForecast it is optional developer-style access to 27 finance tools for balances, forecasts, budgets, approvals, recurring bills, transactions, categories, safe write actions, and confirmation utilities. Create an API token in Settings, add the server URL to your MCP client, and keep write actions in the prepare-then-confirm flow.

Question 37

Is it safe to connect Money Helper or external MCP clients?

Accepted Answer

Yes, with multiple layers of protection. Money Helper and MCP/API tokens use scoped access, so read-only access cannot modify data. Every write operation, including expenses, transfers, and budget changes, previews first and requires explicit approval before records change. Tokens can be revoked instantly, usage is tracked, and raw tokens are shown only once before being stored as a bcrypt hash. For maximum privacy, Money Helper can run through a local LLM endpoint on your own server when configured.

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