[Feature] Make Category Learning Opt-In Rather than Default #2583

New Issue

GiteaMirror · 2026-02-28T20:20:02-06:00

GiteaMirror commented

2026-02-28 20:20:02 -06:00

Originally created by @ekjswim on GitHub (Oct 30, 2025).

Verified feature request does not already exist?

I have searched and found no existing issue

💻

Would you like to implement this feature?

Pitch: what problem are you trying to solve?

As the type of person installing and using an open-source app, I appreciate control and knowledge of things the software tries to do on its own vs what I actively do. After a few months using Actual I was very surprised to find all my Costco purchases being categorized without me doing so. It took me a while to dig in and find that Category Learning existed, how to turn it off, and to delete the rules it made. In my opinion, a feature that means to take on a significant portion of the categorization of my spending should be an opt-in feature rather than a default.

Describe your ideal solution to this problem

Switch Category Learning to defaulting off. Perhaps run the "learning" in the background regardless and whenever the system thinks it could implement a rule, notify the user with a description of the feature and an option to turn it on.
I've also seen a now-closed previous issue recommending that each new rule gets a pop-up and active confirmation by the user before implementation. That would be perfectly fine too.

Teaching and learning

No response

Originally created by @ekjswim on GitHub (Oct 30, 2025). ### Verified feature request does not already exist? - [x] I have searched and found no existing issue ### 💻 - [ ] Would you like to implement this feature? ### Pitch: what problem are you trying to solve? As the type of person installing and using an open-source app, I appreciate control and knowledge of things the software tries to do on its own vs what I actively do. After a few months using Actual I was very surprised to find all my Costco purchases being categorized without me doing so. It took me a while to dig in and find that Category Learning existed, how to turn it off, and to delete the rules it made. In my opinion, a feature that means to take on a significant portion of the categorization of my spending should be an opt-in feature rather than a default. ### Describe your ideal solution to this problem Switch Category Learning to defaulting off. Perhaps run the "learning" in the background regardless and whenever the system thinks it could implement a rule, notify the user with a description of the feature and an option to turn it on. I've also seen a now-closed previous issue recommending that each new rule gets a pop-up and active confirmation by the user before implementation. That would be perfectly fine too. ### Teaching and learning _No response_

GiteaMirror added the needs votes feature labels 2026-02-28 20:20:02 -06:00

GiteaMirror closed this issue

2026-02-28 20:20:03 -06:00

GiteaMirror commented

2026-02-28 20:20:03 -06:00

@github-actions[bot] commented on GitHub (Oct 30, 2025):

✨ Thanks for sharing your idea! ✨

This repository uses a voting-based system for feature requests. While enhancement issues are automatically closed, we still welcome feature requests! The voting system helps us gauge community interest in potential features. We also encourage community contributions for any feature requests marked as needing votes (just post a comment first so we can help guide you toward a successful contribution).

The enhancement backlog can be found here: https://github.com/actualbudget/actual/issues?q=label%3A%22needs+votes%22+sort%3Areactions-%2B1-desc+

Don’t forget to upvote the top comment with 👍!

@github-actions[bot] commented on GitHub (Oct 30, 2025): :sparkles: Thanks for sharing your idea! :sparkles: This repository uses a voting-based system for feature requests. While enhancement issues are automatically closed, we still welcome feature requests! The voting system helps us gauge community interest in potential features. We also encourage community contributions for any feature requests marked as needing votes (just post a comment first so we can help guide you toward a successful contribution). The enhancement backlog can be found here: https://github.com/actualbudget/actual/issues?q=label%3A%22needs+votes%22+sort%3Areactions-%2B1-desc+ Don’t forget to upvote the top comment with 👍!