[GH-ISSUE #2602] [Feature] Notes for one-time expenses #42702

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opened 2026-04-26 02:45:54 -05:00 by GiteaMirror · 5 comments
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Originally created by @leon-wbr on GitHub (Apr 14, 2024).
Original GitHub issue: https://github.com/actualbudget/actual/issues/2602

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?

I have expenses that vary from month-to-month and can be budget accurately, but there is no way to note down why a month has a higher expense than another one.

In my old budget sheet, I'd just add a note to the field with the value and it'd remind me. In Actual Budget, there is no way to do so and I have to resort to category / month notes. It is not as easily accessible as I'd wish.

Describe your ideal solution to this problem

Make it possible to attach notes to each budgeted position. It can be shown on hover with the edit being in the dropdown.

Teaching and learning

No response

Originally created by @leon-wbr on GitHub (Apr 14, 2024). Original GitHub issue: https://github.com/actualbudget/actual/issues/2602 ### Verified feature request does not already exist? - [X] I have searched and found no existing issue ### 💻 - [X] Would you like to implement this feature? ### Pitch: what problem are you trying to solve? I have expenses that vary from month-to-month and can be budget accurately, but there is no way to note down why a month has a higher expense than another one. In my old budget sheet, I'd just add a note to the field with the value and it'd remind me. In Actual Budget, there is no way to do so and I have to resort to category / month notes. It is not as easily accessible as I'd wish. ### Describe your ideal solution to this problem Make it possible to attach notes to each budgeted position. It can be shown on hover with the edit being in the dropdown. ### Teaching and learning _No response_
GiteaMirror added the needs votesfeature labels 2026-04-26 02:45:54 -05:00
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@github-actions[bot] commented on GitHub (Apr 14, 2024):

Thanks for sharing your idea!

This repository uses lodash style issue management for enhancements. That means enhancement issues are automatically closed. This doesn’t mean we don’t accept feature requests, though! We will consider implementing ones that receive many upvotes, and we welcome contributions for any feature requests marked as needing votes (just post a comment first so we can help you make 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 👍!

<!-- gh-comment-id:2054149987 --> @github-actions[bot] commented on GitHub (Apr 14, 2024): :sparkles: Thanks for sharing your idea! :sparkles: This repository uses lodash style issue management for enhancements. That means enhancement issues are automatically closed. This doesn’t mean we don’t accept feature requests, though! We will consider implementing ones that receive many upvotes, and we welcome contributions for any feature requests marked as needing votes (just post a comment first so we can help you make 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 👍! <!-- feature-auto-close-comment -->
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@MatissJanis commented on GitHub (Apr 14, 2024):

Notes can be set on both - budget months and also on specific expenses. Is that what you're looking for?

Screenshot 2024-04-14 at 20 10 35 Screenshot 2024-04-14 at 20 11 09
<!-- gh-comment-id:2054157475 --> @MatissJanis commented on GitHub (Apr 14, 2024): Notes can be set on both - budget months and also on specific expenses. Is that what you're looking for? <img width="504" alt="Screenshot 2024-04-14 at 20 10 35" src="https://github.com/actualbudget/actual/assets/886567/af5baf62-c631-4b01-afb9-b1f0adad6021"> <img width="756" alt="Screenshot 2024-04-14 at 20 11 09" src="https://github.com/actualbudget/actual/assets/886567/68324d4a-715e-4dff-a288-42d6d2260bc0">
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@leon-wbr commented on GitHub (Apr 14, 2024):

No, slight misunderstanding. I don't know what the right terminology would be.

I'll just give an example from my old sheet:

image

I'm putting a projected expense into my budget for October, which I know will be the Google Drive. I don't want to create a separate category for this as it is a yearly expense that can easily be put into my general "business" category.

In Actual Budget I keep forgetting when exactly I'll have an expense. I could perhaps create a future expense, but that is confusing to me as it skews my budget figures. Perhaps I'm doing it wrong?

I really prefer report budgeting and have been using that for now.

<!-- gh-comment-id:2054162584 --> @leon-wbr commented on GitHub (Apr 14, 2024): No, slight misunderstanding. I don't know what the right terminology would be. I'll just give an example from my old sheet: ![image](https://github.com/actualbudget/actual/assets/8378241/484d6a95-7821-4a84-b916-78ea0c5ae879) I'm putting a projected expense into my budget for October, which I know will be the Google Drive. I don't want to create a separate category for this as it is a yearly expense that can easily be put into my general "business" category. In Actual Budget I keep forgetting when exactly I'll have an expense. I could perhaps create a future expense, but that is confusing to me as it skews my budget figures. Perhaps I'm doing it wrong? I really prefer report budgeting and have been using that for now.
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@MatissJanis commented on GitHub (Apr 14, 2024):

You can use schedules for recurring projected future expenses. Or just plain-old expenses in the transaction table with future dates. For both of these you can set a note.

https://actualbudget.org/docs/tour/schedules

<!-- gh-comment-id:2054163812 --> @MatissJanis commented on GitHub (Apr 14, 2024): You can use schedules for recurring projected future expenses. Or just plain-old expenses in the transaction table with future dates. For both of these you can set a note. https://actualbudget.org/docs/tour/schedules
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@leon-wbr commented on GitHub (Apr 14, 2024):

Don't both of these options immediately change my account balance? It's not extremely suitable for long-term planning.

I really would prefer to use schedules for that, but the behavior in Actual doesn't make sense to me. I tend to avoid that feature for reasons already outlined by others in #2354.

Budget goal templates with the schedule budgeting would be one way to solve that issue, but it still doesn't allow me to keep a good overview. If I'm thinking a bit further ahead, those templates could even auto-fill the note that I'm hoping to have.

<!-- gh-comment-id:2054169335 --> @leon-wbr commented on GitHub (Apr 14, 2024): Don't both of these options immediately change my account balance? It's not extremely suitable for long-term planning. I really would prefer to use schedules for that, but the behavior in Actual doesn't make sense to me. I tend to avoid that feature for reasons already outlined by others in #2354. Budget goal templates with the schedule budgeting would be one way to solve that issue, but it still doesn't allow me to keep a good overview. If I'm thinking a bit further ahead, those templates could even auto-fill the note that I'm hoping to have.
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Reference: github-starred/actual#42702