Available vs Activity

These two numbers are related, but they are not interchangeable. One tells you what happened. The other tells you what is still ready to use.

Activity #

Activity shows what happened in the category during the month you are viewing. It is the history column.

On the Budget page, Activity becomes most useful when it is clickable. If a category has drilldown entries available, clicking the Activity amount opens a bottom sheet titled with the category name, such as Groceries Activity.

That drilldown sheet helps you inspect the history behind the number:

• each row shows the date, context details such as account, payee, category, label, or transaction type, and the amount
• notes appear inline when a transaction has one
• each transaction row has a Related Actions menu so you can Edit it or start a refund when that action is allowed

If you need to change one of those rows after inspecting it, continue with Add, Edit, and Delete Transactions.

If a budget number looks wrong, Activity is usually the first place to check.

Available #

Available shows what the category still has ready to use after Common Cents combines the month’s budgeting and transaction history.

Depending on the month and mode, the label changes:

• Available for the current month
• Ending Available for past months
• Projected Available in Planning Mode
• Expected Available for a future-month comparison view; in the next-month view, you can switch that comparison to the current balance, labeled Available

In Planning Mode, Projected Available includes the planned add-on and forecast activity. This lets you forecast where a category is headed without overstating what it can cover today.

Target and planning indicators help distinguish a forecast from funding that is already available.

Why this matters #

If you use Activity when you really mean Available, you will misread the budget.

• Use Activity when you want to understand what already happened in that category.
• Use Available when you want to know whether the category can still cover something.

The grid gives you other clues too. Future Planning Mode shows Planned Assigned, Forecast Activity, and Projected Available, and group rows roll those same ideas up across all categories in the group.

Use filters to find the categories that need attention #

The Filter control above the grid helps you narrow the page to the categories that need a closer look.

Common options include:

• All
• Overspent
• Clearing when the clearing-category feature is enabled
• Underfunded and Overfunded when Targets is enabled

That makes it easier to spot whether your problem is spending that already happened, money that was never assigned, or a category that is simply carrying the wrong available balance.