2. Getting Started
Getting Started Overview
Learn the first Common Cents workflow: create a file, set up accounts and categories, assign money, and add your first transaction.
Use this section when you are setting up Common Cents for the first time or when you want the plain-language version of how the app fits together.
Common Cents starts with a file, not an online account. Inside that file, you create accounts, organize categories, assign money, and record transactions. If you understand those pieces, the rest of the app makes much more sense.
Work your way through these pages #
- Create Your First File
- Saving, Autosave, and Recovery
- Navigation Basics
- Create an Account
- Create a Category
- Assign Money to Your Category
- Create a Transaction
What this section is trying to teach you #
- Where your data lives
- How saving works in a local-first file
- Which screens matter first
- How accounts, categories, assigned money, and transactions connect to each other
The simple mental model #
Think of Common Cents this way:
- Your file is your working budget.
- Your accounts show where your money or debt lives.
- Your categories show what the money is for.
- Your assigned money tells categories how much is available to use.
- Your transactions record what actually happened.
Next in Getting Started: Create Your First File.