Cake Budget
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Monthly Budget Planning Reminder

Set up automatic monthly reminders to review and plan your budget with personalized insights

Last updated: November 14, 2025

Stay on top of your finances with automated monthly reminders to review and adjust your budget. Get personalized insights, spending summaries, and alerts about slices that need attention—all delivered right when you need them.

What is the Monthly Budget Reminder?

A customizable email reminder that helps you:

  • Review your budget at the start (or end) of each month
  • See your current Safe-to-Spend amount
  • Review last month’s spending summary
  • Identify overspent, past due, or underfunded slices
  • Plan ahead with budget planning tips

How to Set Up Your Reminder

  1. Click Settings in the main navigation menu
  2. Scroll down to the Notification Preferences card
  3. Find the Monthly Budget Planning Reminder section
  4. Toggle the switch to enable/disable reminders (enabled by default)

Choose Your Reminder Day

When the reminder is enabled, you’ll see a dropdown to select when you want to receive it:

Option 1: First day of month

  • Receive reminder on the 1st of every month
  • Perfect for planning ahead at month start
  • Example: January 1, February 1, March 1, etc.

Option 2: Last day of month

  • Receive reminder on the last day of every month
  • Perfect for end-of-month review and next month planning
  • Example: January 31, February 28/29, March 31, etc.

Option 3: Custom day (2-30)

  • Choose any specific day of the month
  • Example: Day 15 = middle of month review
  • Example: Day 25 = pre-month-end check-in

Smart Day Handling

For months with fewer days: If you choose day 31 but the month only has 30 days (like April, June, September, November) or 28/29 days (February), the reminder will automatically be sent on the last day of that month.

Example: Setting day 31 means:

  • January 31st ✓
  • February 28th or 29th (last day)
  • March 31st ✓
  • April 30th (last day)

What You’ll Receive

Email Content

Header:

  • Subject: “Time to review your budget for [Month] 📊”
  • Current Safe-to-Spend amount prominently displayed

Last Month’s Recap:

  • Total spending amount
  • Top 3 spending categories with amounts
  • Week-over-week trends

Alerts & Warnings:

⚠️ Overspent Slices (if any):

  • Slices with negative balances
  • Shows how much each slice is overspent
  • Highlighted in red for attention

⏰ Past Due Slices (if any):

  • Slices with target dates that have passed
  • Shows which slices didn’t meet their goals
  • Due dates displayed

🎯 Slices Needing Attention (if any):

  • Underfunded slices with upcoming target dates
  • Current amount vs target amount
  • Days until target date

Budget Planning Tips:

  • Review last month’s spending
  • Adjust slice amounts for upcoming expenses
  • Set up funding schedules for recurring income
  • Update automations as needed

Call-to-Action:

  • “Review Your Budget” button linking to your Slices page

When Reminders Are Sent

Timing:

  • Sent at 9:00 AM Pacific Time (PT) on your chosen day
  • Daily automated check runs to find users whose reminder day matches

Who receives reminders:

  • ✅ Users with “Monthly Budget Planning Reminder” toggle ON
  • ✅ Users who haven’t unsubscribed from all emails
  • ❌ Users who have opted out of this specific reminder
  • ❌ Users who have globally unsubscribed from all marketing emails

Customizing Your Reminder

Change Reminder Day

  1. Go to Settings → Notification Preferences
  2. Find Monthly Budget Planning Reminder section
  3. Click the Reminder Day dropdown
  4. Select your preferred day
  5. Changes save automatically
  6. ✅ Success toast: “Reminder day updated!”

Disable Reminders

  1. Go to Settings → Notification Preferences
  2. Find Monthly Budget Planning Reminder section
  3. Toggle the switch to OFF
  4. Changes save immediately
  5. No more monthly reminder emails

Re-enable Later

Changed your mind? Just toggle the switch back to ON in Settings.

Use Cases & Recommendations

Use Case 1: Paycheck-Based Budgeting

Scenario: You get paid on the 1st and 15th of each month.

Recommended setting:

  • Day 1 of month
  • Review budget when first paycheck arrives
  • Adjust allocations for the month ahead

Use Case 2: End-of-Month Review

Scenario: You prefer to review spending at month end.

Recommended setting:

  • Last day of month
  • Reflect on the month’s spending
  • Plan adjustments for next month

Use Case 3: Mid-Month Check-In

Scenario: You want to course-correct before month end.

Recommended setting:

  • Day 15 of month
  • Halfway point review
  • Adjust spending if needed to hit goals

Use Case 4: Payday Planning

Scenario: You get paid on the 25th of each month.

Recommended setting:

  • Day 25 of month
  • Review budget when income arrives
  • Reallocate funds based on upcoming needs

Why Use Monthly Reminders?

Benefits:

✅ Consistency: Never forget to review your budget ✅ Insights: See trends you might miss day-to-day ✅ Proactive: Catch issues before they become problems ✅ Motivation: Regular check-ins build good financial habits ✅ Accountability: Monthly ritual keeps you engaged

Without reminders:

  • ❌ Easy to forget monthly budget review
  • ❌ Miss overspending until it’s too late
  • ❌ Underfunded slices go unnoticed
  • ❌ Budget drifts without regular attention

Reminder vs Weekly Insights

Monthly Budget Planning Reminder

Frequency: Once per month (on your chosen day) Focus: Planning ahead, slice funding, goal review Content: Last month recap, underfunded slices, overspent alerts Best for: Monthly planning ritual, goal-oriented budgeters

Weekly Insights

Frequency: Every Sunday Focus: Week-over-week spending trends Content: This week’s spending, top categories, Safe-to-Spend Best for: Frequent check-ins, catching overspending early

Use Both?

Yes, if you want:

  • Weekly tactical tracking (spending this week)
  • Monthly strategic planning (adjust budget goals)
  • Both short-term awareness + long-term planning

No, choose one if:

  • Too many emails
  • You prefer manual app checking
  • One frequency is enough for your workflow

Pro Tips

💡 Start with Month-End: If unsure, try last day of month first. Reflects on the full month’s data.

💡 Pair with Payday: Set reminder day to your payday for natural budget review timing.

💡 Review Before Month Start: Day 25-28 gives you time to adjust before the new month begins.

💡 Mobile-Friendly: Open reminder emails on your phone—action buttons work perfectly on mobile.

💡 Share with Partner: If you budget as a couple, forward the email to keep everyone aligned.

💡 Archive for History: Keep reminder emails as a monthly financial journal.

Common Questions

Q: What if I don’t have any slices or transactions? A: You’ll still get the reminder, but it will have minimal content. Perfect for new users to remember to set up their budget!

Q: Can I get reminders more than once a month? A: Currently, it’s limited to one day per month. For more frequent reminders, enable Weekly Insights (every Sunday).

Q: What timezone are reminders sent in? A: 9:00 AM Pacific Time (PT). Your local delivery time depends on your timezone.

Q: Can I customize which slices appear in the reminder? A: No, the email automatically shows slices that need attention (overspent, past due, underfunded).

Q: Does this replace Weekly Insights? A: No, they’re complementary. Weekly Insights = weekly spending tracking. Monthly Reminder = monthly planning and goal review.

Q: Will I get duplicate emails on my reminder day? A: If your reminder day is Sunday AND you have Weekly Insights enabled, you’ll get both emails. They have different content/purposes.

Q: Can I change the reminder day mid-month? A: Yes! Changes take effect immediately. If you change from day 1 to day 15 on the 10th, you’ll get the next reminder on the 15th of that month.

Q: What if I miss a reminder? A: No problem! Reminders don’t queue up. If you miss one, the next reminder comes on your chosen day next month.

Q: Can I test the reminder before committing? A: Enable it and set the reminder day to tomorrow to see what the email looks like with your real data.

Unsubscribe from Reminders

Option 1: From Email

Click “Unsubscribe from monthly budget reminders” in any monthly reminder email footer.

Option 2: In Settings

  1. Go to Settings → Notification Preferences
  2. Toggle Monthly Budget Planning Reminder to OFF

Future: Push Notifications

Coming soon! When we launch PWA push notifications, you’ll be able to receive monthly reminders as:

  • ✅ Email (current)
  • ✅ Push notification on your device (future)
  • ✅ Or both!

Preferences will sync seamlessly when that feature launches.

Never miss a budget review: Set up your monthly reminder today in Settings at trycakebudget.com

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