📚 Complete User Guide

Your comprehensive guide to mastering MATVIO GOALS Financial Management

Quick Navigation

🚀 Getting Started 💳 Accounts 📑 Categories 💸 Transactions 📅 Scheduler 📊 Account Ledger 💰 Budget 🎯 Goals 💰 Debts ⚡ Utilities 📈 Stocks 🎯 Wants & Needs 📊 Daily Snapshots 📈 Reports 📓 Notebook 🧮 Calculator 🔔 Reminders 🤖 AI Integration 📱 PWA 🎨 Color Codes

🚀 Getting Started

Welcome to MATVIO GOALS! This financial management system helps you track accounts, plan budgets, manage debts, and achieve your financial goals. Here's how to get started:

Step 1: Set Up Categories

Categories help you organize your income and expenses. Before adding transactions, set up your categories:

  1. Go to Settings in the navigation menu
  2. Scroll to the Categories section
  3. Click + Add Category
  4. Choose a Category Type (Income or Expense)
  5. Enter a Category Name (e.g., "Salary", "Groceries", "Utilities")
  6. Optionally select a Parent Category to create subcategories
Example Category Structure:
  • Income: Salary, Freelance, Investments
  • Expenses: Housing → Rent, Mortgage | Food → Groceries, Dining Out | Transportation → Gas, Insurance

Step 2: Create Accounts

Accounts represent your bank accounts, credit cards, and cash:

  1. Navigate to Accounts or Settings
  2. Click + Add Account
  3. Enter the Account Name (e.g., "TD Chequing")
  4. Select Account Type (Chequing, Savings, Credit Card, etc.)
  5. Set the Opening Balance (starting balance before any transactions)
  6. Enter the Current Balance
  7. For credit cards, set the Credit Limit
  8. For chequing/savings, optionally set Overdraft Limit
💡 Pro Tip: Set your opening balance to match what the account had before you started tracking. This helps maintain accurate historical data!

💳 Understanding Accounts

Accounts are the foundation of your financial tracking. Each account represents a real financial account you own.

Account Types

📑 Categories & Subcategories

Categories help you organize and analyze your transactions. Every transaction can have a category and subcategory.

Category Types

Load Default Categories

Getting started is easy with pre-configured categories! MATVIO includes a comprehensive set of default categories:

  • Primary Income: Salary, Bonuses, Overtime, Commissions, Self-Employment
  • Secondary Income: Rental Income, Investments, Pension, Government Benefits
  • Housing: Mortgage/Rent, Property Taxes, Insurance, Utilities, Maintenance
  • Transportation: Car Payment, Fuel, Insurance, Maintenance, Public Transit
  • Food & Groceries: Groceries, Dining Out, Coffee Shops, Meal Delivery
  • Personal & Family: Clothing, Personal Care, Childcare, Education, Pet Care
  • Debt & Financial: Loan Payments, Savings, Investments, Donations
  • Health & Insurance: Health Insurance, Dental/Vision, Prescriptions, Gym
  • Entertainment & Lifestyle: Hobbies, Travel, Events, Gifts

Category Management Features

Diagnostic & Repair Tools

MATVIO includes powerful diagnostic tools to maintain data integrity:

  • Diagnose Mismatched Categories: Finds and fixes transactions where the category doesn't match the subcategory's parent
  • Diagnose Scheduled Mismatches: Identifies scheduled transactions with incorrect category assignments
  • One-Click Repair: Fix all issues at once or repair individual items
  • Automatic Updates: All transactions, budgets, and scheduled items are updated when merging categories
💡 Pro Tip: Run the diagnostic tools after importing transactions or making bulk changes to ensure your reports and budgets are accurate!

💸 Adding & Managing Transactions

Transactions record money moving in and out of your accounts. Every transaction has a type: Income or Expense.

How to Add a Transaction

  1. Click the Quick Transaction button in the navigation (fastest way!)
  2. OR go to an Account Ledger and click + Add Transaction
  3. Select the Account the transaction affects
  4. Choose Transaction Type (Income or Expense)
  5. Enter the Amount
  6. Select a Category and optionally a Subcategory
  7. Add a Description (optional but helpful)
  8. Set the Transaction Date
  9. Click Add Transaction

Importing Transactions from Your Bank (OFX/QFX Files)

Save time by importing transactions directly from your bank using OFX or QFX files!

What are OFX/QFX Files?

OFX (Open Financial Exchange) and QFX (Quicken Financial Exchange) are file formats that banks use to export your transaction history. These files contain:

  • Transaction dates: When each transaction occurred
  • Transaction amounts: How much was spent or received
  • Descriptions: Merchant names and transaction details
  • Transaction types: Whether it's income or an expense

Downloading OFX/QFX from Your Bank

Most Canadian banks allow you to download transactions in OFX or QFX format. Look for:

  • "Download Transactions" or "Export Transactions"
  • "Microsoft Money" export format
  • "OFX" or "QFX" file format
  • "Quicken" or "Money" compatible format
Common Bank Export Options:
  • TD Bank: "Download for Quicken/Money" → Select OFX format
  • RBC: "Download Transactions" → Choose "Microsoft Money (OFX)"
  • Scotiabank: "Export Transactions" → Select "OFX/QFX"
  • CIBC: "Download Transactions" → Choose "Quicken (QFX)"
  • BMO: "Export to Quicken" or "Download OFX"

How to Import OFX/QFX Files

  1. Log into your online banking and find the account to export
  2. Look for "Download", "Export", or "Download Transactions"
  3. Select your desired date range (e.g., last 30 days, last 3 months)
  4. Choose "OFX", "QFX", or "Microsoft Money" format
  5. Download the file to your device
  6. In MATVIO, click "Import .OFX/.QFX" in the navigation
  7. Select the account for these transactions
  8. Upload your downloaded OFX/QFX file
  9. Preview and select transactions to import
  10. Confirm the import

Import Features

🔒 Security Notice: Your OFX/QFX files are processed instantly and permanently deleted from MATVIO's servers. We never store your banking files.
💡 Pro Tip: Import transactions regularly to keep MATVIO synchronized with your bank! This is especially useful when getting started to quickly load your transaction history.

📅 Income & Bill Scheduler

The Scheduler is one of MATVIO's most powerful features. It lets you set up recurring income and bills, then automatically forecasts them into the future!

How the Scheduler Works

When you create a scheduled item, MATVIO:

  • Remembers the details (amount, accounts, frequency)
  • Forecasts future occurrences based on the frequency
  • Shows these forecasts in your Account Ledgers (highlighted in yellow)
  • Lets you apply them with one click when they're due

Setting Up Scheduled Items

  1. Navigate to Scheduler from the main menu
  2. Click + Add Scheduled Transaction
  3. Choose the Transaction Type (Income or Expense)
  4. Enter the Amount
  5. Select From Account and To Account
  6. Choose a Category and Subcategory
  7. Add a Description
  8. Set the Frequency (Daily, Weekly, Bi-Weekly, Monthly, etc.)
  9. Choose the Start Date
  10. Click Save

Frequency Options

Applying Scheduled Items

When a scheduled item is due:

  1. Open the Account Ledger for the relevant account
  2. Look for entries with a yellow background (forecasted)
  3. Click the Apply button on the forecasted entry
  4. The transaction is recorded and the forecast updates automatically
💡 Pro Tip: Set up ALL your recurring bills and income in the Scheduler. This gives you an accurate forecast of your future balances and helps prevent overdrafts!

📊 Account Ledger - Understanding Color Codes

The Account Ledger shows all transactions for an account, plus forecasted transactions from the Scheduler. It uses colors to help you quickly understand what's happening.

Complete Color Code Guide

🟡 Yellow Background - Forecasted Entry
This is a future transaction from the Scheduler. It hasn't happened yet but is predicted to occur.
🔵 Blue Left Border - Today's Date
This transaction occurs today. Check if scheduled items need to be applied!
🟢 Thick Green Left Border - Monthly Low (Positive)
This is the lowest balance point for this month, and it's positive (above $0). Good sign!
🔴 Thick Red Left Border - Monthly Low (Negative)
This is the lowest balance point for this month, and it's negative. You may overdraft here!

🎯 Financial Goals

Set and track savings goals for things you want to achieve. MATVIO helps you stay motivated and on track!

Creating a Goal

  1. Navigate to Goals from the main menu
  2. Click + Add Goal
  3. Enter a Goal Name (e.g., "Emergency Fund", "Vacation")
  4. Set your Target Amount
  5. Choose a Target Date
  6. Optionally set Money Already Stored
  7. Select an Account to track this goal
  8. Add a Description (optional)

Goal Features

Example Goals:
  • Emergency Fund: $10,000 by December 2025
  • Down Payment: $50,000 for house purchase
  • Vacation Fund: $5,000 for summer trip
  • New Car: $25,000 in 2 years

💰 Debt Tracking

Track all your debts including mortgages, loans, credit cards, and lines of credit. See payment schedules and payoff projections.

Creating a Debt

  1. Go to Debts from the main menu
  2. Click + Add Debt
  3. Enter Debt Name (e.g., "Mortgage", "Car Loan")
  4. Set the Total Amount (original debt)
  5. Enter Amount Remaining
  6. Set the Interest Rate (annual %)
  7. Choose Payment Frequency (Monthly, Bi-Weekly, etc.)
  8. Enter the Payment Amount
  9. Set the Next Payment Date

Debt Features

💡 Pro Tip: Focus on paying off high-interest debts first (avalanche method) or smallest balances first (snowball method) to accelerate your debt freedom!

⚡ Utilities Tracking

Track utility bills like electricity, water, gas, internet, and phone separately from regular expenses. Perfect for variable bills!

📈 Stock Portfolio Tracking

Track your stock investments, monitor portfolio performance, and analyze your holdings with real-time market data!

Stock Features

🎯 Wants & Needs Tracker

Prioritize your spending by categorizing purchases as "Wants" or "Needs". This powerful tool helps you understand your spending habits and make better financial decisions!

How It Works

💡 Pro Tip: Financial experts recommend the 50/30/20 rule: 50% Needs, 30% Wants, 20% Savings. Use this tracker to see how your spending compares!

📊 Daily Financial Snapshots

MATVIO automatically records daily snapshots of your financial position, allowing you to track your net worth and account balances over time!

What Are Daily Snapshots?

💡 Pro Tip: Use the History page to track your financial progress over months and years. Seeing your net worth increase over time is incredibly motivating!

📈 Stock Portfolio Tracking

Track your stock investments, monitor portfolio performance, and analyze your holdings with real-time market data!

Stock Features

🎯 Wants & Needs Tracker

Prioritize your spending by categorizing purchases as "Wants" or "Needs". This powerful tool helps you understand your spending habits and make better financial decisions!

How It Works

💡 Pro Tip: Financial experts recommend the 50/30/20 rule: 50% Needs, 30% Wants, 20% Savings. Use this tracker to see how your spending compares!

📊 Daily Financial Snapshots

MATVIO automatically records daily snapshots of your financial position, allowing you to track your net worth and account balances over time!

What Are Daily Snapshots?

💡 Pro Tip: Use the History page to track your financial progress over months and years. Seeing your net worth increase over time is incredibly motivating!

💰 Budget Management

MATVIO's powerful budget system helps you plan your spending by category and track your progress month by month.

How to Set Up Your Budget

  1. Navigate to Budget from the main menu
  2. Select the month and year you want to budget for
  3. Enter budget amounts for each expense category
  4. Click Save Budget to save your amounts

Budget Features

Understanding Budget Display

The budget page shows:

  • Category Name: The expense category being budgeted
  • Budget Amount: How much you planned to spend
  • Actual Spent: How much you've actually spent this month
  • Difference: Remaining budget (green) or overspent amount (red)
  • Progress Bar: Visual indicator of spending progress
  • Total Row: Summary of all budgets, spending, and remaining amounts

Budget Charts (When Hide $0 Enabled)

When you enable "Hide $0 Budgets", you'll see:

  • Budget Breakdown Pie Chart: Visual distribution of your budget across categories
  • Budget vs Actual Line Graph: Side-by-side comparison of budgeted amounts vs actual spending

Quick Actions

Use these buttons to manage your budget efficiently:

  • Copy Previous Month: Duplicates last month's budget to current month
  • Clear This Month: Removes all budget amounts for the displayed month
  • Manage Budget: Available in Reports page to jump to budget management
💡 Pro Tip: Set realistic budgets based on your past spending patterns (use Reports to analyze). Start with broader categories and refine as you get more comfortable!
⚠️ Important: Budgets are monthly and category-specific. If you change categories or delete transactions, your budget vs actual comparison will update automatically.

📈 Financial Reports

Analyze your spending patterns and income sources with detailed reports. Perfect for budgeting and finding areas to improve!

Available Reports

Budget Performance Report

The Budget vs Actual report shows:

  • Category Breakdown: Budget, actual, and difference for each category
  • Performance Indicators: Visual bars showing spending progress
  • Total Summary: Overall budget performance metrics
  • Manage Budget Button: Quick link to set or adjust budgets

Using Reports

Reports can be filtered by:

  • Date ranges (last 30 days, 3 months, 6 months, year, custom)
  • Specific accounts
  • Categories and subcategories
  • Transaction types (income vs expenses)
💡 Pro Tip: Review your reports monthly to identify spending leaks and opportunities to save. Small changes add up to big results!

📓 Notebook & Checklists

Your personal digital notebook for financial planning, notes, and to-do lists. Keep everything organized in one place!

Notebook Features

Creating Notebook Pages

  1. Navigate to Notebook
  2. Click + New Page
  3. Enter a Page Title
  4. Write your content in the text area
  5. Add checklists for actionable items
  6. Save your page
Popular Notebook Uses:
  • Budget Planning: Track monthly budget goals and adjustments
  • Financial Goals: Document long-term financial objectives
  • Expense Notes: Record reasons for large purchases
  • Investment Research: Track stock research and decisions
  • Tax Preparation: Checklist for tax documents and deductions

🧮 Paycheck Calculator

Calculate your take-home pay after all deductions including CPP, CPP2, EI, Federal Tax, Provincial Tax, and Medical premiums. Essential for accurate income forecasting!

Supported Deductions

How to Use

  1. Navigate to Calculator from Tools menu
  2. Enter your Gross Income per pay period
  3. Select your Pay Frequency (Weekly, Bi-Weekly, Monthly)
  4. Choose your Province
  5. Add any additional deductions
  6. View your Net Pay instantly
💡 Pro Tip: Save your paycheck settings to automatically calculate your take-home pay for future scheduled income!

🤖 AI-Powered Financial Insights

MATVIO GOALS now features optional AI integration powered by Groq, bringing intelligent financial analysis and personalized insights to your money management!

What is AI Integration?

When enabled, our AI integration uses advanced language models to analyze your financial data and provide:

  • Intelligent Summaries: Get comprehensive overviews of your accounts, spending patterns, and financial health
  • Personalized Recommendations: Receive actionable advice based on your unique financial situation
  • Spending Analysis: Understand where your money goes with AI-powered insights
  • Cash Flow Predictions: Get intelligent forecasts about your future financial position
  • Report Analysis: Comprehensive breakdowns of your financial reports with key insights

How to Enable AI Integration

  1. Obtain a Groq API key from https://console.groq.com (free tier available)
  2. Navigate to Settings in MATVIO GOALS
  3. Scroll to the AI Integration Settings section
  4. Enter your Groq API Key
  5. Select your preferred AI Model (Llama 3.3 70B recommended)
  6. Click Save AI Settings

Available AI Features

Using AI Summaries

Once AI is enabled, you'll see the 🤖 AI Summary button in various locations:

  1. In Account Ledgers, click the AI Summary button to analyze that account
  2. In Reports, click AI Summary to get comprehensive financial analysis
  3. The AI will process your data and provide detailed insights in moments
  4. Review the AI-generated summary with recommendations and observations

Supported AI Models

💡 Pro Tip: Use AI summaries regularly to spot trends you might miss! The AI can identify patterns in your spending and suggest optimizations you may not have considered.
🔒 Privacy & Security: Your Groq API key is encrypted and stored securely. Your financial data is sent to Groq only when you request an AI summary. MATVIO never stores or logs your financial information with the AI service.

Getting Your Groq API Key

  1. Visit https://console.groq.com
  2. Sign up for a free account (or log in if you have one)
  3. Navigate to the API Keys section
  4. Click Create API Key
  5. Copy the generated key
  6. Paste it into MATVIO GOALS Settings
Example AI Insights You Might Receive:
  • "Your grocery spending increased 23% this month. Consider meal planning to reduce costs."
  • "You have $847 in forecasted income this week but $1,200 in bills. Consider transferring funds to avoid overdraft."
  • "Your net worth has grown 12% over the past 3 months. Keep up the great work!"
  • "Subscription services are taking 8% of your income. Review these for potential savings."

🔔 Reminders & Quick Notes

The Reminders tab provides a quick-access sidebar for notes, to-dos, and important financial reminders that you want to see frequently.

Reminder Features

Creating Reminders

  1. Click the Reminders tab in the sidebar
  2. Click + Add Reminder
  3. Enter your reminder text
  4. Choose a color (optional)
  5. Save the reminder
Great Uses for Reminders:
  • "Review budget every Sunday"
  • "Pay credit card on the 15th"
  • "Check investment performance monthly"
  • "Update insurance beneficiaries"
  • "Annual RRSP contribution deadline: March 1"

📱 Mobile PWA Version

MATVIO offers a Progressive Web App (PWA) optimized for mobile devices with powerful features for on-the-go financial management!

Accessing PWA Mode

To access the mobile-optimized PWA version, simply open your phone's browser and navigate to:

https://goals.matvio.com/pwa/

PWA Features

Recent Transactions View

Quickly review your most recent financial activity:

  • 50 Most Recent: See your last 50 transactions across all accounts
  • Quick Details: View date, amount, account, category, and description
  • Income/Expense Indicators: Color-coded amounts (green for income, red for expenses)
  • Easy Access: Available from the main accounts page

Scheduled Transactions View

Stay on top of upcoming bills and income:

  • All Scheduled Items: View all recurring transactions in one place
  • Due Date Alerts: Visual indicators for past due, due today, and upcoming items
  • Complete Details: See amount, accounts, frequency, and next occurrence date
  • Progress Tracking: Monitor completion status for limited-occurrence items
  • Color Coding: Yellow for past due, green for due today, light green for due soon

Budget Overview

Monitor your monthly budget performance from your mobile device:

  • Current Month Summary: See total budgeted vs. actual spending at a glance
  • Visual Progress Bars: Instantly see how much budget remains
  • Category Breakdown: Detailed table showing each category's performance
  • Budget vs Actual Chart: Line graph comparing planned vs. actual spending
  • Over/Under Indicators: Color-coded alerts when over budget
  • Subcategory Details: Drill down into specific spending areas

Help Desk Support (Mobile)

Get help on the go with mobile support ticket management:

  • Create Tickets: Submit support requests directly from your phone
  • Priority Levels: Set urgency (Low, Medium, High, Urgent)
  • Category Tags: Organize tickets by type (Bug Report, Feature Request, etc.)
  • View Conversations: Read full ticket history and admin responses
  • Reply to Tickets: Continue conversations with support staff
  • Unread Badges: Get notified of new admin responses
  • Status Tracking: Monitor ticket status (Open, In Progress, Resolved, Closed)
💡 Pro Tip: Add the PWA to your home screen for app-like experience! On iOS, tap the share button and select "Add to Home Screen". On Android, tap the menu and select "Add to Home screen".

📅 Account Ledger Calendar & Marked Days

The Account Ledger includes a powerful Calendar Forecast view that shows your daily account balances visually. Mark important dates with custom border colors to highlight special events, payment days, and financial milestones!

Understanding the Calendar View

Each day in the calendar shows:

  • Date Number: The day of the month
  • Account Balance: Your balance at the end of that day
  • Background Color: Indicates balance status (green = positive, red = negative, yellow = forecasted)
  • Border Styling: Special borders for today, marked days, and high/low balance days

Calendar Color Legend

🟢 Green Background
Day has a positive (above $0) balance
🔴 Red Background
Day has a negative balance (overdraft warning!)
🟡 Yellow Background
Forecasted balance (includes scheduled transactions that haven't been applied yet)
🔵 Thick Blue Border
Today's date - check if any scheduled items need to be applied!

Special Calendar Indicators

Marked Days Feature

Mark important recurring dates on your account's calendar with custom colored borders. Perfect for:

  • Payday reminders
  • Bill due dates
  • Month-end reconciliation
  • Quarterly tax payments
  • Annual insurance renewals
Example Marked Days Setup:
  • Bi-Weekly Payday: Mark days 1 and 15 with Green Border, Weekday Only enabled
  • Credit Card Due Date: Mark day 23 with Red Border
  • Rent/Mortgage: Mark day 1 with Orange Border
  • Month-End Review: Mark "Last Day of Month" with Blue Border

🎨 Complete Color Code Reference

Ledger Background Colors

Yellow Background
Forecasted/scheduled transaction (hasn't happened yet)
White Background
Actual transaction that has been recorded

Calendar Day Colors

Green Background (Calendar)
Positive balance on this day
Red Background (Calendar)
Negative balance on this day
Yellow Background (Calendar)
Forecasted balance (future prediction)
Blue Border (Calendar)
Today's date

❓ Need More Help?

If you have questions or run into issues:

  • Re-read relevant sections of this guide
  • Start simple and add complexity as you get comfortable
  • Contact support for personalized assistance

Happy Financial Tracking! 🎉

You're on your way to better financial health with MATVIO GOALS