How to Use Mint’s Manual Transactions on Android

Mint is the go-to mobile app for tracking activity across multiple bank and credit accounts, but until recently, there wasn’t an easy way to enter cash or check transactions on your Android phone. That’s all changed with the addition of a new feature that allows you to manually enter in cash or pending transactions, so you can get the most accurate view of your spending. Using an intuitive entry-form, you can now record cash you’ve spent or received, checks you’ve written, and other transactions that haven’t cleared your bank yet.

Manual cash entries flow through to both budgets and trends, so using this tool regularly can help you narrow down your spending habits. Here’s how to get the most out of this new feature.

Cash Transactions

Consider a situation where you’re having lunch with a group of friends. Instead of forcing your server to run six credit card tabs, you decide to split the bill and pay with cash. Instead of waiting until you got home to enter this expense, by logging on to Mint.com, you can enter your share of that group luncheon right from the table.

To create the transaction, tap the “+” symbol on the lower right corner of your phone.

A calculator-like screen will appear. Here you should enter the amount of the transaction. Tap the “Choose merchant” menu.

Our geo-location feature will pinpoint your whereabouts so you can select from a list of nearby vendors.

If the merchant does not appear in the list, you can manually enter it in the top field. If you’re entering an expense that was incurred in a different location, just skip this step and leave the merchant blank for now. Tap the Next button.

The Save transaction screen will appear. Here you can add details about the expense, such as a spending category or tags (such as “reimbursable” or “tax-deductible”). You can also modify the date of the transaction or change the location, by double-tapping the map icon and dragging the map tack to the right place. Once you’ve entered all the details you want to record, tap “Save.”

Now the entry will be added to your transactions. You’ll be able to see it recorded under the All Accounts heading of your Overview page.

Note: By default, Mint will mark the ‘Split from my last ATM’ box. Unless you have separately recorded cash income, it’s best to leave this checked–when checked, your cash spending will be taken from your latest uncategorized ATM withdrawal. If you do wish to change it, tap on the Expense field. If you uncheck this box, then you may wind up double-booking your spending: you’ll see both the cash withdrawal and the cash spending you just entered, even though you can’t spend money twice that you only withdrew once (though it would be oh-so-nice if you could).

Check Transactions

Cash spending isn’t the only thing you can record with this new function. You can use check transactions to record checks you write, long before your bank becomes aware of them. Start the process as you do with cash transactions, by tapping the + symbol on the bottom right corner. Tap the Expense menu to go to the Transaction Type screen. Tap the “Check” radio button. A menu will appear just below where you can edit the account and enter the check number. With a check number, Mint.com will auto-reconcile your check entries with your bank account, once the bank has processed the check.

Tap the “Back” button on your phone to return to the Add Transaction screen. Enter the amount of the check you’ve just written and select the payee from the “Choose merchant” menu (or enter one manually at the top of the screen).

You can review your entry and add as much or as little additional detail as you like. You can adjust the date of the transaction and select the appropriate spending category. Like cash transactions, you can also add tags and notes to your check transactions to better categorize and describe your spending. Tap “Save” and your check will be recorded under the Pending heading of the All Accounts screen.

Pending Transactions

Pending transactions are used to track non-cash spending that you’ve incurred, but that has not yet posted to your bank or credit account. For example, if you go on a shopping spree with your credit card on Saturday, the damage may not appear on your account balances until after the weekend. In order to always have an accurate figure for your remaining bank or credit card balances, you’ll want to enter such spending as pending transactions.

To log a pending transaction, start by tapping the + symbol on the bottom right corner of your phone. Enter the amount of the purchase you’ve made. Tap the “Choose merchant” menu to enter the appropriate vendor, then tap the “Back” button on your phone.  Tap on the Expense field to change Payment Type to “Credit/Debit Card.” When you do, the Account menu will appear below.  Select the proper checking or credit account from the menu, then tap the “Back” button on your phone to return to the “Add Transaction” screen. Tap the “Next” button.

The transaction confirmation screen will appear where you can edit details such as the date, category and tags related to the transaction. When entering pending credit card transactions, try to be accurate with both the date and the amount. When your credit card is updated in Mint.com, we will try to automatically reconcile the pending transactions. We do this based on matching both the amount and the date range. If there’s no match, you’ll have to manually reconcile the pending spending to your credit card. After completing the basics, you can review your entry and add as much or as little additional detail as you like. Once you’ve reviewed your entry, tap the “Save” button. Your spending will be recorded under the Pending heading of the All Accounts screen.

Deleting Manual Transactions

To delete any of the manual transactions that you’ve made on your Android phone, login to Mint.com from your computer.

Sign Up or Log In to Mint.com to try these features today.