Help Center

Nara Help Guides

Learn the workflows our team uses every day to set up your accounts, build reliable plans, and keep goals on track.

  • Updated March 2025
  • Applies to Nara beta 0.9 and later

Start here

Getting set up in minutes

The quickest path to seeing meaningful insights in Nara is to add the accounts you check most often.

Need help? Email [email protected]

Setup

Syncing at least one checking account lets Nara build your baseline spending view.

  1. Open Nara and go to Accounts.
  2. Tap Link an account and select your bank or card provider.
  3. Approve the secure Plaid connection, then wait for the balance to appear.

Tip: If you prefer manual tracking, choose Track manually after tapping Link.

Security

Turn on iCloud Sync

Keep your household devices in sync without storing personal data on our servers.

  1. Go to Settings → Sync.
  2. Toggle iCloud Sync on and confirm you’re signed into the same Apple ID.
  3. Leave Nara open for a minute so the first sync finishes.

Sync won’t upload your transactions to us—it’s all handled by Apple.

Personalization

Customize your dashboard

Focus on the metrics you care about by hiding tiles that aren’t relevant.

  1. From Home, tap Customize.
  2. Drag tiles into the order that matches your weekly review.
  3. Disable insights you don’t reference so Nara keeps the key ones front-and-center.

You can always reset to the default layout if you want to start over.

Plan ahead

Spending plans you can trust

Budgets shouldn’t feel fragile. These guides keep categories flexible while showing what’s safe to spend.

Planning

Build your first plan

Lay out the categories that matter each month and tie them to income.

  1. Go to Plan → New plan and give it a friendly name.
  2. Add your recurring income first so Nara knows the top-line amount.
  3. Create spending buckets (Housing, Groceries, Fun) with amounts that mirror reality.

Keep 5–7 categories to avoid micromanaging every expense.

Automation

Auto-categorize spending

Rules save time when you review transactions during your weekly check-in.

  1. When you edit a transaction, tap Create rule.
  2. Choose the merchant or description keyword you want to match.
  3. Select the default category and optional tags, then save.

Rules run instantly on past and future transactions for that merchant.

Forecast

Track upcoming bills

Never be surprised by large payments—tie due dates to accounts.

  1. Open Schedule and tap Add bill.
  2. Set the cadence (monthly, quarterly, annual) and the amount.
  3. Assign the payment to a plan category so it shows up in projections.

Use reminders to notify you 3 days ahead of autopay charges.

Stay on track

Make reviews a weekly habit

Short, frequent reviews keep your plan accurate—no spreadsheets required.

Habits

Run a weekly review

Ten minutes every Sunday keeps you confident about upcoming purchases.

  1. Check Insights for large outliers since your last review.
  2. Approve or recategorize new transactions.
  3. Adjust plan amounts if life changed—Nara keeps the history.

Pair the review with an existing ritual (coffee, calendar planning) and set a reminder.

Awareness

Monitor your cash reserve

We recommend keeping at least one month of expenses across linked checking accounts.

  1. From Home, tap the reserve card to choose which accounts count toward safety.
  2. Set your comfort target (e.g., 1.5× monthly spend).
  3. Nara will flag when balances dip below the threshold.

If you’re ahead of target, schedule extra transfers toward longer-term goals.

Support

Share feedback with the team

Real-world stories help us prioritize fixes and improvements.

  1. Visit nextphase.software/feedback.
  2. Describe what you expected and what happened instead.
  3. Attach screenshots or videos if it helps illustrate the issue.

Every submission lands directly in our GitHub tracker within minutes.

Still need a hand?

We reply to most questions within one business day. Email [email protected] or send us feedback through the in-app link.

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