Definition
What is the OneFile Budget Tracker?
The OneFile Budget Tracker is a single, self-contained HTML file that tracks income, expenses, accounts and monthly budgets for South African households and small businesses. It runs offline in any modern browser, stores nothing on a server, and your financial data stays only on your device.
It is made by Azad Motala, with multi-account support, bank CSV import, charts and a South African categorisation starter pack.
Process
How it works, step by step
Five steps from a fresh start to a dashboard that mirrors your real money. Everything you set is saved on your device and picks up where you left off next time.
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Add your accounts
Cheque, savings, credit cards. Set each opening balance and date; rename or deactivate the default Cash account.
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Tune the categories
Keep what you use, delete what you don't, and set monthly limits where it matters: Groceries, Eating Out, Fuel.
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Set your period start
Align the budget month to your pay date if it isn't the 1st; the whole dashboard shifts to that cycle.
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Capture transactions
Use Quick Add for fast entry, or import a bank CSV. The wizard auto-detects columns and applies your rules.
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Read the dashboard
KPIs, the account strip, category progress in green / amber / red, two charts, and live alerts when a category crosses 90%.
Why this tool
What makes it different
- Multi-account: cheque, savings and credit cards, with transfers handled correctly
- Monthly budgets: per-category limits with green / amber / red progress and alerts
- Bank CSV import: auto-detects columns, learns rules, saves a profile per account
- South African starter pack: categorisation rules for local merchants and bank fees
- Reports and charts: spending breakdowns and a PDF export over any date range
- Private by default: CSV and JSON export, no lock-in; one file, runs offline
Pricing
Try it free. Own it for R549.
Use the Budget Tracker free in your browser to see exactly how it works. When it has earned its place, buy the OneFile download: your own copy of the single file, to keep, run offline and use forever. One payment, no subscription, no account.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
What is the OneFile Budget Tracker?
It is a single, self-contained HTML file that tracks income, expenses, accounts and monthly budgets. It runs offline in any modern browser, stores nothing on a server, and your financial data stays only on your device.
Does my financial data get uploaded anywhere?
No. The tool runs entirely in your browser. Your accounts, transactions and budgets are stored only in your device's local storage. Nothing is sent to a server.
Do I need an account or a subscription?
No subscription, ever, and no account. Try it free in your browser, then buy the OneFile download once to keep your own copy of the file. It's yours forever, with no recurring fee.
Can I use the OneFile Budget Tracker offline?
Yes. Everything runs in your browser. Charts and PDF reports use libraries loaded once on first use, so the first run that needs them requires a connection; after that the app works offline.
Can I track multiple accounts and credit cards?
Yes. Add cheque, savings and credit-card accounts; a credit card is an account with a negative balance. Move money with a transfer, which adjusts both accounts and is excluded from your income and expense totals.
Can I import my bank statement?
Yes. Import a CSV from your bank; the wizard auto-detects the date, amount and description columns, flags duplicates, and applies your categorisation rules. Save the mapping as a profile so future imports skip straight to review.
What is the South African starter rules pack?
A bundled set of categorisation rules covering common South African merchants and bank-fee patterns (Woolworths, Engen, Netflix, MTN, bank charges, transfers and more) so imported transactions are bucketed automatically. Existing rules are preserved; duplicates are skipped.
Can I export my data?
Yes. Export a full backup as JSON, your transactions as CSV, and a date-range report as PDF. There is no lock-in. Your data is always yours to take elsewhere.
Does the OneFile Budget Tracker work on phones and tablets?
Yes. Open https://azad.co.za/onefile/budget-tracker/app/ in Safari (iOS) or Chrome (Android) and add it to your Home Screen. It installs like an app and runs offline after the first load. It is the same tool, not a separate product.
Who makes the OneFile Budget Tracker?
It is made by Azad Motala, and published under the OneFile range of single-file business document tools at azad.co.za. It is not affiliated with any similarly named product.
Part of OneFile
More single-file tools
OneFile is a range of single-file business document tools by Azad Motala. Each is one self-contained HTML file: free to try in your browser, yours to own with a one-time download.