Savings goals that tell you what to save each month

What it does

A savings goal turns “we should save for that” into a number and a date. An emergency fund, a holiday, a new car, next year’s insurance bill: say how much you need and when, and the question becomes simple. How much do we put away each month?

Kemback’s goals answer that question and keep answering it as your balance changes, so you can see at a glance whether you’re on track.

How it works in Kemback

Open Goals and use Add a goal:

• Goal. A name, like “Emergency fund” or “Summer trip”.
• Target. The amount you’re aiming for.
• By (optional). The date you want to reach it.
• Save in. Choose an account or an envelope. Every goal is funded from exactly one place.

Each goal then shows on the Goals page with a progress bar, what’s saved out of the target (“$1,200.00 of $3,000.00”), and a line that says what it needs:

• With a date: “$200.00 a month to reach it by June 2027”.
• Without a date: how much is left to go.
• Once the date has passed: what’s still to go, and when it was due.
• When you get there, the bar turns green and the goal says Reached.

Next to that, Kemback says where the money is: “Saving in Holiday fund” for an account, or “From the Gifts envelope” for an envelope.

A worked example

Say it’s October, and you want $3,000 for a trip next June. You’ve already saved $1,200 in a savings account. October through June is nine months, counting this one, so the goal shows 40% saved and “$200.00 a month to reach it by June 2027”. If you put in more one month, the monthly amount drops; if you dip into it, the amount rises. The monthly figure is rounded up to the cent, so saving it gets you there on time rather than a few cents short.

Accounts or envelopes

The two funding choices suit two ways of saving.

A goal saved in an account counts that account’s balance. It suits a dedicated savings account: an emergency fund kept at your bank, or a high-yield account for a house deposit. Whatever the account holds is what’s saved.

A goal funded from an envelope counts what the envelope holds this month. It suits the envelope method, where money stays in one checking account but each dollar has a job. Assign to the “Car replacement” envelope every month, let it roll forward, and the goal tracks it. See envelope budgeting for how envelopes carry their balances.

Either way, Kemback doesn’t keep a separate, hand-updated “saved” number that can drift away from reality. Progress comes from the real balance.

Goals in a household

Goals belong to the household, so a couple or family sees the same goals and the same progress, each person with their own sign-in. Owners and editors can add and delete goals; viewers can follow along. A goal saved in someone’s private account stays private to them, like the account itself.

Where it runs

Savings goals work in any browser at kemback.com and in the iPhone app, which is in beta. They’re on the Free plan. All the arithmetic is done in whole cents, never in floating point.

For help choosing targets, savings goals you’ll actually reach covers how to set amounts and dates that hold up, and sinking funds for big bills shows how to save ahead for the expenses that come once or twice a year.

Questions

Are savings goals free?

Yes. Goals are part of the Free plan, along with the budget, the register and reports.

Where does the progress come from?

From the place you save in. A goal saved in an account counts that account's balance. A goal funded from an envelope counts what the envelope holds this month.

Do I need a target date?

No. Without a date, Kemback shows how much is left to go. With one, it also shows the monthly amount that reaches the target on time.

What happens if the date passes before I reach the goal?

The goal stays, and Kemback says how much is still to go and when it was due, so you can decide whether to keep saving or set a new date.

Can my partner see my goals?

Goals belong to the household, so everyone in it sees them. A goal saved in a private account is private too: only the account's owner sees it.