Envelope Budgeting

Envelope budgeting is older than banks apps: put the grocery money in one envelope, petrol in another, fun in a third. When an envelope is empty, you stop. The digital version uses multiple accounts or app categories instead of paper.

Its strength is the hard stop — overspending in a category becomes physically impossible rather than a resolution. Its weakness is rigidity: real life moves money between categories, and managing the shuffle is ongoing work.