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Why I built Notion Finance Tracker

I wanted to track investments, budget, and get visual reports, all inside Notion - simply and effectively.

Hey there!

I'm Yusuf, and I want to share why I created Notion Finance Tracker.

A few years ago, I dove into personal finance. The key lesson appeared to be know where your money goes and how it grows. This means tracking spending, savings, and net worth.

I started with Google Sheets. It was functional but tedious (for obvious reasons). Then came YNAB, Monarch, Mint, and others. They worked, but were packed with "power-user" features I never needed. I just wanted to track my net worth and budget, without all the fluff. Was that too much to ask?

As a long-time Notion user, I thought, "Why not manage finances here too?" After all, I use Notion for everything else - project management, notes, you name it.

I tried several Notion finance templates (including the premium ones). But I quickly realized the shortcomings of a standard Notion template. They have no access to real-time financial data (meaning no investment tracking) and there is no support for visual ways to track your finances. Most of them felt like just a collection of Notion blocks and databases with clever hacks.

My Solution: Notion Finance Tracker

So, I decided to build what I needed: a Notion template supercharged by an API. This would allow for real-time data, visualizations, and more. That's Notion Finance Tracker. It's two things:

  1. A Notion template for inputting and tracking financial data
  2. An API that processes and updates this data in the background

Core Values

Here are the core values that will guide the development of Notion Finance Tracker:

  • Simplicity: I want to keep it as simple as possible. I want to use it and I want you to use it.
  • Practicality: I want to reduce the friction of tracking finances as much as possible.
  • Aesthetics: Everything should look beautiful and feel intuitive.

Roadmap

I will update this section regularly to keep you informed about what's coming next. You should know that I am always listening to you, dear user, and constantly iterating based on your feedback.

I am currently working on these features:

  • Reconciliation Wizard: It is easy to lose track of your transactions sometimes. I am building a reconciliation wizard that will help you to bring your accounts in sync in a few easy steps.

Here's what I am planning to work on next (in no particular order):

  • Mobile Optimization: I want to create a mobile-optimized page where you can quickly add transactions to accounts. This will be potentially a Progressive Web App (PWA) that you can add to your home screen.
  • Time-series Analysis: I want to create a time-series analysis page where you can see your financial data trends over time.
  • Forecasts: I want to create a forecasting page where you can see your financial data forecasts over time (e.g. investment forecasts towards retirement).

As a solo developer, I am quite passionate about this project. I personally use Notion Finance Tracker everyday. So I am personally invested in making it the best it can be.

Thanks for joining me on this journey!

— Yusuf

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