# Your month, payday to payday: pick the day it starts > If you're paid on the 23rd, your month can start on the 23rd too. Pick the day and budgets, insights, reminders and widgets follow that period. Free. Almost nobody gets paid on the 1st. If you're paid on the 23rd, the calendar month shows you the second half of one paycheck and the first half of the next as if they were one month, and the budget resets right when you're tightest. In Kesef you pick the day your month starts, 1 to 31, and the whole app counts from payday to payday. Your transactions don't change: only how they're grouped. ## Why the 1st isn't your day one With the calendar month, on the 1st the app tells you you're starting from zero, even though the paycheck you have to stretch came in on the 23rd and the next one is still a week away. The numbers get cut in half: the heavy spending right after payday falls in one month and the lean days before it in the other. With your own period, the month is yours: from payday to the day before the next one. ## How to set it up Go to Profile → Month start, or tap the month on Home, and pick the day. The app shows you how it looks ("This month: Sep 23 – Oct 22") and from then on everything is regrouped, history included. If a month doesn't have the day you picked (the 31st in April, or the 29th to 31st in February), that period starts on the last day of the month. Going back to day 1 leaves everything exactly as it was. ## What the months are called Each period is named after the month where most of its days fall. If your month starts between the 2nd and the 15th, it's named after the month it starts in: October 5 to November 4 is October. If it starts between the 16th and the 31st, it's named after the following month: September 23 to October 22 is October, which is how you think of it if October's salary lands at the end of September. ## What follows your period - Home and Activity: the month's total and transactions run payday to payday. - Insights: comparisons are between your periods, not calendar months. - Budgets: the cap, the per-day amount and the 80% and 100% alerts reset on payday. - Chat: "how much did I spend this month?" answers with your period. - iPhone widgets: monthly spending and budgets follow the same period. ## When the period closes When a period ends, Kesef shows you what you closed it with and offers to put that leftover toward a savings goal or carry the balance over. Carrying the balance over is also a standing option, in Profile: off, which is the default, each month starts at zero; on, the balance works like an account balance and next month starts where this one ended. - [Category budgets that tell you how much you can spend per day](https://getkesef.app/en/features/budgets): Category budgets that follow your period. - [Savings goals: set the amount and Kesef tells you whether you'll make it](https://getkesef.app/en/features/savings-goals): Where to send what's left when the month closes. - [How to budget when your income changes every month](https://getkesef.app/en/blog/budgeting-with-irregular-income): If you're paid a different amount each month or on several dates. ## It's free Picking the start day, and having the whole app follow it, is on the free plan. No account or Kesef Pro needed. ## Frequently asked questions ### Do the dates of my expenses change? No. Each transaction keeps its date; the only thing that changes is which period it's grouped into. Going back to day 1 leaves everything as it was. ### What if I pick the 31st and the month has 30 days? That period starts on the last day of the month, the 30th (or the 28th or 29th in February). Periods stay back to back: each one ends the day before the next begins. ### If I'm paid on the 23rd, what's the period from September 23 to October 22 called? October: each period is named after the month where most of its days fall. If your month starts between the 16th and the 31st, it's named after the following month. ### Can I have two paydays a month? No. The period has a single start day. If you're paid on several dates, pick the one for your biggest income or the one that marks your month. ### Is it free? Yes. Picking the day your month starts is on the free plan, with no account or Kesef Pro. ## Your month, from the day you get paid Pick the day and budgets, insights, reminders and widgets follow your period. Free, on iPhone and Android. ## Download - iPhone (App Store): https://apps.apple.com/app/id6758053806 - Android (Google Play): https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.kesef.app --- Esta página en español: https://getkesef.app/funciones/de-cobro-a-cobro.md HTML: https://getkesef.app/en/features/payday-to-payday