The daily budget trick Revolut killed

Revolut used to have this feature where you'd set a monthly budget, say 1000 euros, and it would break it down per day. Every time you paid for something, it showed in notification after each payment how much you had left for that day. Spend less today, tomorrow's amount goes up. Spend more, it goes down. Simple and incredibly useful.

They removed it about two years ago. Since then I've been struggling to keep track of what I spend. Monthly budgets don't work for me because I lose sense of the pace. Am I on track? Over? Under? No idea until the month is almost over. And I was always over...

So I built my own version. I opened a second account at my bank and set up a standing order that sends me 30 euros every morning. The math is simple: take what you want to spend per month, divide by 30. That's your daily amount.

I put the account balance as a widget on my lock screen. Every time I pick up my phone, I see exactly how much I can still spend today. No app, no spreadsheet, no tracking. Just a number.

It works. I have a much better sense of where I am during the month. Some days I spend nothing and the balance builds up. Some days I go over, and I can see it immediately.

Of course there are exceptions. Christmas, vacations, bigger purchases. Those come from other funds. But for everyday spending, this one account handles it.

If this works for me, it might also work for you. Feel free to give it a try.