Settings
Each card and control on Settings, and what each applies to: this browser, your account or the budget file.
Updated November 10, 2026
The Settings page holds display preferences and a few settings for how new transactions arrive. Select Settings in the sidebar (on a phone, the More tab, then Settings).
Appearance and Privacy mode apply as soon as you select them. Formatting, Auto categorization and New transaction defaults apply when you select Save. The page shows no message after Save. It reloads with your choice selected.
Cards on the page
| Card | Control | What it does | Applies to |
|---|---|---|---|
| Appearance | Light, Dark, System | Sets the color theme. System follows your device's light or dark setting. The account menu and, on a phone, the Menu page have the same control. | This browser |
| Formatting | Date format, Save | Sets how dates are written. See below. | Your account |
| Privacy mode | Privacy mode off or Privacy mode on button | Blurs money amounts. See Hide amounts with Privacy mode. | This browser |
| Auto categorization | Checkbox, Save | Fills in categories for new transactions. See below. | The active budget file |
| New transaction defaults | Two checkboxes, Save | Sets whether new transactions start as Cleared or Uncleared. See below. | The active budget file |
| Tags | Manage tags | Opens the list of tags. See Manage your tags. | The active budget file |
| Trash | View trash | Opens deleted transactions, which stay for 30 days. See Delete, undo and restore transactions. | The active budget file |
| Install | Install app | Adds Good Steward Money to your home screen or desktop. The card shows only when your browser can install the app. On an iPhone it shows the steps Share, then Add to Home Screen, instead of a button. See Install the app on your phone or computer. | This device |
| Your data | Button that begins "Export a full backup of" | Downloads a backup of the active budget file. See Back up and export your data. | The active budget file |
Settings that apply to one browser or device do not follow you to another. They reset if you clear the site data in your browser. Settings that apply to a budget file affect that file only, so each file has its own values.
Date format
Date format sets how dates are written. The default is YYYY-MM-DD.
| Option | Example |
|---|---|
| YYYY-MM-DD | 2026-10-11 |
| MM/DD/YYYY | 10/11/2026 |
| DD/MM/YYYY | 11/10/2026 |
| MM.DD.YYYY | 10.11.2026 |
| DD.MM.YYYY | 11.10.2026 |
The setting applies to dates on Transactions, Schedules, Find duplicates and the Upcoming list on Home. On Transactions, you also enter dates in this format: in the Add row (on a phone, the Add transaction form) and when you change a date in the list. Other pages, including reports and the Recent activity list on Home, write dates in their own fixed style. CSV exports of transactions always write dates as yyyy-mm-dd.
Auto categorization
The checkbox is on by default. Its label starts "Suggest categories for incoming transactions from your payee history".
- On: a new transaction that arrives without a category gets the one you have used most often for that payee, or the one a bank connection or imported file supplies. With neither, it stays uncategorized.
- Off: a new transaction that arrives without a category stays uncategorized unless a rule sets one.
Rules run either way. Turning the setting off affects only transactions that arrive afterward. Nothing already categorized changes. See How automatic categorization works.
New transaction defaults
| Checkbox | Default | If you turn it off |
|---|---|---|
| New transactions you enter by hand start as Uncleared | On | Hand-entered transactions start as Cleared. |
| Transactions imported from a file (CSV/OFX) start as Cleared | On | Imported transactions start as Uncleared. |
The first checkbox also sets both sides of a transfer you add from the Add row (on a phone, the Add transaction form). The cleared mark there (on a phone, Cleared) changes it for one transaction. On a transfer, the mark applies to the side in the account you chose, and the other side keeps the setting. The second checkbox covers every file import: CSV, OFX, QFX and QIF. A bank connection sets the status itself, and an account's opening balance always starts as Cleared. Neither follows these settings. Nor does a Balance-only account, where every transaction is Cleared. When you enter a transaction or import a file, a rule's cleared condition tests the status these settings or the cleared mark give the transaction. See Rule conditions and actions and To review, Cleared and Reconciled.
Settings that are automatic
- Time zone. There is no setting. Good Steward Money uses your device's time zone to decide what today and this month are. To change it, change the time zone on your device and reload the page.
- Currency and language. Amounts always show in US dollars, and the app is in English. There is no setting for either.
- Menu width. This control is in the sidebar, not on this page. See Navigation and menus.