Profile Permissions
Balance profiles have specific permissions for budgeting and account management. This guide explains what each profile type can see and do.
Permission Overview
| Permission | Primary Profile | Additional Profiles |
|---|---|---|
| View Budget | ✅ Full access | ✅ Full access |
| View Transactions | ✅ All transactions | ✅ All transactions |
| Categorize Transactions | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes |
| Add Manual Transactions | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes |
| Create Categories | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes |
| Edit Category Amounts | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes |
| Delete Categories | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes |
| Connect Banks | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes |
| Disconnect Banks | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes |
| View Progress | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes |
| Manage Subscription | ✅ Yes | ❌ No |
| Change Account Email | ✅ Yes | ❌ No |
| Update Password | ✅ Yes | ❌ No |
| Delete Other Profiles | ✅ Yes | ❌ No |
| Delete Own Profile | ❌ No | ✅ Yes |
What Every Profile Can See
Complete Financial Visibility
All profiles see:
- ✅ Every transaction (no hiding)
- ✅ All bank accounts
- ✅ All categories
- ✅ Full budget
- ✅ All spending
- ✅ Historical data
- ✅ Progress tracking
Zero privacy between profiles - by design!
Real-Time Updates
All profiles see changes instantly:
Partner categorizes transaction
↓
You see it within seconds
↓
No delays
↓
Always synchronized
True real-time sharing.
What Every Profile Can Do
Budget Management (Equal Access)
All profiles can:
✅ Transactions:
- View all transactions
- Categorize any transaction
- Add manual transactions
- Edit transaction categories
- Split transactions
- Bulk categorize
✅ Categories:
- Create new categories
- Edit category names
- Change budget amounts
- Delete categories
- Reorder categories
- Set carry-over
✅ Bank Connections:
- Connect new accounts
- Reconnect disconnected accounts
- Disconnect accounts
- View connection status
- Refresh transactions
✅ Progress:
- View budget progress
- See spending vs budgeted
- Check category status
- Monitor overall allocation
Complete budgeting equality.
Primary Profile Exclusive Permissions
Administrative Access
Only primary profile can:
1. Subscription Management
- Subscribe to Premium
- Cancel subscription (to change plans, cancel first then subscribe to new plan)
- Update payment method
- View billing history
- Download invoices
- Cancel subscription
Access: Profile icon > Plan & Subscription
2. Account Settings
- Change account email address
- Update account password
- Modify account-level settings
- Account security settings
Access: Settings > Account
3. Profile Management
- Delete other profiles (not their own)
- Full administrative control
- Account ownership
Access: Profile > Manage Profiles
Why These Restrictions?
Account integrity:
- One person responsible
- Clear ownership
- Billing contact
- Prevents conflicts
Like “account administrator” vs. “user.”
What Additional Profiles Cannot Do
Limited Administrative Access
Additional profiles cannot:
❌ Billing:
- Cannot manage subscription
- Cannot update payment methods
- Cannot view/download invoices
- Cannot access Stripe portal
❌ Account:
- Cannot change account email
- Cannot change account password
- Cannot modify account settings
❌ Profile Management:
- Cannot delete primary profile
- Cannot delete other profiles (except own)
- Limited profile administration
How to Handle Admin Needs
If additional profile needs admin change:
Option 1: Ask primary profile
"Can you update our payment method?"
"Can you change our plan to Annual?"
Option 2: Primary logs in
Primary profile makes the change
Affects both profiles immediately
Requires coordination but rarely needed.
No Privacy Between Profiles
Shared Data = Full Transparency
There is NO “private” data in Balance:
- No hidden transactions
- No secret categories
- No private accounts
- No masked spending
Everything is visible to all profiles.
Personal Spending Categories
For privacy, use personal spending categories:
Budget:
- Personal Spending - You: $300/month
- Personal Spending - Partner: $300/month
Agreement:
- These are “no questions asked” money
- Each person spends their allocation however
- Don’t track specifics within these categories
Respectful privacy within shared system.
Permission Changes
Cannot Modify Permissions
Balance does not support:
- Custom permission levels
- Restricting what profiles can see
- Hiding data from certain profiles
- Creating “view-only” profiles
Two options only:
- Primary profile (full admin)
- Additional profile (full budget access, limited admin)
Simplicity by design.
Cannot Promote Additional Profile
Additional profiles cannot become primary:
- Primary status is permanent
- Set at account creation
- Cannot transfer
Primary stays primary forever (or close account).
Working Within Permissions
For Additional Profiles
You have full budget access:
- Create and modify budget
- Handle all day-to-day budgeting
- Manage transactions
- Connect accounts
For admin needs:
- Communicate with primary profile
- They handle subscription/account changes
- Usually not a big deal
99% of time, permissions are equal.
For Primary Profile
Your extra responsibilities:
- Manage subscription
- Handle billing issues
- Administer account
- Delete profiles if needed
Your financial responsibilities:
- Involve partner in budget decisions
- Don’t use admin access unilaterally
- Communicate changes
- Equal partners in budgeting
Technical control ≠ financial control.
Security Implications
Profile-Level Security
Each profile should:
- Use secure password (if separate accounts)
- Not share login credentials
- Log out on shared devices
- Protect their access
Account security = both profiles’ responsibility.
Billing Security
Primary profile protects:
- Payment method information
- Billing address
- Stripe portal access
- Subscription status
Keep admin access secure.
Common Questions
“Can my partner see everything I spend?”
Yes, always:
- All transactions visible
- All categories visible
- All data shared
Solution if you want privacy:
- Personal spending category
- Discretionary money
- Agreed-upon boundaries
But data-wise: no hiding.
“Can I prevent partner from editing budget?”
No:
- All profiles can edit budget
- Cannot restrict editing
- Cannot lock categories
Solution:
- Communication and agreement
- Discuss before changes
- Mutual respect
- Trust
Technical restriction not possible.
“What if partner deletes important category?”
Primary profile:
- Can see what changed
- Can recreate category
- Can add transactions back
Additional profile:
- Cannot delete primary’s profile
- Can delete categories (both can)
Communication prevents issues:
- Discuss before deleting
- Verify not being used
- Inform partner
“Can I have view-only profile for kids?”
Not currently:
- All profiles have edit access
- No “read-only” mode
- All or nothing
Workaround for kids:
- Don’t give them login
- Show them your screen
- Review together
- Guide rather than give access
Best Practices
1. Respect Equal Access
Even though primary has extra admin:
- Both partners equal in budgeting
- Discuss major changes
- Don’t use admin access as power
- Partnership approach
2. Communicate Changes
Before making changes:
- Large budget adjustments
- Deleting categories
- Connecting new accounts
- Admin changes
Quick check-in prevents surprises.
3. Protect Admin Access
Primary profile:
- Keep password secure
- Don’t share billing login
- Monitor subscription status
- Verify charges
Account security matters.
4. Equal Participation
Both profiles should:
- Categorize daily
- Participate in reviews
- Make budget decisions together
- Feel invested
Permissions are equal - use them!
Next Steps
- Understanding Primary Profile - Learn about account owner
- Shared Budgeting for Couples - Budget together
- Creating Multiple Profiles - Add profiles
- Managing Profile Details - Edit profiles
Questions? Contact our support team - we’re here to help!