Credit Cards

How credit cards work

Credit cards work differently from checking or savings accounts in InfinitelyZero. When you add a credit card, InfinitelyZero creates a linked payment category inside the Credit Card Payments group on your Budget screen. This category can hold both reserve created by covered card spending and money you assign directly toward the card payment.

Credit card account balance

The credit card account balance represents what you owe. When you add a card with a $0.00 balance, it starts at zero. Each purchase increases the amount owed (makes the balance more negative). Payments reduce it.

The linked payment category

Every credit card has exactly one linked payment category in the Credit Card Payments group. When you make a funded credit card purchase — spending from a category that had Available money — InfinitelyZero moves that money into the payment category automatically. This way, by the time your bill arrives, the payment money is already set aside.

Recording a purchase

Selecting the card account

When you record a credit card purchase, select the credit card as the Account. Do not use a checking account — the money technically hasn't left checking yet.

Selecting a spending category

Choose the category that describes what you bought: Groceries, Dining, Subscriptions, and so on. This is the same as recording any other expense.

Choosing Backed by

For a credit-card expense, choose the eligible cash account in Backed by. This records where the covered purchase money is held and preserves the app's account-allocation and reserve rules; it does not immediately pay the card.

Funded purchases

If the spending category had Available money when the purchase was recorded, the purchase is funded. InfinitelyZero moves an equivalent amount from that spending category into the card's payment category. Your spending category Available decreases; your payment category Available increases by the same amount.

Unfunded purchases

If the spending category had no Available balance, the purchase is unfunded. No money is automatically reserved for payment. You will need to assign money to the payment category manually before the bill is due.

Paying a credit card

When your credit card bill is due, record the payment in InfinitelyZero as a transfer.

Payment account

Choose the checking or savings account the payment is coming from. This is where the money is physically leaving.

Credit card account

Choose the credit card account as the destination. This records that the debt is being reduced.

Transfer behavior

The transfer creates a paired transaction: money leaves checking and reduces the credit card balance. At the same time, payment-category money is consumed according to the existing payment rules, including any locked reserve and movable manual funding ready to pay.

Payment amount

The payment must fit the payment category’s funded Available to pay and the paying account’s backing, and there must be an amount owed. Minimum payments and opening debt follow the same fund-first rule. If there is a shortfall, use the inline funding review before recording payment; a larger payment is rejected rather than creating negative payment funding.

Existing debt

If your credit card already has a balance when you add it to InfinitelyZero, that existing balance represents money you owe that has no corresponding funding yet.

Starting balance and uncovered debt

When adding a card, enter the amount currently owed as a positive amount. InfinitelyZero tracks it as existing card debt separately from cash. It does not become Ready to Budget or create purchase reserve; assign actual cash to the payment category before paying it.

Funding additional payoff money

To pay down existing debt, assign money from Ready to Budget directly to the credit card's payment category. This is movable manual funding until it is used for payment; it is not relabeled as reserve from covered historical spending.

New funded purchases vs. old debt

Once you start using the card for new purchases, funded spending automatically flows into the payment category. But this funded amount is for new purchases — it does not automatically clear the existing debt. Keep track of how much of the payment category balance is for old debt versus new spending.

Managing credit card accounts

Setting up a credit card

A card’s current balance is tracked separately and does not become Ready to Budget. Pay balance in full reserves money from funded purchase categories under the existing card-payment behavior. Pay down existing balance creates the dedicated repayment category used to fund carried debt.

Credit Cards in Planning Hub

This section brings together card balances, repayment settings, payment reserves where applicable, existing-balance payoff planning, and card payments. It summarizes the existing card model; payment and reserve calculations still come from recorded activity and category funding.

Linked payment categories

Each credit card account is permanently linked to its payment category. Renaming the account also renames the payment category. Do not manually delete the payment category — it is managed by InfinitelyZero.

Archive and restore

If you cancel a credit card, archive it in InfinitelyZero. This keeps the transaction history intact and removes the card from active use. You can restore it later if needed.