The importer brings a YNAB budget across: its accounts, categories, whole register and the balances that go with them. Your YNAB budget becomes one Forward budget. EveryDollar works the same way, with one difference noted below.
Before you start
In YNAB, use Export budget, the one that downloads a .zip. You don't need to unzip it; if you already have, pick the two CSVs inside (Register and Plan) together. From EveryDollar, download the BudgetItems CSV for the month you're moving from, plus any Transactions CSVs you want as history.
The steps
- On Accounts, tap + and choose Import from another app. Setup offers the same button. Choose what to bring over, then tap Choose export file. Nothing is created until the last step.
- Map your accounts. The As-of date is the day your budget starts in Forward. The full register still comes in as history, but months before that date carry no budget math. Give each account a type under Create as, or tap Skip to leave it and its transactions behind. An EveryDollar export has no balances, so you type each account's balance here.
- Map your categories. Each one is created as itself, mapped onto a category you already have, or set to Don't import. YNAB's Ready to Assign isn't a category, so it isn't imported, and credit-card payment categories fold into your pool unless you choose otherwise.
- Review before you commit. This is the check the import is built around:
the import summary shows per-category old-vs-new Available before finalizing
. Each row reads ✓ equal or ✗ differs. - Tick I understand — this import is permanent and tap Finalize. There is no undo. If the pool starts negative because of card debt, you tick I understand the pool starts negative too.
Forward then checks every figure a second time. A finished import says every account and category balance matched the review to the cent.
A ✗ differs row is usually a category you mapped onto one that already held money, so Forward shows the two combined. Say your Groceries already holds $42.18 and YNAB's holds $261.76: Forward's figure is $303.94. It never blocks you.
Last, open Budget with YNAB beside you and read down Available. Each imported category should match what YNAB reported, because post-import Available reconciles against the old tool to the cent
. Then compare each account on Accounts with your bank.
What to do
If the result says The import didn't finish:
- Tap Clean up and start over. It removes any accounts and categories that attempt created.
- Export a fresh file from YNAB and start again from step 1.
If a category or account still doesn't match after a finished import, write to support@forwardbudget.app with the row that's off.