Aspire BudgetingPending and settled transactions
How the Settled and Pending status values work on the Transactions tab, and what to do when an authorized amount differs from the amount that finally clears.
Updated July 30, 2026
Every row on your Transactions tab has a Status. Aspire uses two values:
- ✅ Settled — the transaction has cleared.
- 🅿️ Pending — the transaction is authorized but not final.
Aspire does not detect pending transactions for you. It has no connection to your bank, so status is something you set. Transactions brought in through CSV Import are marked settled, because a transaction that appears in a bank CSV export has already cleared.
Pending transactions still count toward your category spending in reports, so marking something pending does not hide it from your budget.
When to mark something pending
Use Pending when you have recorded a purchase but the final amount could still change. The common cases:
- Gas stations often authorize a flat hold (frequently $1 or $100) and settle for the amount you actually pumped.
- Restaurants authorize the bill and settle once the tip is added.
- Hotels and rental cars authorize a deposit above the final amount.
Log your best estimate, mark it 🅿️ Pending, then update the amount and switch it to ✅ Settled once it clears. Your category balance stays roughly right in the meantime, and the Pending marker reminds you the number is not final.
If you would rather not track that state at all, just wait and enter the transaction after it clears. Both approaches work.
Why this matters when you reconcile
Your bank shows its own pending charges before they settle. When you reconcile your accounts, compare Aspire against your bank’s cleared balance and exclude anything still pending on either side. Otherwise the two numbers will never agree.