Problem
Mental accounting leads to 'irrational’ decisions.
Mental accounting (tallying up how much is available to spend in one’s head) leads to irrational decisions and frequently results in sub-optimal financial outcomes (re: behavioral economist Richard Thaler).
Solution
Helping people to stay “on plan” and not just make one.
Context
The primary aim of The Beans app is for everyone to have a cash-flow plan for their money, which includes their take home pay, fixed expenses, and flexible expenses. That’s because research shows that people with plans are 10x more likely to be successful.
Feature
Once a user commits to a cash-flow plan, this plan tracking feature allows a user to see their cash-flow activity and availability, per category, at a glance.
See your money at a glance
The core experience is a squarified treemap (inspired by D3) that turns a monthly budget into something visually scannable. Each category becomes a block, sized by its allocation and colored by how the user is tracking.
A simple “On Plan” indicator at the top reinforces progress without requiring interpretation.
Users can toggle between:
Activity (what I’ve spent)
Remaining (what I have left)
This makes the feature useful in real life. For example, like standing in a grocery store and quickly checking how much is left to spend before heading to checkout.
From overview to understanding
Tapping into any category reveals the transactions behind it. This bridges the gap between planning and behavior, which helps users understand why they’re on or off track, not just that they are.
Flexible views for different mindsets
Not everyone thinks visually, so I designed a secondary list view that breaks the plan into:
Planned
Activity
Remaining
Grouped by income, fixed, and flexible expenses, this view supports deeper review and more precise adjustments. Users can switch between views depending on whether they want a quick check or a detailed breakdown.
Reinforcing the habit outside the product
I also designed the launch campaign and lifecycle communications (automated emails, app notifications, and SMS) to drive engagement with the entire cash-flow plan feature, including this post plan-making experience.
The email campaign, “Keep in touch with your Plan,” introduced the experience and encourages exploration by guiding users to tap into categories, switch views, and build familiarity. The tone is lightweight and inviting, reinforcing that staying on plan is an ongoing, manageable habit and not just a one-time task.
Beyond Plan Tracking
Though I started to design this in 2023, this state of the cash-flow planning feature is the foundation behind the brand’s values and mission.
Across the span of years, I’ve met with returning and new users to test the cash-flow experience. Want to hear what I learned? Let’s connect.