Align register to bank balance
When your bank connection reports a current balance that differs from your register total, use Align to bank to insert one Balance adjustment so the ledger matches.
Home and net worth already prefer the bank’s balance when one is stored. Align updates the register so running balance and statement work stay consistent.
Prerequisites
- Big Picture Money is unlocked
- The account is mapped to a bank connection and has been synced at least once (so a bank balance is available)
- The bank balance and register disagree (the app shows how far off you are)
Steps
- Open Settings → Bank integration, or open the account’s register under Accounts / Views.
- Find the message that the bank is off your register (for example Bank is $X off your register).
- Click Align to bank.
- Confirm if prompted.
- Open the account register and find the new Balance adjustment row.
Expected result
- A Balance adjustment transaction appears in the register for the difference, with a green highlight and no spending category
- The register’s ending balance matches the bank’s stored balance
- The drift message clears on Bank integration and on the register
- Balance adjustment rows do not appear in the Bank sync — recent view
- Everyday spending totals do not treat the adjustment as spending — including Spending and Income vs expense on Reports
Correct the amount from Chat
If the adjustment amount is wrong, you can ask Chat to propose a new amount (and safe fields such as date or memo). Review the preview and click Apply. The assistant will not categorize a Balance adjustment. Starting bank sync or pasting connection tokens stays human-only — see Using AI Chat.