> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.pluvel.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Transaction Categorization

> Categorize transactions to the right accounts.

You've got 127 transactions sitting in your feed. Twelve are from the same coffee shop. Eight are Uber rides. A dozen software subscriptions you barely remember signing up for.

Categorizing them one by one sounds tedious because it is. The good news: once you build momentum, it goes fast. And after a few months, most transactions categorize themselves.

## What categorization actually does

Every transaction needs a home — an account in your chart of accounts. That home determines where the money shows up in your reports:

* A Starbucks charge goes to "Meals & Entertainment" → appears on your expense report
* A client payment goes to "Revenue" → shows up as income on your P\&L
* A transfer to savings goes nowhere (it's just moving money between your accounts)

Get categorization right, and your financial reports tell the truth. Get it wrong, and you're making decisions based on fiction.

## The three-way categorization dance

When a transaction lands in Pluvel:

**1. Bank rules fire first.** If you've told Pluvel "anything from DROPBOX goes to Software Subscriptions," it happens automatically. No review needed.

**2. AI suggests what's left.** Pluvel looks at the vendor name, amount, description, and your history. It makes its best guess:

* **Green confidence** — Pretty sure it's right. You can probably accept it.
* **Yellow confidence** — Possible match, worth checking.
* **No suggestion** — Pluvel has no idea. You're on your own.

**3. You review the rest.** Accept suggestions, override bad ones, and categorize the stragglers manually.

## Single transaction categorization

The basics:

1. Go to **Banking → Transactions**
2. Click a transaction
3. Pick a category from the dropdown
4. Save

That's it. Most people spend 30 seconds per transaction when they're starting out, 5 seconds once they know their patterns.

## Bulk categorization (the time saver)

Got 15 transactions from the same vendor? Don't categorize them one at a time:

1. Check the boxes next to similar transactions
2. Click **Categorize**
3. Select the category
4. Apply to all

Done. 15 transactions in 10 seconds instead of 15 minutes.

<Info>
  Bulk categorization applies the same category to everything selected. If your selection includes transactions that need different categories, you'll need to break it up.
</Info>

## Category search tricks

When you're selecting a category:

* **Type to search** — "soft" finds "Software Subscriptions"
* **Search by number** — "6001" finds account 6001
* **Recent accounts first** — Your frequently-used categories appear at the top

Power users rarely scroll through the full list. They type two letters and hit Enter.

## How Pluvel learns your patterns

The more you categorize, the smarter suggestions get:

| Signal                   | What Pluvel learns                                         |
| ------------------------ | ---------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Vendor name**          | "ADOBE" always goes to Software? Got it.                   |
| **Amount patterns**      | Charges around \$15 from coffee shops = Meals              |
| **Description keywords** | "Monthly subscription" = probably software                 |
| **Your history**         | You categorized this vendor three times. Pattern detected. |

After 2-3 months, expect 60-80% of transactions to be auto-categorized or suggested correctly.

## Splitting transactions

Sometimes one purchase hits multiple categories:

* A $500 Costco run: $350 supplies, $100 snacks for the office, $50 cleaning products
* A \$2,000 contractor payment that's 75% development, 25% design

To split:

1. Open the transaction
2. Click **Split**
3. Add lines with categories and amounts
4. Make sure the total equals the original
5. Save

Your reports now show the real allocation, not one misleading lump sum.

## Transfer detection

Transfer between your own accounts creates two transactions:

* \$5,000 withdrawal from checking
* \$5,000 deposit to savings

If Pluvel sees both sides (because you connected both accounts), it flags the match:

1. You'll see "Possible transfer" on both transactions
2. Click **Mark as Transfer**
3. They link together and disappear from income/expense reports

Because transfers aren't income or expense — they're just money moving around.

## The "this shouldn't count" problem

Some transactions need special handling:

| Situation                | How to handle it                                                        |
| ------------------------ | ----------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Personal expense**     | Mark as "Personal/Exclude" — won't affect business reports              |
| **Duplicate**            | Click "Mark as Duplicate" — hidden but trackable                        |
| **Error/reversal**       | Match it with the correction                                            |
| **Owner's draw**         | Categorize to Owner's Draw (equity account)                             |
| **Reimbursable expense** | Categorize normally, tag as "Billable" if you're passing it to a client |

## A workflow that actually works

Here's how efficient bookkeepers handle categorization:

1. **Filter to "Needs Review"** — Focus only on uncategorized items
2. **Sort by date** — Start with oldest so nothing slips through the cracks
3. **Accept suggestions quickly** — Green confidence? Just hit Enter.
4. **Batch similar transactions** — See five from the same vendor? Select all, categorize once.
5. **Create rules as you go** — Third time categorizing the same vendor? Make a rule.
6. **Flag uncertainties** — Not sure? Mark it for review later rather than guessing.

## Keyboard shortcuts

Stop clicking. Start flying:

| Key       | Action                        |
| --------- | ----------------------------- |
| `↑` / `↓` | Navigate between transactions |
| `Enter`   | Accept suggestion or save     |
| `Tab`     | Jump to category field        |
| `/`       | Open category search          |
| `S`       | Split transaction             |
| `E`       | Exclude transaction           |
| `R`       | Mark as reviewed              |

You can process 50 transactions in 5 minutes once you're comfortable with shortcuts.

## Tracking your progress

Pluvel shows you how you're doing:

* **Needs Review count** in the sidebar — your backlog
* **Categorization Rate** — percentage of transactions categorized
* **Oldest Uncategorized** — how behind you are

<Warning>
  Month-end close requires all transactions categorized. Running close with pending items means your reports will be incomplete or misleading. Don't do it.
</Warning>

## Recategorizing mistakes

Made an error? No problem:

1. Find the transaction
2. Click to open it
3. Change the category
4. Save

The audit trail shows both the old and new category, so you can see what changed and when.

## Common categorization mistakes

**Guessing when uncertain.** Better to flag it for review than categorize wrong. Wrong categories = wrong reports = bad decisions.

**Not creating rules.** If you're manually categorizing the same vendor every month, you're wasting time. Create a rule and never touch it again.

**Over-splitting.** A \$50 purchase doesn't need to be split four ways. Unless it matters for tax purposes, keep it simple.

**Ignoring the backlog.** Two months of uncategorized transactions is much harder to deal with than staying current. Do a little every week.

<Card title="Bank rules" icon="wand-magic-sparkles" href="/features/accounting/bank-rules">
  Automate categorization so you don't have to think about recurring vendors.
</Card>