Investment account

[joze-gorisek]

I do not really understand how to use the investment account here. Lets say that I buy S˛&P500 etf multiple times on my investment account. Would there be a way to track my whole portfolio of my total S&P500 holdings? Also could there be a way to follow the current value of it, and check the net profit or loss on this investment or on all investments together?

[otherworld-dev]

Thanks for the question. To be upfront — Budget is a budgeting app, not an investment tracker. It's designed to track where your money goes (income, expenses, bills, savings), not to manage a securities portfolio with individual holdings, lots, and market prices.

What the investment account type is for: tracking the cash flow in and out of your brokerage — deposits, withdrawals, dividends received. This helps your budget reflect that money is being moved to investments, and that income (dividends) is coming back.

For what you're describing (tracking S&P 500 ETF purchases, current market value, profit/loss per holding), you'd want a dedicated portfolio tracker like Portfolio Performance (free, open source, runs locally). It handles cost basis, lots, live prices, and performance calculations properly.

That said, if you want to see your portfolio's total value reflected in your net worth within Budget, you can use the Assets module (not the investment account). Create an asset, set its current value, and update it periodically with snapshots. It'll show in your net worth calculations and you can track appreciation over time. It's manual rather than automated, but it keeps your financial picture complete without trying to be a full brokerage tool.