Track Apple Pay spending automatically, without linking your bank
When you tap your iPhone to pay, an iPhone Shortcut can send that purchase to AI Budgie as it happens: the shop, the amount and the category are filled in, and it counts against this month’s budget.
Nothing connects to your bank. The Shortcut runs on your own phone and passes along only the payment you just made. AI Budgie never gets a bank login, your card number, or your Wallet.
Set it up in about five minutes
You build one automation in Apple’s Shortcuts app. AI Budgie shows these steps, with the two values to copy, under Account → Record Apple Pay automatically.
Step 1: Connect your iPhone in AI Budgie
Open Account, find “Record Apple Pay automatically”, and choose Connect an iPhone. Name the device and create its key. The key is shown once, so copy it then.
Step 2: Create a Transaction automation
On your iPhone, open the Shortcuts app, go to Automation, tap +, and choose Transaction. Pick the cards to watch, set it to run immediately, and create a new shortcut.
Step 3: Add “Get Contents of URL”
Add that action, paste the URL AI Budgie shows you, and set the method to POST.
Step 4: Add the key as a header
Under Headers, add Authorization with the key you copied, and Accept with application/json.
Step 5: Send four fields as JSON
Set the request body to JSON with four text fields: amount, merchant and card from the automation’s input, and paid_at as the current date in ISO 8601 format.
Step 6: Pay once to test it
Tap Done, then pay for something with Apple Pay. It shows up in your transactions within seconds.
Menu names in Shortcuts can differ a little between iOS versions. There is no one-tap install link yet: Apple doesn’t let a personal automation be shared, so you build it by hand.
What happens when you pay
- It’s saved straight away. The purchase is recorded as you pay, with no draft to confirm, as long as the Shortcut runs.
- The category is filled in. A shop you’ve recorded before gets the category you used last time. A new shop is given one by the assistant; if it can’t tell, the purchase is left uncategorized and the notification says so.
- You get a notification. With notifications on, a push tells you what was recorded and opens that month, so a wrong category is quick to fix.
- Sent twice, counted once. If the Shortcut sends the same payment again, it isn’t added a second time.
What it doesn’t do
- iPhone only, iOS 17 or later. The Transaction automation is Apple’s, and it starts when you tap a card in Wallet.
- In-store payments only. It works for payments made in a shop with your iPhone. Online and in-app Apple Pay payments aren’t recorded.
- One currency. A payment in another currency isn’t recorded. You get a notification to add it by hand.
- Nothing else is automatic. Cash, card swipes and transfers still go in by a sentence, a receipt photo or a CSV import. If the Shortcut doesn’t run, that purchase isn’t in your budget.
- It needs an active account. The Shortcut records during the 30-day trial and with Premium. After the trial without Premium, it stops.
AI Budgie compared with Reign and typed-in budgeting apps
| AI Budgie | Reign | Typed-in apps | |
|---|---|---|---|
| An Apple Pay purchase | YesRecorded as you pay, in the background | YesReign opens with the merchant and amount filled in; you tap Add | NoYou type it in yourself |
| Category | Filled in for you; change it from the notification | You choose it before adding | You choose it |
| Setting it up | PartlyYou build the automation by hand, six steps | An Apple Pay Shortcut, set up from the app’s Settings | YesNothing to set up |
| Bank connection | NoNever, by design | Not stated on its App Store listing | Not needed; some offer bank sync as a paid extra |
| Account | Needed; your budget is stored on AI Budgie’s servers | No account required; syncing with your Apple ID is optional | Varies by app |
| Where it runs | Any web browser; the Shortcut needs an iPhone on iOS 17 or later | iPhone and iPad app, iOS 15.1 or later | Varies by app |
| Language | English and Simplified Chinese | English | Varies by app |
| Price | 30-day free trial, then US$4.99/month (C$6.99 in Canada) | Core budgeting is free; Reign Pro is an in-app purchase | Goodbudget and EveryDollar have free plans; Actual Budget is free and open source |
Reign as described on its App Store listing, checked November 11, 2026. Typed-in apps as on their own sites, checked November 4, 2026.
Where the others are better
- Reign asks before it saves. It opens with the merchant and amount ready and you add the purchase yourself, so nothing lands in your budget unseen. AI Budgie saves first and lets you fix it afterwards.
- Reign needs no account. Its listing says no account is required and that core budgeting is always free. AI Budgie needs an account and is paid after the trial.
- Reign is an iPhone app. It’s installed from the App Store. AI Budgie runs in your browser, and its Shortcut is one you build yourself.
- Typing works for everything. A typed-in app records cash, online orders and foreign currency the same way, with no automation to keep working.
What the Shortcut can and can’t see
The Shortcut sends four things for each payment: the amount, the merchant, the name of the card, and the time. It doesn’t send your card number, your balance, or any other purchase.
The key it holds can only record payments. It can’t read your budget or transactions, and it can’t change anything else in your account. You can connect up to 5 devices and disconnect any of them from Account, which stops its Shortcut at once.
The first time you pay at a new shop, the shop’s name is sent to an AI service to pick a category. Your data is never sold or used for advertising. Your privacy and your data lists the providers involved.
Let your next tap record itself
Free for 30 days, no card. Set a monthly budget, connect your iPhone, and pay as usual.
Start my free trialNo bank connection, ever. Your data isn’t sold or used for ads.
Questions about Apple Pay and AI Budgie
Can I track Apple Pay purchases automatically without linking my bank?
Yes. On an iPhone with iOS 17 or later, a Shortcuts automation on Apple’s Transaction trigger can send each in-store Apple Pay payment to AI Budgie as you pay. Nothing connects to your bank: the Shortcut runs on your phone and sends only that payment’s amount, merchant, card name and time.
Which Apple Pay payments are recorded?
Payments you make in a shop by tapping your iPhone, in your own currency. Online and in-app Apple Pay payments aren’t recorded, and a payment in another currency is left out with a notification asking you to add it by hand.
Does the Shortcut give AI Budgie access to my cards or my Wallet?
No. It sends the amount, the merchant, the card’s name and the time of each payment, and nothing else. The key it uses can only record payments; it can’t read or change anything in your account, and you can disconnect it from Account at any time.
What if a payment is filed under the wrong category?
Open the transaction and change its category. With notifications on, each recorded payment sends a push that opens that month. A shop you’ve recorded before reuses the category you chose last time.
How is this different from Reign?
Both use an Apple Pay Shortcut. Reign’s App Store listing says the app opens with the merchant and amount filled in, and you choose a category and tap Add; it is an iPhone and iPad app that needs no account. AI Budgie records the payment in the background with a category already chosen, runs in a web browser, needs an account, and works in English and Chinese.
Is Apple Pay tracking free in AI Budgie?
It is included in the 30-day free trial, which needs no card, and in Premium after that: US$4.99 a month, or C$6.99 a month in Canada. After the trial without Premium, the Shortcut stops recording.
More on budgeting without a bank connection
Comparing apps in Canada? The best budgeting apps without bank linking in Canada puts eight of them side by side on price, entry and sharing.
Would you rather keep everything on your own server? AI Budgie and Actual Budget compared covers that trade-off. For the general case, see budgeting without a bank connection.
Sources: Apple: Transaction trigger · Apple: running automations without asking · Reign on the App Store · Goodbudget plans · EveryDollar · Actual Budget bank sync
Apple Pay, Apple Wallet, iPhone and Shortcuts are trademarks of Apple Inc. Reign, Goodbudget, EveryDollar and Actual Budget are trademarks of their owners. AI Budgie isn’t affiliated with any of them. Facts about other apps checked November 2026.