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Write a payee rule

Set a rule once; every matching transaction follows it.

Last updated: April 16, 2026

A payee rule tells PennyBolt what to do when it sees a transaction that matches a pattern: assign it to a specific payee, and optionally set a default category for that payee. Set the rule once and it applies to every matching transaction — past and future.

What a rule does

A rule matches incoming transactions by looking at the transaction name, the memo, or both. When a match is found, PennyBolt assigns the transaction to the payee the rule belongs to. If that payee has a default category set and the transaction is currently uncategorized, PennyBolt also sets the category.

Rules run automatically during every import. You can also apply them to existing transactions manually (see Apply rules to existing transactions below).

Write a rule from an existing transaction

The fastest way to write a rule is from a transaction that’s already been matched wrong or left uncategorized:

  1. Open the transaction in the register.
  2. In the Payee field, type the correct payee name — for example, “Trader Joe’s.”
  3. If “Trader Joe’s” doesn’t exist yet, PennyBolt offers to create it.
  4. With the payee selected, click + Add rule for this payee.
  5. PennyBolt pre-fills the pattern with the transaction’s raw description. Adjust the pattern and match type if needed.
  6. Click Save rule.

Next time PennyBolt sees a transaction with that raw description, it assigns it to “Trader Joe’s” automatically.

Rule options

Each rule has three settings:

Match field. Which part of the transaction to check:

  • Name — the transaction name or merchant description.
  • Memo — the memo field from your bank.
  • Both — checks name first, then memo.

Match type. How the pattern is compared:

  • Contains — the pattern appears anywhere in the field (case-insensitive). Most common.
  • Starts with — the field begins with the pattern (case-insensitive).
  • Exact — the field must match the pattern exactly (case-insensitive).
  • Regex — a regular expression. Use this for patterns with variation, like amazon.*prime to match any Amazon Prime charge regardless of what follows.

Pattern. The text to match. For contains, starts with, and exact, this is a literal string. For regex, it’s a regular expression (case-insensitive by default).

When multiple rules match

If more than one rule matches a transaction, PennyBolt picks the most specific one:

  1. Exact matches win over all others.
  2. Among non-exact matches, the longer pattern wins.
  3. At equal length, starts with beats contains, which beats regex.
  4. If there’s still a tie, the rule with the higher priority number wins.

You can set a rule’s priority in the rule editor. The default is 0.

Apply rules to existing transactions

To apply your rules to transactions already in your file, go to Payees → Apply rules. You’ll see two options:

  • New assignments only. Applies rules only to transactions that don’t yet have a payee. Safe to run at any time.
  • Re-apply to all. Re-evaluates every transaction, replacing existing payee assignments where a rule matches. Use this after writing a new rule that should cover your full history.

Preview before applying

To test a rule before saving it, use the preview in the rule editor. It shows how many existing transactions in your file would match the current pattern. If the count is higher or lower than you expect, adjust the pattern and preview again.

Manage your rules

To see all rules for a payee, open the payee and look at the Rules tab. To edit or delete a rule, click it.

To see all rules across all payees, go to Payees → Rules list.

See also