Closing your month

When a month ends and your accounts are up to date, keel invites you to close it. Closing finalises the month's totals, locks the score as a permanent record, and replaces the "we're still gathering data" notice at the top of that month's P&L with a verdict — a short editorial header that frames how the month went.

There's no separate close screen. The close lives where you'd naturally go to look at the month's numbers: the Full P&L tab in reports.

How it works

Finding the close

Go to Reports, open the Full P&L tab, and navigate to the month you want to close. The close gate sits above the P&L table, in one of three states:

• Not yet closeable — keel is waiting on bank statements that haven't arrived yet. The gate names the accounts it's waiting on (up to three, plus "and N more"). If any need your input, a "Resolve N accounts" button opens a short walk-through where you can import a statement, say "nothing happened this month", skip for now, or — for accounts that statement less often than monthly — "mark covered for now". That last option closes the gap without lying about coverage: keel knows the next statement isn't due yet.

• Closeable but incomplete — all expected statements are in, but you still have uncategorised transactions in the review queue. What happens next depends on whether this is your very first close. For the first month — the one that unlocks your score — keel takes you to a focused review screen and you clear everything before you can close, so that first score is built on transactions you've actually checked. For every month after that you get two choices instead: "Review first" (better score) or "Close anyway" (faster, slightly less accurate). keel nudges, it doesn't block.

• Fully closeable — everything's in and the queue is empty. One button: "Close {Month}".

The commit flow

Tapping the close button opens a full-screen flow with two short steps:

Step 1 — Lock and reflection. Explains that closing finalises the totals and locks the score. Below that, an optional question: "What stood out this month?" Leave it blank if nothing comes to mind. The primary button commits the close.

Step 2 — Commitment. "What are you changing next month?" — also optional, with chips for your active goals that pre-fill the field if you tap them. A checkbox — "Nothing changing — just reviewed" — lets you finish honestly without forcing a commitment. The final button returns you to the P&L.

For more on what these two questions are for, see your month-end review.

The verdict header

Every closed month carries a small header above the P&L table: a score ring showing the month's locked score, a one-line sentence about how the month went, and — for months that earned it — a coaching line below.

The verdict scales across three tiers, triggered by what actually happened:

• Routine (most months) — a small score ring and a single sentence, like "May closed at 540 points, up 12 on last month." No coaching line.
• Notable — a bigger ring, a two-sentence frame, and a coaching paragraph. Fires when the month crossed a score band (say, Fair to Good), moved by 40+ points, or hit a streak milestone (3, 6 or 12 months).
• Standout — the full treatment: a large ring, headline, and a paragraph of coaching, in a hero card. Reserved for genuinely exceptional months — a personal-best score, a longest-ever streak of 12+ months, a recovery that jumped two score bands, or your first month in a band you've been working toward.

Standout treatments are rare by design. If you've earned one within the last 3 closed months, the next eligible month appears as Notable instead — so "best ever" stays meaningful.

Closing at the same time as your partner

If you and another household member both open the close flow for the same month at once, only one of you can commit at a time. The second person sees "Someone else is closing {Month} right now. Try again in a few minutes." This stops one person's reflection or commitment silently overwriting the other's.

Why it works this way

• The close lives on the P&L because that's where the question lives. "How was March?" naturally takes you to March's numbers — so the close happens there too, rather than as a separate ceremony.
• The verdict is permanent once written. Late-arriving transactions can shift the score, but they never re-classify the month. A Notable February stays Notable forever — your history doesn't quietly rewrite itself.
• Quiet months get a quiet treatment. Most months are routine, and the verdict says so plainly. Coaching paragraphs are saved for months where the data earned a moment.

Good to know

• You have 24 hours to undo. An Undo link appears below the verdict header after closing. Re-opening a month clears the verdict; closing again regenerates it.
• Your first ever close is always Routine — "{Month} closed at N points. First month on the books." Standout needs at least 3 months of closed history, because early scores naturally climb as your data fills out, and calling them "best ever" wouldn't be honest.
• Late transactions won't silently rewrite a verdict. The score might shift, and if the change is meaningful you'll see a small notice on the dashboard — but the verdict text and tier stay put.
• Old bookmarks to the previous close and review screens redirect to the right month's Full P&L automatically.

FAQ

What happens if I close too early? Use the Undo link within 24 hours. After that the close is permanent — you can still re-categorise individual transactions, but the headline score won't shift.

Why doesn't my month have a coaching line? By design. Coaching paragraphs are reserved for Notable and Standout months. Quiet months get a quiet treatment — that's the point of the tiers.

Do I have to write a reflection or commitment? No. Both fields are optional. You can close a month with both blank and you're done. They're there if reflection helps you — not because keel needs the data.