Personal Finance Manager

📋 Project Overview

A comprehensive console-based Personal Finance Manager that helps users track income, expenses, and generate financial reports. This application demonstrates modular Python programming with robust data management and user authentication.

🚀 How to Run the Program

Prerequisites

Python 3.7 or higher
pip (Python package manager)

Installation Steps

Install Required Dependencies
```
pip install -r requirements.txt
```
Required packages:
- pandas==2.3.3
- numpy==2.3.4
- python-dateutil==2.9.0.post0
Run the Application
```
python main.py
```
First Time Setup
- The application will automatically create necessary directories and files
- users.json will be created to store user accounts
- database directory will be created for user transaction data

✨ Feature List

Core Features

👤 User Management

Multi-user Support: Multiple users can register and maintain separate accounts
Secure Authentication:
- Password hashing using SHA-256
- Secure password input (hidden characters)
- Password validation (minimum 6 characters, no spaces)
User Profiles: Each user has a unique ID and dedicated transaction storage

💳 Transaction Management

Add Transactions: Record income or expenses with detailed information
- Date (auto-fills to today if left blank)
- Type (Income/Expense)
- Category (Food, Rent, Salary, etc.)
- Amount (validated for positive numbers)
- Payment Method (Cash, Card, Bank Transfer, Wallet, Other)
- Description (optional)
View Transactions: Display all transactions in a formatted list
Edit Transactions: Modify existing transaction details
Delete Transactions: Remove transactions with confirmation prompt
Balance Calculation: Real-time income, expense, and net balance tracking

🔍 Search & Filter

Search Transactions: Find transactions by keyword in category, payment method, or description
Advanced Filtering:
- Filter by transaction type (Income/Expense)
- Filter by category
- Filter by date range (start and end dates)
- Filter by amount range (min and max)
- Filter by payment method
- Multiple filters can be combined

📊 Reports & Analytics

Dashboard Summary:
- Total transactions count
- Total income and expenses
- Average transaction amount
Monthly Reports: View transactions for a specific month and year
Category Breakdown: See spending grouped by category
Spending Trends: Analyze monthly spending patterns over time

💾 Data Management

CSV Export: Backup transactions to a separate CSV file in exports/ folder
CSV Import: Import transactions from external CSV files
Persistent Storage: All data automatically saved to CSV files
Data Recovery: Handles corrupted JSON files gracefully

📈 Dashboard Features

User Profile Overview: Display username and account information
Financial Summary: Quick view of total income, expenses, and balance
Recent Transactions: Shows last 3 transactions for quick reference
Rent Reminder: Special alert if rent expense is recorded

Advanced Features Implemented

✅ CSV Import/Export - Full backup and restore functionality
✅ Dashboard with Financial Summary - Real-time financial health overview
✅ Bill Reminders - Automated rent payment reminders
✅ Advanced Search & Filter - Multiple criteria filtering system
✅ Category Breakdown Reports - Detailed spending analysis by category

📖 User Guide

Getting Started

1. Register a New Account

Main Menu → Select Option 1 (Register)
- Enter your name (alphanumeric only)
- Create a password (minimum 6 characters, no spaces)
- Account created successfully!

2. Login

Main Menu → Select Option 2 (Login)
- Enter your registered name
- Enter your password
- Dashboard will display automatically

Managing Transactions

Adding a Transaction

Dashboard Menu → Option 2 (Add Transaction)

Example Input:
- Date: 2025-01-15 (or press Enter for today)
- Type: Expense
- Category: Food
- Amount: 45.50
- Payment Method: Card
- Description: Lunch with colleagues

Viewing All Transactions

Dashboard Menu → Option 3 (View Transactions)

Editing a Transaction

Dashboard Menu → Option 4 (Edit Transaction)
1. View all transactions first
2. Enter transaction number to edit
3. Update fields (press Enter to keep current value)

Deleting a Transaction

Dashboard Menu → Option 5 (Delete Transaction)
1. View all transactions first
2. Enter transaction number to delete
3. Confirm deletion (y/n)

Using Reports

Access Reports Menu

Dashboard Menu → Option 6 (Reports)

Available Reports:

Dashboard Summary - Overall financial overview
Monthly Report - Enter month (1-12) and year
Category Breakdown - Spending by category
Spending Trends - Monthly spending analysis
Export to CSV - Creates backup in exports/ folder
Import from CSV - Merge transactions from file

Search & Filter

Search Transactions

Dashboard Menu → Option 7 (Search)
- Enter keyword to search in category, payment method, or description

Filter Transactions

Dashboard Menu → Option 8 (Filter)
- Type: Income or Expense (or leave blank)
- Category: specific category (or leave blank)
- Start Date: YYYY-MM-DD format (or leave blank)
- End Date: YYYY-MM-DD format (or leave blank)
- Min Amount: minimum value (or leave blank)
- Max Amount: maximum value (or leave blank)
- Payment Method: specific method (or leave blank)

Data Export/Import

Export Transactions

Reports Menu → Option 5
- Exports all transactions to: database/[username]_[id]/exports/transactions_export.csv

Import Transactions

Reports Menu → Option 6
- Enter full path to CSV file
- Transactions will be appended to your existing data

Logging Out

Dashboard Menu → Option 9 (Logout)
- Returns to main menu

📁 File Structure

python-project/
├── main.py                          # Main application entry point
├── requirements.txt                 # Python dependencies
├── users.json                       # User accounts (auto-generated)
├── modules/
│   ├── user_manager.py             # User registration and login
│   ├── transaction_manager.py      # Transaction CRUD operations
│   ├── reports_manager.py          # Reports and analytics
│   ├── dashboard_manager.py        # Dashboard display
│   ├── data_handler.py             # File I/O operations
│   └── utils.py                    # Password hashing utilities
└── database/
    └── [username_userid]/          # Per-user folders
        ├── transactions.csv        # User transaction data
        └── exports/                # Export destination
            └── transactions_export.csv

🎯 Usage Tips

Regular Backups: Use the export feature weekly to backup your data
Consistent Categories: Use standardized category names for better reports
Date Format: Always use YYYY-MM-DD format for dates
Amount Entry: Enter amounts without currency symbols (e.g., "45.50" not "$45.50")
Search Effectively: Use partial words in search (e.g., "foo" finds "Food")
Filter Smart: Combine multiple filters to narrow down results
Review Dashboard: Check dashboard regularly for financial health overview

🆘 Troubleshooting

"No module named 'pandas'" Error

pip install -r requirements.txt

"File not found" Error on Startup

Ensure you're running from the project root directory
Application will auto-create necessary files

Corrupted users.json

Application will automatically recreate the file
Previous user accounts will be lost
Check for backup files

CSV Import Not Working

Verify CSV file has correct columns: Date, Type, Category, Amount, Payment Method, Description
Ensure file path is absolute or relative to project root
Check file encoding is UTF-8

Transactions Not Saving

Verify write permissions in database/ directory
Check available disk space
Ensure CSV file is not open in another program

Name		Name	Last commit message	Last commit date
database		database
modules		modules
.gitignore		.gitignore
README.md		README.md
main.py		main.py
requirements.txt		requirements.txt

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