The budget app that gets irregular paychecks.
Variable income doesn't have to mean variable chaos. Envelopes, tax set-asides, and recurring bill tracking — free to get started.
Why regular apps fail freelancers.
They assume you get paid the same amount twice a month.
YNAB, Mint, and Monarch all build their budget around a fixed paycheck. When your client pays $6,000 one month and $1,800 the next, the "monthly budget" concept breaks.
They have no place for self-employment taxes.
25–30% of every invoice goes to the IRS, but no major budgeting app has a first-class "tax holding" envelope. You end up moving money manually right before April 15.
They can't handle the feast-or-famine cycle.
Most apps show you a budget vs actual and tell you whether you "overspent." When income is variable, the comparison is meaningless without seeing your actual cash position by envelope.
How LazeeFish works for freelancers.
Create a Tax envelope.
Set it up first, before housing or food. Every time money arrives, 25–30% goes here immediately. LazeeFish treats it as unavailable for other envelopes.
Set up paycheck allocation templates.
Define the split once: 27% Tax, 30% Housing, 12% Food, 8% Transportation, 10% Savings, 13% Everything Else. When a $4,100 payment arrives, apply the template in one click.
Tag business transactions.
Add a "business" or "tax-deductible" tag to any transaction across any envelope. At tax time, filter by tag to see every deductible expense — across dining, software, travel, and office.
Track recurring bills by date.
Even when income fluctuates, bills don't. LazeeFish shows every upcoming bill in order, marks them fulfilled when your bank posts the payment, and never forgets your annual software renewals.
The quarterly tax problem.
Self-employment tax is 15.3% on net earnings — that's Social Security and Medicare that employers normally split with you. Add income tax on top and most freelancers owe 25–35% of every dollar earned.
The IRS expects quarterly estimated payments in April, June, September, and January. Miss them and you owe penalties on top of the tax bill.
The trap: spending tax money before April because it was sitting in your checking account. A dedicated Tax envelope makes that impossible — you can see exactly how much is set aside, and it never mixes with spending money.
Feast-or-famine, made manageable.
Your envelopes reflect reality, not a plan.
Envelope balances equal what you actually have to spend, not what you budgeted. When a dry month hits, you see it immediately — not at the end of month when it's too late to adjust.
Connect your bank once, sync forever.
Plaid imports every client payment automatically. No manual entry when $7,400 hits your checking account at midnight — it's already in your envelope ledger by morning.
Recurring bills stay accurate regardless of income.
Your $1,500 rent shows as Expected on the 1st whether you made $2,000 or $12,000 that month. Bills don't flex — your envelope view makes sure you never accidentally spend that money.
You shouldn't have to pay to budget as a freelancer.
Quicken Self-Employed is built for tax tracking but not envelope budgeting. YNAB does envelope budgeting but assumes regular income and charges $109/yr. LazeeFish does both, free.
Freelancer budget questions.
Can LazeeFish handle irregular income?
Yes. Envelopes hold what you actually have. When a $3,200 client payment arrives, you use a paycheck allocation template to split it across envelopes instantly — no guessing, no manual math.
How do I set aside money for taxes as a freelancer?
Create a dedicated Tax envelope. When each payment arrives, allocate 25–30% to it before touching anything else. LazeeFish treats it as off-limits spending money — the balance is visible but separate from your day-to-day envelopes.
Can I track business vs personal expenses?
Yes — use tags. Tag any transaction as "business" or "tax-deductible" regardless of which envelope it lives in. Filter by tag to see totals across all categories. At tax time, export the filtered list and hand it to your accountant.
Is LazeeFish free for freelancers?
Yes, completely free. No trial period, no credit card required. Every feature described on this page — paycheck allocation, bank sync, tax envelope, business tags, recurring bills — is available at $0.
What is paycheck allocation and how does it help with variable income?
Paycheck allocation is a template that defines what percentage (or fixed amount) of any paycheck goes to each envelope. Instead of deciding the split every time, you set it once and apply it in one click each time a payment arrives. A $2,100 month and a $9,800 month both get handled by the same template — the proportions stay right even as the amounts change.
Set up your freelancer budget in 10 minutes.
Tax envelope. Paycheck allocation template. Bank sync. No subscription, no trial, no credit card.