Rules reduce repeated cleanup by applying actions when a transaction matches defined conditions. Start with a narrow rule and test it before expanding its reach.
Decide what should be automatic
A good first rule handles a predictable description, payee, or account. For example, a consistent supermarket description can set a cleaned payee and grocery category.
Avoid rules based on very short text or an amount that appears in unrelated activity.
Create a rule
- Open Rules from the relevant settings or transaction configuration area.
- Select Create rule.
- Add one or more matching conditions.
- Add the actions Plutus should apply.
- Review any matching preview.
- Save and enable the rule.
Conditions determine which transactions qualify. Actions determine what changes.
Order and overlap
More than one rule can potentially match a transaction. Keep specific rules narrow and review their order or interaction where Plutus exposes it. Avoid two enabled rules that set the same field to different values.
Test the rule
Use a small known set of transactions:
- note their current values;
- run or save the rule as instructed by Plutus;
- check every field the rule can change; and
- confirm unrelated transactions stayed unchanged.
Only then consider applying the rule to a larger historical range.
Common problems
- A broad “contains” condition can catch unrelated payees.
- Provider descriptions can change, so periodically review rules that stop matching.
- Disable a questionable rule before correcting affected transactions.
- Clean up payees before building several rules around inconsistent names.