Geo Payees on Mobile: A Guide

May 13 2025 9:21pm • Est. Read Time: 4 MIN

Enable Geo Payees on YNAB mobile to automatically fill in the payee, category, and account based on your location. Adjust settings on your iOS or Android device to authorize YNAB to use location information, and choose whether to save each location when entering a transaction. Follow these steps to enable or disable this feature in YNAB, and find answers to our most frequently asked questions!

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In This Article

How to Enable Geo Payees

Saved Locations
Explains how saved locations work for Geo Payees and what to do if one is populating incorrectly

How to Disable Geo Payees

FAQs

How to Enable Geo Payees

  •  iOS
  •  Android
  1. To use Geo Payees, you'll first need to authorize YNAB to use location information on your mobile device.📍You can turn it off at any time if you change your mind!

  2. Open the Settings app on your iPhone or iPad.

  3. Scroll down and tap on Privacy.

  4. Select Location Services (at the very top).

  5. Make sure Location Services is toggled on and green.

  6. Then, scroll down to YNAB in the list and choose While Using the App.
  1. To use Geo Payees, you'll first need to authorize YNAB to use location information on your mobile device.📍You can turn it off at any time if you change your mind! These controls are accessed in your device settings by going to Settings & Location to turn on the Location feature.

  2. On the home screen, press and hold the YNAB icon.

  3. Drag it onto the App info and drop it.

  4. Tap Permissions: Location.

  5. Toggle the Location setting on.

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Saved Locations

When Geo Payees are enabled, each time you enter a transaction using the mobile app, you can choose whether or not to save the location of that payee.

Let’s say you’re at home, and you don’t want to save the location—tap the "x" on the blue location icon.

In the payee field, next to the populated payee, a blue location arrow icon appears. Tap the icon's small blue x to forget.

Raise your hand if the kitchen table is a popular spot to enter transactions... and a Geo Payee location in your list. ✋🏽

What if you accidentally saved the wrong location so the automatic payees are way off? No problem—you can choose to "Forget Location"!

How to Forget a Saved Location

  •  iOS
  •  Android
  1. If a payee pops up and it's associated with the wrong location, tap on it to open your payee list. At the top you'll have a "Near You" section.

  2. In the "Near You" section, swipe left on the incorrect payee.

  3. Then, tap the red Forget Location button.
  1. If a payee pops up and it's associated with the wrong location, tap on it to open your payee list. At the top you'll have a "Near You" section.

  2. To the right of the "Near You" section header, tap Edit. 

  3. Then, tap the red Forget Location button next to the relevant payees.

  4. Tap Done to the right of the "Near You" section header when finished.

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How to Disable Geo Payees

  •  iOS
  •  Android

If you'd prefer to select the payee each time you enter a transaction, that's okay, too! Here's how to disable the Geo Payees option.

  1. Open the YNAB app on your iPhone or iPad.

  2. Tap the Plan tab at the bottom of the screen. Categories or Spotlight can be toggled on.

  3. Tap the three dots icon  in the upper left.

  4. Choose Settings & Privacy.

  5. Choose Location Services from the menu.

  6. Select Location.

  7. Change to Never.

If you'd prefer to select the payee each time you enter a transaction, that's okay, too! Here's how to disable the Geo Payees option.

  1. On the home screen, press and hold the YNAB icon.

  2. Tap App Info or "i", depending on your version of Android.

  3. Tap Permissions.

  4. Tap Location.

  5. Tap on Deny or toggle the location setting off.

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FAQs

 Does every payee location have to be saved?  

Nope! When entering your transaction, tap the X on the blue location icon to prevent it from being saved.

How many locations are stored for a payee?   

There is no limit to the number of locations you can store per payee. You can enter as many as you'd like! Your grocery store around the corner, the one across town, or another store hours away—each are saved as separate locations. If you remove one, the others aren't changed.

How close do you have to be?  

YNAB will consider payees as far away as 1640 feet (500 meters) to display. Payees within that range are listed at the top, under the "Near You" section, sorted by closest to furthest from the current location.

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