> Cost Re-framing (Work Hours Psychology): It immediately translates the item's price into a more tangible metric: This $80 gadget costs you 4 hours of your work. This technique, known as "opportunity cost visualization," makes the trade-off much more real.
I already do this automatically myself but this only makes me more likely to buy stuff I want. Because many things are so crazy cheap that the time you need to work for them is really not a lot.
Also, the example on the website says 2.1 weeks of work for $217 sneakers. Is the person on the example earning $400 per month or is the calculation different (for example only considering expendable income)?
That's a completely valid point, and I’ve heard similar feedback from many early users. I recommend, and I personally have started doing this, that you plug in your disposable income instead of your total salary.
Disposable income is what you have left after paying for essentials like rent, groceries, commuting, and bills. It’s basically the money available for non-essential purchases. This gives you a more realistic hourly rate and makes you think more about opportunity costs. For example, that $80 gadget could be taking a much bigger chunk of your free cash than it seems at first.
To clarify, in the current free plan, users can enter their annual income. However, the work-hours psychology is based on a default average of about $50k USD. This varies by currency and country, so in this case, like the sneakers example, it translates to about 2.1 weeks.
In the premium version, the app uses your actual income or disposable income, if you prefer, so it becomes much more personalized and precise.
As a thank you to early adopters, I’m offering free weekly premium access to gather feedback and improve the app. Let me know if you’d like to try out the personalized version.
That’s honestly such a good takeaway. Sometimes tracking your money doesn’t reveal overspending; it shows that you’ve been neglecting the parts of your life that bring you joy.
You’re exactly the kind of person I created this for. I’m not against spending at all. The goal is to spend with purpose. When you do buy something, especially related to your hobbies, it should feel earned, guilt-free, and in line with what you truly value not just random temptations from scrolling.
Under cost re-framing and goal redirection, it might be neat to add something like "how much this amount of money would net you in 5/10 years at 7% growth" for example. (Ties into the down payment category, perhaps).
Believe me, this is such a great idea that I recently received exactly the same feedback.
It's already on my roadmap because the user indicated that it would be effective to demonstrate "what this skipped purchase could grow into in 5/10 years at X% compounding."
The concept would be: rather than merely saving $80 today, demonstrate that, at a 7% annual growth rate, it will reach $157 in ten years, making the "opportunity cost" even more difficult to overlook (and much more motivating if you're saving for things like a down payment).
You have no idea how much these suggestions are helping me shape the next wave of features, so please keep coming.
How is the app triggered? There is a graphic that makes it seem like the app can detect impulse buys:
iPhone 16 Pro Max
$1,625
IMPULSE DETECTED
I think this is a good idea I'm just not convinced I would manually interrupt my impulse buys to pull up the app to stop my impulse buys. How does the app introduce friction to the purchase process?
For the time being, the "IMPULSE DETECTED" graphic is more of a conceptual representation than a real-time detection function.
The app currently depends on you manually recording a "impulse moment," which is essentially any time you catch yourself on the verge of making an unnecessary purchase. The idea is to create just enough friction to get you to stop doing things automatically.
Launch the app → input the item → feel the 24-hour timer and let work-hours cost hit you → ideally, choose to skip and "pay yourself" instead.
Having said that, I'm evaluating out potential future integrations because many users have requested automatic impulse detection or more intelligent nudges.
So short answer: currently user-triggered, future versions will make that trigger smarter and more automatic.
Really appreciate you asking. This kind of feedback helps me prioritise what to build next
Since I know I won’t build a financial app, I offer this idea to everyone.
You know those apps that round up your transactions on your debit card and it builds up savings over time? Do this same exact concept but have the money that builds up be used to pay down credit card debt. Even if it’s not much, any extra dollar makes a difference. To make the app really effective it needs to be able to pay the credit card directly.
Currently, my app focuses on preventing unnecessary spending and directing that "almost spent" money into savings, but I'm definitely noting this feedback.
Connecting directly to the card and pushing payments would require a larger integration project. However, this is exactly the type of feedback I need for planning my roadmap.
True enough, I wouldn't require an entire webapp if it only involved dividing a price by my hourly rate.
As x-complexity pointed out, the true value arises when I'm not acting rationally. I won't open a calculator in the heat of the moment, but I will open something that’s designed to interrupt me, slap me with the true cost, start a 24-hr timer, and then redirect the money somewhere meaningful if I choose to skip.
It’s less about the calculation, and more about the friction + psychology + follow through. I basically built the app to be the version of me who shows up when the rational version has left the chat
You're rationally thinking about this, not the impulsive state someone will be in when impulse buying (where math rarely occurs, if ever).
Visually showing alternatives to the impulse buyer adds friction between the user & the purchase, and when compared to the original seamless shopping experience, that's enough to slow down impulse purchases.
I already do this automatically myself but this only makes me more likely to buy stuff I want. Because many things are so crazy cheap that the time you need to work for them is really not a lot.
Also, the example on the website says 2.1 weeks of work for $217 sneakers. Is the person on the example earning $400 per month or is the calculation different (for example only considering expendable income)?
Disposable income is what you have left after paying for essentials like rent, groceries, commuting, and bills. It’s basically the money available for non-essential purchases. This gives you a more realistic hourly rate and makes you think more about opportunity costs. For example, that $80 gadget could be taking a much bigger chunk of your free cash than it seems at first.
To clarify, in the current free plan, users can enter their annual income. However, the work-hours psychology is based on a default average of about $50k USD. This varies by currency and country, so in this case, like the sneakers example, it translates to about 2.1 weeks.
In the premium version, the app uses your actual income or disposable income, if you prefer, so it becomes much more personalized and precise.
As a thank you to early adopters, I’m offering free weekly premium access to gather feedback and improve the app. Let me know if you’d like to try out the personalized version.
You’re exactly the kind of person I created this for. I’m not against spending at all. The goal is to spend with purpose. When you do buy something, especially related to your hobbies, it should feel earned, guilt-free, and in line with what you truly value not just random temptations from scrolling.
It's already on my roadmap because the user indicated that it would be effective to demonstrate "what this skipped purchase could grow into in 5/10 years at X% compounding."
The concept would be: rather than merely saving $80 today, demonstrate that, at a 7% annual growth rate, it will reach $157 in ten years, making the "opportunity cost" even more difficult to overlook (and much more motivating if you're saving for things like a down payment).
You have no idea how much these suggestions are helping me shape the next wave of features, so please keep coming.
iPhone 16 Pro Max $1,625 IMPULSE DETECTED
I think this is a good idea I'm just not convinced I would manually interrupt my impulse buys to pull up the app to stop my impulse buys. How does the app introduce friction to the purchase process?
The app currently depends on you manually recording a "impulse moment," which is essentially any time you catch yourself on the verge of making an unnecessary purchase. The idea is to create just enough friction to get you to stop doing things automatically. Launch the app → input the item → feel the 24-hour timer and let work-hours cost hit you → ideally, choose to skip and "pay yourself" instead.
Having said that, I'm evaluating out potential future integrations because many users have requested automatic impulse detection or more intelligent nudges.
So short answer: currently user-triggered, future versions will make that trigger smarter and more automatic.
Really appreciate you asking. This kind of feedback helps me prioritise what to build next
You know those apps that round up your transactions on your debit card and it builds up savings over time? Do this same exact concept but have the money that builds up be used to pay down credit card debt. Even if it’s not much, any extra dollar makes a difference. To make the app really effective it needs to be able to pay the credit card directly.
Currently, my app focuses on preventing unnecessary spending and directing that "almost spent" money into savings, but I'm definitely noting this feedback.
Connecting directly to the card and pushing payments would require a larger integration project. However, this is exactly the type of feedback I need for planning my roadmap.
As x-complexity pointed out, the true value arises when I'm not acting rationally. I won't open a calculator in the heat of the moment, but I will open something that’s designed to interrupt me, slap me with the true cost, start a 24-hr timer, and then redirect the money somewhere meaningful if I choose to skip.
It’s less about the calculation, and more about the friction + psychology + follow through. I basically built the app to be the version of me who shows up when the rational version has left the chat
Visually showing alternatives to the impulse buyer adds friction between the user & the purchase, and when compared to the original seamless shopping experience, that's enough to slow down impulse purchases.