Allocation Types
Understanding Per User vs Shared Pool budget allocation
Allocation Types
When creating a budget, you must choose how the budget amount is distributed among assigned users. This fundamental choice affects how spending is tracked and enforced.
Per User Allocation
With Per User allocation, each assigned user receives their own independent budget allocation.
How It Works
- Each user gets the full budget amount as their personal allocation
- One user's spending doesn't affect another user's available balance
- Rollover is calculated individually per user
- Transaction history is tracked per user
Example Scenario
Marketing Team Budget: $5,000/month per user
| User | Spent | Remaining |
|---|---|---|
| Alice | $3,200 | $1,800 |
| Bob | $4,800 | $200 |
| Carol | $1,000 | $4,000 |
Alice, Bob, and Carol each have independent $5,000 budgets. Bob's high spending doesn't impact Alice or Carol's available balance.
When to Use Per User
Per User allocation is ideal when you want to give each employee a consistent, predictable travel allowance regardless of how their colleagues spend.
- Individual travel allowances - Each employee gets a fixed amount for business travel
- Role-based spending limits - All managers get the same budget, all executives get the same budget
- Predictable budgeting - Easy to forecast costs based on headcount
- Fair distribution - No one user can consume the entire team's budget
Shared Pool Allocation
With Shared Pool allocation, all assigned users draw from a single shared budget.
How It Works
- All users share access to the same budget pool
- Spending by any user reduces the available balance for everyone
- First-come-first-served - no guaranteed amount per user
- Rollover applies to the entire pool, not per user
Example Scenario
Marketing Team Budget: $15,000/month shared
| Transaction | User | Amount | Pool Balance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Start | - | - | $15,000 |
| Flight booking | Alice | -$3,200 | $11,800 |
| Hotel booking | Bob | -$4,800 | $7,000 |
| Conference travel | Carol | -$1,000 | $6,000 |
All team members share the $15,000 pool. Carol has $6,000 available, but so do Alice and Bob if they need to book more travel.
When to Use Shared Pool
Shared Pool is ideal for project budgets or department budgets where flexibility is more important than individual limits.
- Project budgets - A specific project has a travel budget that team members share
- Department budgets - The finance department has $50,000 for the quarter
- Flexible allocation - Some months Alice travels more, other months Bob does
- Team accountability - The team collectively manages their spending
Comparison
| Aspect | Per User | Shared Pool |
|---|---|---|
| Distribution | Fixed per person | Shared among all |
| Fairness | Equal allocation | First-come-first-served |
| Flexibility | Limited to individual amount | Full pool available to anyone |
| Tracking | Individual transaction history | Pooled transaction history |
| Rollover | Per user calculation | Pool-level calculation |
| Overspend Risk | Individual only | Entire team affected |
| Forecasting | Predictable (headcount × amount) | Variable based on usage |
Choosing the Right Allocation Type
Choose Per User When:
- Employees should have predictable travel budgets - "Each salesperson gets $2,000/month"
- You want to prevent one person from consuming the team budget - Caps individual spending
- Rollover should benefit the individual - Unused budget carries forward for that user
- HR/Finance needs per-employee reporting - Easy to see each person's spending
Choose Shared Pool When:
- Projects have fixed budgets - "The London project has $30,000 for travel"
- Team travel patterns are variable - Some months one person travels more
- You want maximum flexibility - Anyone can use available funds
- Department-level tracking is sufficient - Don't need per-employee limits
Impact on Periods and Rollover
The allocation type affects how budget periods and rollover work:
Per User Periods
Each user gets their own UserBudgetPeriod record:
| User | Period | Base Amount | Rollover | Total | Spent | Remaining |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alice | Jan 2024 | $5,000 | $0 | $5,000 | $3,200 | $1,800 |
| Bob | Jan 2024 | $5,000 | $0 | $5,000 | $4,800 | $200 |
| Carol | Jan 2024 | $5,000 | $0 | $5,000 | $1,000 | $4,000 |
When rolling over to February (with Full Rollover):
| User | Period | Base Amount | Rollover | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alice | Feb 2024 | $5,000 | $1,800 | $6,800 |
| Bob | Feb 2024 | $5,000 | $200 | $5,200 |
| Carol | Feb 2024 | $5,000 | $4,000 | $9,000 |
Each user's rollover is calculated from their individual remaining balance.
Shared Pool Periods
There's a single BudgetPeriod record for the entire pool:
| Period | Base Amount | Rollover | Total | Spent | Remaining |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 2024 | $15,000 | $0 | $15,000 | $9,000 | $6,000 |
When rolling over to February (with Full Rollover):
| Period | Base Amount | Rollover | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 2024 | $15,000 | $6,000 | $21,000 |
The entire pool's remaining balance rolls over together.
Changing Allocation Type
Changing a budget's allocation type after it has active periods with transactions is not recommended. The existing period data structure differs between types, which can cause inconsistencies.
If you need to change allocation type:
- Create a new budget with the desired allocation type
- Reassign users/roles from the old budget to the new one
- Deactivate (don't delete) the old budget to preserve history
Related Topics
- Budget Periods - How time-based cycles work
- Rollover Policies - What happens to unused funds
- Budget Resolution - How budgets are assigned to users