Mobile Apps Documentation

How to read this document

Sections move from purpose → concepts → calculation process → worked examples → edge cases. Formula boxes use plain mathematical notation for clarity; they are conceptual summaries, not API contracts.

• Point lists call out operator-visible behaviour.
• Callouts mark warnings, limitations, or important qualifications.
• Worked examples use round numbers so you can reproduce the arithmetic by hand.

Purpose: a family of apps

AccountHouse on mobile is AH Lite and AH Split, two Android apps sharing the same account and permission model as the web dashboard. Each has a deliberate scope, and they coexist on one handset without interfering with each other. The original AccountHouse Android app is deprecated.

• AH Lite — the everyday household app
• AH Split — Split groups on their own, with a web version at /split-app/
• AccountHouse — the original app, deprecated but still working for existing users
• Same identity and permissions as the web dashboard

What each app does

AH Lite is the household app: expenses with offline capture, budgets, bills, income, receivables, recurring expenses, cards and bank accounts, insights and Card Insights, goals, calendar, the shopping list, DocuVault, InteliHouse, alerts with read-only forms, six home-screen widgets, and Help, Contact support, Privacy policy and Terms of service under Settings. It omits household chat and calls, Split, and Bank Messages.

AH Split is the Split app for Android: groups, payments, settlements, balances, group chat, budgets and payables, and the same Help and legal pages under the You tab. The AH Split web app at /split-app/ shares the dashboard sign-in and session, so signing into the dashboard signs you into Split on the web.

AccountHouse for Android, the original app, is deprecated. It is no longer offered for new installs, but existing installs keep working — including Household and Split modes, household chat and calls, Bank Messages, eight widgets, and multi-account switching.

• The apps coexist on one handset with separate identities — signing into one never signs out another.
• Push is routed so only one app on a handset notifies for a given alert: AH Lite first, then AH Split, then the original app.
• Household chat and calls live only in the original AccountHouse app.
• iOS is not offered — iPhone users use the web app.

Installation and sign-in

AH Lite and AH Split are distributed as APK sideloads from the official links — theaccounthouse.com/download/lite and theaccounthouse.com/download/split — and are not on the Play Store yet. When signed in on the web, the Apps page shows both links with QR codes. Install only from those official paths.

If two-factor authentication is on, a sign-in can be approved from a phone that is already signed in: the prompt goes to AH Lite if it is installed, else AH Split, else the original app. Pick the number shown on the signing-in screen — you get one try, and a wrong number cancels the sign-in.

• Install only from the official distribution link.
• Keep the app and operating system current.
• Verify the intended account and household after sign-in.
• Configure 2FA and recovery channels.

Device permissions

Each permission maps to a specific feature, and none is required just to run the app.

• Camera and photos — attaching and scanning receipts.
• Notifications — push alerts.
• Microphone — voice messages and household calls.
• Location — opt-in and foreground-only, for tagging where an expense happened; there is no background location tracking.
• SMS — read only if you opt in to Bank Messages, so allowlisted bank SMS can become draft expenses.

Sync and offline expectations

Expense capture works offline: entries go into a durable outbox with a client idempotency key and sync when the network returns. Nothing is silently dropped — the Pending sync screen shows exactly what is still waiting, and idempotency keys prevent an entry posting twice if a retry overlaps.

For data that has no offline path, confirm a save completed before relying on another client.

App and device security

• Use device lock.
• Enable app lock (biometric or PIN on open) — see the Security documentation for its unlock window and enable requirements.
• Do not share an unlocked device.
• Review downloaded files.
• Revoke lost-device sessions.

Push notifications

Push is a convenience channel and can be delayed or hidden by operating-system policy. With multiple AccountHouse apps installed, routing ensures only one of them notifies for a given alert: household and security notifications go to AH Lite, Split notifications to AH Split, and the original app only where the newer app is not signed in.

Lost-device response

Troubleshooting

• Check network, then check the Pending sync screen for unsynced entries.
• Refresh authentication.
• Review permissions.
• Update the app from the official download link.
• Confirm household role.
• Contact official support with non-secret diagnostics.

Privacy, advice limits, and what we do not publish

AccountHouse is a household tracking and organisation tool. It is not a bank, payment processor, tax advisor, or investment advisor. Forecasts, health scores, balances, and alerts are informational.

• Household data is scoped to your household; other families cannot see your ledger.
• Public documentation explains product behaviour and calculation concepts, not proprietary internals.
• Exact scoring weights, anomaly thresholds, cryptography parameters beyond high-level algorithms, and operational detection rules are reserved.
• Mobile security depends partly on device integrity, operating-system updates, and user handling.