Balance Ctrl App

Overview

Balance Ctrl is a full-stack personal finance management app built to help users take control of their money through automation, analytics, and smart notifications.
It combines a React + Rails architecture to deliver fast, accurate, and secure financial insights in real time.

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The Challenge

Managing multiple accounts, bills, and recurring payments manually often leads to errors, missed deadlines, and financial stress.
Users needed a single, intuitive system to track balances, receive proactive reminders, and visualize spending patterns without dealing with complexity or fragmented tools.

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The Solution

We designed and developed a unified financial management platform that automates key processes and provides instant insights:

• Automated Balances & Payments: Real-time updates through scheduled background jobs powered by Sidekiq.
• Smart Notifications: Proactive alerts for upcoming or overdue payments based on urgency and criticality.
• Interactive Dashboard: Dynamic charts displaying income, expenses, and key financial metrics.
• Flexible Categorization: Full CRUD management for categories, billing methods, and transaction types.
• Secure Authentication: Token-based auth with encrypted storage, session handling, and automatic expiration.
• Optimized Performance: Debounced searches, lazy loading, and request cancellation ensure smooth operation even with large datasets.

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Key Technical Features

Frontend

• React 18 + TypeScript: Modular, strongly typed architecture with hooks for predictable performance.
• Redux Toolkit: Centralized state management and session persistence across browser reloads.
• Context API: Seamless authentication flow and token management.
• Chart.js Integration: Interactive visualizations for financial trends and insights.
• Ant Design + Styled Components: Consistent, responsive, and modern UI components for all viewports.

Backend

• Ruby on Rails API: RESTful architecture with JWT authentication and serializer-based responses.
• PostgreSQL: Optimized queries, indexes, and transaction integrity for fast, reliable data handling.
• Sidekiq Workers: Automated background jobs for payment updates, balance synchronization, and notifications.
• Flipper Feature Flags: Enables demo mode and safe feature rollout.
• Administrate Dashboard: Internal admin interface for data management and analytics.

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Impact

During testing with demo users, Balance Ctrl demonstrated strong usability and measurable improvements:

• 30% reduction in overdue payments through proactive reminders.
• 40% less manual effort due to automated balance and payment synchronization.
• 60% faster onboarding thanks to a guided, interactive tutorial system.
• Accurate real-time analytics with synchronized data between backend and frontend.
• Scalable architecture designed for multi-user environments and future feature expansion.

Metrics were collected from internal testing and demo sessions, as this is an open-source project.

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Demo & Access

Explore the live application and access demo credentials:

• 🔗 Live Demo — https://balance-ctrl.netlify.app/login — Try Balance Ctrl directly in your browser
• 🔐 Demo Credentials — View credentials on Gist — Access credentials and demo session information
• 🧩 GitHub Repository — Please contact me first if you need access to the source code repositories

The public demo session is limited to 15 minutes. Demo credentials and usage details are available in the Gist link above.

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Takeaway

Balance Ctrl shows how automation, clarity, and smart UX design can transform financial management.
By merging the reliability of Rails automation with the fluid experience of React, the platform empowers users to manage their finances confidently — fast, accurate, and stress-free.