How do you analyze YNAB budgets in Metabase?

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "ynab": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "ynab-mcp-server"],
      "env": { "YNAB_API_TOKEN": "your-token" }
    }
  }
}

# Install the Metabase CLI
npm install -g @metabase/cli

# Log in (opens your browser; requires Metabase v62+)
mb auth login --url https://your-metabase.example.com

# Load a scoped YNAB export - creates a table and a model
mb upload csv --file ynab-export.csv --collection "Finance & Accounting"

# Refresh the same table later
mb upload replace <table-id> --file ynab-export.csv

Create a polished Metabase dashboard for YNAB finance analytics.
Work end to end: find existing modeled data first; if none exists, load a minimal
read-only snapshot or describe the warehouse sync required.

Goal: Connect YNAB to Metabase for budget-versus-actuals, account balances, category spend, recurring transactions, and cash-flow dashboards.

Inspect before querying:
- Inspect actual tables, column names, currencies, status values, and timestamps.
- Do not assume the source schema matches this guide exactly.
- Reconcile source totals before publishing any finance KPI.

Important:
- Do not claim Metabase connects natively to YNAB; it reads a
  supported database or CLI-uploaded tables.
- Keep native amount, native currency, and reporting-currency amount separate.
- Distinguish authorization, posting, payment, settlement, and reconciliation
  states where the source exposes them.
- Use stable business keys and apply updates/deletes during incremental syncs.
- Exclude account numbers, personal data, and secrets from broad dashboards.
- Only build cards whose required fields and history are actually present.

Dashboard sections:
1. Finance overview: Ready-to-assign and account balances; Budget vs. activity; Net cash flow; Top spending categories.
2. Operations: Overspent categories; Unapproved or uncleared transactions; Scheduled transactions; Accounts needing reconciliation.
3. Controls and reconciliation: Duplicate imports; Uncategorized transactions; Cleared vs. working balance variance; Deleted or changed records.
4. Planning and trends: Category trend; Recurring expense baseline; Savings-goal progress; Monthly income and spend.

Suggested models: modeled_ynab_category_months, modeled_ynab_transactions, modeled_ynab_account_balances, modeled_ynab_recurring_cash_flows.

Output: Build the dashboard if you have permission; otherwise provide the exact
questions, SQL, model definitions, and layout. State refresh time, reporting
currency, accounting basis, and any reconciliation caveats.

SELECT
  month,
  category_group_name,
  SUM(budgeted_amount) AS budgeted,
  SUM(-activity_amount) AS spent,
  SUM(budgeted_amount + activity_amount) AS variance
FROM modeled_ynab_category_months
GROUP BY 1, 2
ORDER BY 1, ABS(SUM(budgeted_amount + activity_amount)) DESC;

Show scheduled outflows separately from current category availability.

SELECT
  scheduled_date,
  payee_name,
  category_name,
  -amount AS expected_outflow
FROM modeled_ynab_scheduled_transactions
WHERE scheduled_date BETWEEN CURRENT_DATE AND CURRENT_DATE + INTERVAL '30 days'
  AND amount < 0
ORDER BY scheduled_date, expected_outflow DESC;