WhatsApp expense tracker with multi-input (text, image & audio)

Description

Description
CashMate – Your AI-Powered WhatsApp Finance Agent
Turn WhatsApp into a smart finance assistant that auto-registers you, logs transactions in natural language, extracts data from receipts and voice notes, and delivers instant report summaries—no apps, no charts, just lightning-fast insights in chat.

Who is this for?
Personal finance enthusiasts wanting effortless expense tracking
Freelancers & solopreneurs juggling multiple incomes and expenses
Small business owners needing quick bookkeeping on the go
Busy professionals who prefer messaging over apps
Privacy-minded users who host data on their own PostgreSQL

What problem does this solve?
Zero onboarding friction: Just send "Hi"—no forms, no sign-ups
No app switching: Track everything right inside WhatsApp
Manual entry eliminated: Natural-language, image, and voice input all auto-parsed
Instant summaries: On-demand report requests—no dashboards to navigate

How it works
Auto-Registration
New users: "Hi" → Creates your profile in PostgreSQL
Returning users: Bypasses creation if your number already exists

Intent Classification routes every message into one of five branches:
Reports & Summaries
Triggers on keywords like "today's report," "show May vs June," or "summary."
Returns concise text summary of income, expenses, and net balance.

Natural-Language Transactions
Messages like "Give 200 to Mukesh for car repair" → AI extracts date, category, amount, payee → logs it.

Receipt OCR
Attach a receipt image → Gemini OCR node reads line-items → AI categorizes and logs.

Voice-Driven Logging
Send a voice note → Deepgram node transcribes → AI logs transaction.

General Chat & Greetings
"Hi," "Hello," or casual finance questions → Routed to chat branch for greetings or tips.

Setup
Prerequisites
n8n instance (self-hosted or n8n.cloud, v1.0+)
WhatsApp Business Cloud API credentials
PostgreSQL database (host, port, user, password)
OpenRouter/OpenAI API key for NLP
Gemini API key for OCR
Deepgram API key for voice transcription

Quick Start
Import CashMate.n8n.json into n8n.
Rename nodes to suit your environment.
Configure Credentials in n8n's Credentials section—avoid hard-coding keys.
Activate workflow and message "Hi" from WhatsApp.
Test by sending a sample expense text, image receipt, or voice note.

> Note: All detailed setup instructions and deep configuration steps are provided in the sticky notes within the template.

How to Customize
Categories & Currencies:** Edit parsing logic in the Function nodes.
AI Models:** Swap OpenAI/OpenRouter for GPT-4, Claude, or self-hosted alternatives.
Multi-User Support:** Extend registration logic to tag team or family accounts.
Additional Features:** Add budget alerts, multi-currency support, or bank integrations via Plaid.

Example Interactions
1. Text Transaction
User: 300 given to James for the coffee
CashMate: ✅ Transaction Added:
• Date: 2025-06-24
• Category: Coffee & Beverages
• Type: Expense
• Amount: ₹300.00
• Counterparty: James

2. Receipt Image (OCR)

User: [sends image of café bill totaling ₹450]
CashMate: ✅ Transaction Added:
• Date: 2025-06-24
• Category: Coffee & Beverages
• Type: Expense
• Amount: ₹450.00
• Counterparty: Café Aroma

3. Voice Transaction
User: [voice note: "Paid 650 rupees for office stationery"]
CashMate: ✅ Transaction Added:
• Date: 2025-06-24
• Category: Office Supplies
• Type: Expense
• Amount: ₹650.00
• Counterparty: (none)

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