Our Security Explained

Simplify Budget is built on Google Apps Script and passed Google's OAuth verification in 2025. When you see the verified badge on the permission screen, it means Google's Trust & Safety team reviewed the app's security and privacy practices.

What Permissions We Ask For (And Why)

  1. See and edit the specific spreadsheet you choose - so the app can read/write your budget data.
  2. Account Information: Email address associated with your Google account (for authentication, usage analytics, and service communications).
  3. See and download files from your Google Drive - only used when you pick which spreadsheet template you want to use. The app only accesses your chosen budget spreadsheet and no other file in your Google Drive.

We don't collect:

  • Your transactions
  • Your spending amounts
  • Your account balances

About the Apps Script banner

When you open the app, Google shows a message: "This application was created by a Google Apps Script user." That's Google's way of saying "This was built by a developer using our tools, not by Google employees." It appears for all Apps Script apps and it's a transparency feature, not a warning.

Open Source & Transparency

The app code is available for review. If you're technical or know someone who is, you can verify exactly what the app does with your data: read/write to your chosen spreadsheet, collect your email for analytics, nothing more.

About the Developer

I'm Serdar Salim. I spent 9 years at Twitter as a Program Manager managing systems for millions of users. I built this app for myself first, because spreadsheets were a huge limitation in how I manage my money and I needed something more powerful.

Questions or concerns? Contact me directly: .