How do you track Argentine installments now that Ahora 12 is gone?
For years, buying in installments in Argentina had a name and a clear rule: Ahora 12, twelve installments at a rate the state subsidized. Then came Cuota Simple, with three or six installments, and now not even that. In 2026 both programs were repealed, and installments came to depend on whatever promotion your bank happens to run that week. The problem is no longer getting installments, it is keeping track of the ones you have. Here is what survived Ahora 12 and how to project what you will owe through December.
I spent years inside banks watching how people build their cash flow, and installments are the most common blind spot. A twelve-installment purchase is not a cost for this month, it is a commitment that follows you all year, and the card statement only shows you the installment due right now. With no unified program to keep it all in order, that forward projection landed in your hands. This piece builds it step by step, with example numbers from a real purchase.
Is Ahora 12 still available in 2026?
No. Ahora 12 had already been replaced by Cuota Simple, which stopped being renewed in June 2025, and in early June 2026 the government definitively repealed the rules behind both programs. There is no state installment plan with a subsidized rate left. What still exists are the installment promotions of each bank and store, which change often and do not guarantee a rate.
The change matters more than it looks. For a decade, Ahora 12 was the reference point: you knew that appliance, that flight or that big purchase fit into twelve fixed installments at a contained rate. Cuota Simple lowered the bet to three or six installments and did not last. With the 2026 repeal, the word installments stopped meaning a program and went back to meaning whatever each card decides. The good news is that installments did not disappear. The awkward news is that now you have to track them yourself.
What replaced Ahora 12 and Cuota Simple?
Nothing unified at the state level. In their place are the loose promotions of each bank and store: the interest-free installments a shop funds through Mercado Pago, the limited-time bank campaigns, and the plans each card runs on its own. In early 2026, for example, Banco Nacion launched a promotion of up to 20 interest-free installments that lasted only a few months. These are offers that appear and vanish, not a stable program.
For you, that means the interest-free installment is now a hunt for opportunities. One week there are 12 installments at an electronics chain, the next there are 6 at supermarkets with one specific bank, and the rate you pay when there is no promo can be brutal. Financing still exists, which is the upside. What complicates your life is that each purchase starts with its own plan, its own number of installments and its own date, and nothing pulls them into one view. If you earn in dollars and spend in pesos, the problem mixes with the exchange rate, which we cover in getting paid in dollars and living in pesos.
Why is tracking installments harder now?
Because the common framework disappeared and every purchase ended up with its own plan. Before, almost everything fit the same twelve-installment mold of Ahora 12. Now one purchase may be three installments, another six, another twelve from a bank promo, and each ends in different months. The card statement shows you the sum for the month, not the map of what you have already committed going forward.
That blind spot is where people get into trouble. You buy something in twelve installments in March and it feels light, because the installment is small. You buy something else in six installments in May, and another in April, and each on its own seems manageable. What nobody adds up is the month they all pile onto. September arrives, three or four installments land together, and the statement jumps in a way you did not see coming. The way to avoid it is to project, not to look only at this month's installment. The same logic of reading the card before it surprises you is in how to project credit-card installments.
The example purchase. Tomas bought a TV in 12 installments of 50,000 pesos (600,000 total) in March, a phone in 6 installments of 80,000 (480,000) in May, and a course in 3 installments of 90,000 (270,000) in June. Each installment, on its own, felt light. Let us project month by month to find the peak, with example numbers you can swap for your own.
How do I project what I will owe in installments through December?
Log each installment purchase with its total, its number of installments and how many you have paid, then build one row per month and add the installment from every active purchase that falls in that month. That gives you the floor of spending you have already committed before you spend a new peso. The projection, not the loose installment of the month, is what shows you the heaviest month before it arrives.
With Tomas's numbers, the math falls into place fast. The TV adds 50,000 per month from March to February next year. The phone adds 80,000 from May to October. The course adds 90,000 from June to August. If you build the grid, June, July and August are the peak months, with all three purchases stacked: 50,000 plus 80,000 plus 90,000, that is 220,000 pesos a month in old installments alone, before buying anything new. Seeing that in March, when it all started, changes what you buy in May.
| Month | TV (50,000) | Phone (80,000) | Course (90,000) | Installment total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May | 50,000 | 80,000 | 0 | 130,000 |
| June | 50,000 | 80,000 | 90,000 | 220,000 |
| July | 50,000 | 80,000 | 90,000 | 220,000 |
| August | 50,000 | 80,000 | 90,000 | 220,000 |
| September | 50,000 | 80,000 | 0 | 130,000 |
| October | 50,000 | 80,000 | 0 | 130,000 |
The grid exposes what the statement hides: the installment crunch is June to August, not the month of each purchase. With that projection built, the decision to add a fourth installment purchase in July becomes obvious, because you already know that month is loaded. Without the projection, you buy blind and find out when the statement lands. This is the math Ahora 12 hid by design, because the fixed installment always looked the same.
Is it worth buying in installments without a subsidized rate?
It depends on the total financing cost and on inflation. A fixed interest-free installment still pays off when inflation erodes the value of future installments, because you pay tomorrow with money worth less. But an installment purchase that carries interest can cost quite a bit more than paying upfront. The simple rule: check the total financing cost, compare the installment total against the cash price, and only then decide.
Without the Ahora 12 umbrella, that comparison is on you. When the rate was subsidized, stretching into installments almost always paid off. Today you have to look at each offer on its own: a bank's interest-free installment promo can still be excellent, while financing a card balance at the normal rate is among the most expensive money there is. The small installment deceives, because it hides the total cost. If the goal is to spend the minimum, it helps to know which app costs least, which we compare in the cheapest budget app of 2026.
Do finance apps project installments forward?
Most log the current month's installment but do not add up what you will owe in the months ahead. Your bank app shows the installment due now. Mobills records it in the month's statement. Few build the grid from June to December with all your active purchases stacked. That forward projection is exactly what separates seeing today's installment from seeing the peak that is coming.
| App | Detects the installment purchase | Projects what you will owe ahead | Works without a bank login | Price (2026) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bank app | Yes, it is your card | No, only this month's installment | It is the bank | Free |
| Mobills | Yes, manual or by alert | Partial, no yearly projection | Yes, manual entry | Premium R$199.90/yr |
| Moneko | Limited | No | Yes, in Telegram | Paid monthly plan |
| Capi | Yes, detects the plan | Yes, sums month by month | Yes, in Telegram | US$9.90/mo or 69.90/yr |
Read the table as a trade-off, not a coronation. The bank app is free and exact about your card, so if you only want to see this month's installment, you already have it. Mobills is tidy for personal budgeting and lets you log installments by hand. Moneko lives in Telegram like Capi, but installment projection is not its strength. Capi's edge is the narrow one this piece is about: detecting the installment purchase and summing what is left, month by month. The side-by-side detail is in Capi vs Moneko, and the full landscape in the best money tracker of 2026.
The four steps of the projection. Step 1: log each installment purchase with its total, its installments and the first date. Step 2: mark how many installments are left on each one. Step 3: build one row per month and add the installments that fall in each month through December. Step 4: before adding a new purchase, look at the heaviest month in the grid. If the new installment pushes it above what you earn, wait or pay in full.
How does Capi track installments?
When you log an installment purchase in Capi, by text, voice or a photo of the statement, it detects the total and the plan, and projects what is left by adding the installment to each future month until it ends. You say tv 600000 in 12 installments in a Telegram chat, and Capi builds the grid instead of showing you only this month's installment. That way you see the June-to-August peak before it arrives.
It has limits worth naming, too. Capi lives entirely inside Telegram, so if you want a native app with investment charts, Mobills or Monarch will look more complete. Sometimes it misreads a blurry photo of a statement and shows it as a flagged line you fix with one tap, instead of swallowing it silently. What it does well is what an economy without Ahora 12 demands of you every day: detecting the installment purchase and projecting what you will owe, for 9.90 dollars a month or 69.90 a year, with a free plan of 30 entries to try it. You can poke a live demo, deliberately messy, at cappi.io/dashboard.
Your installments, projected through December.
Capi detects your installment purchases and adds up what you will owe month by month, inside Telegram, with no bank login and no new app to download.
From 9.90 dollars a month, with a free plan to try it.
Frequently asked questions about Ahora 12 and installments in 2026
Is Ahora 12 still available in 2026?
No. Ahora 12 had already been replaced by Cuota Simple, which stopped being renewed in June 2025, and in 2026 the government definitively repealed the rules behind both programs. There is no state installment plan with a subsidized rate. What remains are installment promotions from individual banks and stores, which change often and are not guaranteed.
What replaced Ahora 12 and Cuota Simple?
Nothing unified at the state level. In their place are the loose promotions of each bank and store, like the interest-free installments some shops fund through Mercado Pago or the limited-time campaigns banks run. In early 2026 Banco Nacion launched one of up to 20 interest-free installments that lasted a few months. They are scattered offers, not a program.
How do I project what I will owe in installments through December?
Log each installment purchase with its total, its number of installments and how many you have paid. Then build one row per month and add the installment from every active purchase that falls in that month. The result is your committed-spending floor per month, before you spend again. An app that detects the installment purchase and projects it saves you the manual math.
Is it worth buying in installments without a subsidized rate?
It depends on the total financing cost and on inflation. A fixed interest-free installment still pays off when inflation erodes the value of future installments. But an installment purchase that carries interest can cost far more than paying upfront. Always check the total financing cost and compare the installment total against the cash price before deciding.
Do finance apps project installments forward?
Most log the current month's installment but do not add up what you will owe in the months ahead. Mobills and your bank app show the current installment in the statement, without building the projection through December. Capi detects the installment purchase and projects what is left, so you see the heaviest month before it arrives.
How much does an app to track installments cost in 2026?
Capi costs 9.90 dollars per month or 69.90 per year, with a free plan of 30 entries per month to try it. Capi Together is 99 dollars per year for two people. Mobills has a free plan with alerts and a Premium tier at 199.90 reais per year. Your bank app is free, but it only shows the current installment, with no projection.