Cash Flow: income, spending and net by month
Cash Flow shows, month by month, how much came in, how much went out and the difference (net). Every amount that comes in counts as income, money out counts as spending unless its category is in the Savings group, and anything labelled ignore is left out.
On a phone, open More and tap Cash Flow, or add it to your tab bar from More > Edit tabs. Everything below works the same on a phone; the five summary cards wrap into two columns.
What the page shows
- Summary cards across the top: a savings rate for the range, Avg Net / Month, Best Month, Worst Month and Positive Streak.
- The chart: one bar per month. In Net view a bar is green when the month came out ahead and red when it did not. In Breakdown view you see income and spending side by side.
- A stats row under the chart: Avg Income, Avg Expenses, Monthly Avg and Net Total.
- The income to spending flow chart at the bottom. It has its own rules, explained in The income to spending flow chart.
How income, spending and net are counted
Net = income − spending
- Income is every amount that comes into your accounts that month, whatever its category: paychecks, refunds, interest, and money moved back out of savings.
- Spending is every amount that goes out, unless its category belongs to the Savings group (for example Internal Transfer or Investments). Uncategorized money out counts as spending.
- Transactions labelled ignore are skipped completely.
- Months are calendar months, by the date on the transaction.
| Transaction | How Cash Flow counts it |
|---|---|
| Paycheck, $2,500 in | Income |
| Refund from a store, $60 in | Income (not subtracted from spending) |
| Transfer to savings, $1,000 out, category in the Savings group | Not counted |
| Transfer back from savings, $500 in | Income |
| Credit card payment, $900 out, not ignored | Spending |
| Credit card payment labelled ignore | Not counted |
| Pending purchase, $45 out | Spending (pending transactions count) |
Cash Flow counts every amount that comes in as income ($5,560), including the refund and the money moved back from savings. Spending is money out outside the Savings group ($2,400). Rate = net ÷ income, rounded to a whole percent.
Worked example
Say October has two $2,500 paychecks, a $60 refund, rent of $1,800, $420 of groceries, $160 of gas, a $20 streaming bill, a $1,000 transfer into an Internal Transfer category and a $500 transfer back out of savings. Your $900 credit card payment is labelled ignore.
- Income = $2,500 + $2,500 + $60 + $500 = $5,560
- Spending = $1,800 + $420 + $160 + $20 = $2,400 (the $1,000 savings transfer and the ignored card payment are left out)
- Net = $5,560 − $2,400 = +$3,160
The summary cards
| Card | How it is calculated |
|---|---|
| YTD Savings Rate (the name follows the range, for example Last 12 Mo Savings Rate) | (total income − total spending) ÷ total income × 100, rounded to a whole percent. It shows 0% when there is no income. Green at 0% or above, red below. |
| Avg Net / Month | Total net ÷ the number of months on the chart. |
| Best Month / Worst Month | The month with the highest net and the month with the lowest net. |
| Positive Streak | How many months in a row, counting back from the latest month, had a net of $0 or more. It reads current when the streak is alive and broken when the latest month was negative. |
| Avg Income / Avg Expenses | Total income or spending ÷ the number of months shown. |
| Monthly Avg / Net Total | Average net per month, and total income − total spending for the range. |
If you picked a different savings-rate basis in Settings > Savings Rate (for example Including retirement), the savings-rate card uses that basis when it has the pay information it needs and shows a short note under the number saying which basis it used. See Savings and savings rate.
The current month and "proj."
A month that is only a few days old would look terrible next to full months, so while the current month is on the chart FIYR also estimates where it will land. The bar itself shows what has really posted. A dashed outline over it shows the month-end estimate. The cards and the stats row use the estimate; the savings-rate and streak cards (and Best Month or Worst Month when the current month is the one shown) carry a small proj. tag.
Projected spending = spending so far + recurring bills still due + (everyday spending per day × days left)
- Recurring bills still due are the bills on your Recurring page scheduled from tomorrow to the last day of the month that have not already been paid.
- Everyday spending per day is your average daily spending over the last 90 days (outside the Income and Savings groups) minus the daily cost of your recurring bills over the next 90 days, rounded to whole dollars and never below $0.
- Projected income = income so far + recurring income still due this month.
- Projected net = projected income − projected spending.
Example: on October 16 there are 15 days left. You have spent $2,400 and have $300 of bills still due. Over the last 90 days you averaged $110 a day, and your recurring bills work out to $40 a day, so everyday spending is $70 a day. Projected spending = $2,400 + $300 + ($70 × 15) = $3,750. With $5,000 received and one $2,500 paycheck still due, projected income is $7,500 and projected net is +$3,750.
Ranges and chart options
- The range menu offers YTD (the default), Last 12 Mo, All Time and each year you have data for.
- Net | Breakdown switches the chart. Net is the default.
- In Net view, Cumulative adds a purple line with the running total of net, and 3mo Avg adds a dashed line with the average of each month and the two before it (so it starts at the third month). Both are on by default.
- Months with no transactions (or only ignored ones) are not drawn.
- Hover a month to see its Net, Income and Spending, plus Cumulative when that line is on and the projected figures for the current month. Click it to open a panel with an Overview (each figure with its % change from the previous month) and your Top Spending Categories for that month.
Ignored transactions, transfers, refunds and pending
- Ignored: anything labelled ignore is left out of every figure. See Keep a transaction out of your totals.
- Credit card payments: FIYR hides them automatically when it finds both sides (the payment from checking and the matching credit on the card). If one slipped through, label both sides ignore. See Transfers and credit card payments.
- Transfers to savings are not spending as long as the category is in your Savings group. Transfers back out of savings are counted as income here.
- Refunds count as income on this page. They are not subtracted from spending.
- Pending transactions count as soon as they appear, and are replaced by the posted version when it arrives.
Common questions
Why is my income higher on Cash Flow than on Summary?
Cash Flow counts every amount that comes in, including refunds and money moved back from savings. Summary only counts deposits in Income-group categories. See Why totals differ between pages.
What does "proj." mean?
It marks a figure that includes the month-end estimate for the current month. It goes away once the month ends.
Why does a transfer to savings show as spending?
Its category is not in your Savings group. Move the category into the Savings group, recategorize the transfer, or label it ignore.
Do pending transactions count?
Yes. They count as soon as they appear and are swapped for the posted transaction when your bank finishes it.
Why is a month missing from the chart?
Months with no transactions are not drawn. Check the range menu too: YTD only shows this calendar year.
Still stuck?
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