Getting started
What “safe to spend” actually means
The number Lumio exists to keep honest, and what moves it up or down.
How it is worked out
Safe to spend starts from the plan you set for the month, then subtracts what you have already spent and what you have committed to — planned savings, and bills you have told Lumio about.
It is not your account balance. Lumio cannot see your balance. It is what is left of the plan you made.
Why it moves
It changes whenever the picture changes.
- Recording an expense lowers it.
- Recording income can raise it, if you earned more than you planned for.
- Changing your plan — the spending boundary or the savings target — changes it directly.
- It resets each month, because the plan does.
If it looks wrong
Almost always this means the plan and reality have drifted apart: a month with no plan, a large expense recorded twice, or income that has not been recorded yet. Open the month on Overview and check the plan first, then the transaction list.
Read next
- Setting up a month — Expected income, a spending boundary, and a savings target — the three numbers everything else rests on.
- Recording income and spending — Adding one transaction, and what each field is for.
All help topics
Back to help, or contact support if this did not answer it.