Cash Flow Report

Cash Flow Report

The Cash Flow report is your primary view for understanding the flow of money through your finances. It shows income and expenses over time as an overlapping area chart, giving you a clear picture of your financial health.

Understanding the Chart

The Visualization

The Cash Flow chart displays:

• Income area (typically green) - Money coming in
• Expense area (typically red/orange) - Money going out
• Overlap - Where income and expenses meet
• Time axis - Days, weeks, or months depending on date range

Reading the Chart

Above the expense line = Net positive

• You're earning more than spending
• Money is accumulating

Expense exceeds income = Net negative

• Spending more than earning
• Drawing down savings or going into debt

Net Cash Flow

The difference between income and expenses:

Net Cash Flow = Income - Expenses

A positive net cash flow means you're saving money. A negative net cash flow means you're spending more than you earn.

Date Ranges

Preset Ranges

Quick access to common views:

• This Week - Current week's activity
• This Month - Current calendar month
• Last Month - Previous calendar month
• This Quarter - Current quarter (3 months)
• This Year - January 1 to today
• Last Year - Previous calendar year

Custom Ranges

Select any start and end date for:

• Specific billing cycles
• Project periods
• Year-over-year comparisons
• Any custom analysis

Comparison View

Compare two periods side by side:

• This month vs. last month
• This quarter vs. same quarter last year
• Any two periods of equal length

Chart Details

Aggregation

Data is aggregated based on your date range:

Date Range	Aggregation
Under 1 month	Daily
1-3 months	Weekly
Over 3 months	Monthly

This keeps the chart readable regardless of the time period.

Hovering/Tapping

Interact with the chart to see:

• Exact income for that period
• Exact expenses for that period
• Net cash flow
• Date range for the data point

Scrolling and Zooming

• Swipe to pan through time
• Pinch to zoom in/out
• Double-tap to reset view

What's Included

Income

Transactions categorized as income:

• Salary/wages
• Freelance payments
• Investment income
• Refunds (if categorized as income)
• Any category marked as "income"

Expenses

All non-income, non-transfer transactions:

• Regular purchases
• Bills and subscriptions
• Cash withdrawals (if not excluded)
• Any spending transaction

Excluded from Reports

The following don't appear in Cash Flow:

Transfers

• Moving money between your own accounts
• Credit card payments
• Internal transfers

Hidden Duplicates

• Only the shown copy counts
• Duplicates don't inflate totals

Excluded Accounts

• Accounts you've chosen to exclude
• Hidden accounts

Filtering the Report

By Account

Focus on specific accounts:

• "Show only checking account"
• "Exclude investment accounts"
• "Compare between accounts"

Useful for seeing cash flow per payment method or account type.

By Category

Focus on specific spending areas:

• "Show only Food & Dining"
• "Exclude one-time purchases"

Note: This affects both income and expenses based on categories.

By Tag

Focus on tagged transactions:

• "Show only business expenses"
• "Track project spending over time"

Combines with other filters for detailed analysis.

Budget Integration

Budget Lines

When viewing Cash Flow, you can overlay budget information:

Budget limit line

• Shows your budgeted expense level
• Compare actual spending to budget
• See if you're on track over time

Cumulative budget tracking

• For monthly budgets: daily budget accumulation
• Visual comparison of actual vs. expected

Budget Line Styling

The budget line appearance indicates confidence level:

Solid budget line - Exact budget amount known

• Direct filter-to-budget match (e.g., filtering by "Restaurants" with a "Restaurants" budget)
• High confidence in the displayed amount

Dashed budget line - Estimated budget amount

• Budget is inferred from historical transaction patterns
• Indicates some uncertainty in the calculation

Budget range (shaded band) - When upper and lower bounds differ

• Shows the range of possible budget values
• Wider band = more uncertainty

Budget and Series Mode

When using spread transactions, the budget calculation depends on which series you're viewing:

Series Mode	Budget Calculation
Actual	Based on actual transaction amounts
Both	Based on actual transaction amounts
Spread Adjusted	Based on spread-adjusted amounts

In "Actual" or "Both" mode, the budget line matches your actual spending patterns. In "Spread Adjusted" mode, the budget reflects the smoothed, distributed amounts—ensuring the budget line always aligns with the primary data being displayed.

Implied Budgets

When filters are applied, budget lines adjust intelligently based on:

• Filtering by account (budgets span all accounts)
• Filtering across budget dimensions
• Using tag filters with category budgets

See Implied Budgets for details on how this works.

Using Cash Flow Effectively

Monthly Health Check

1. Select "This Month"
2. Check if income exceeds expenses
3. Compare to last month
4. Note any unusual spikes

Identify Patterns

1. Select "Last 12 Months"
2. Look for seasonal expense spikes (holidays, summer, etc.)
3. Check income consistency
4. Plan for predictable variations

Track Progress

1. Compare this year to last year
2. Are you spending less? Earning more?
3. Is your net cash flow improving?
4. Celebrate wins, address problems

Budget Performance

1. Turn on budget lines
2. See how actual spending tracks
3. Identify months you exceeded budget
4. Adjust future budgets based on patterns

Common Insights

Paycheck-to-Paycheck Pattern

If expenses closely follow income with little gap:

• Consider building an emergency fund
• Look for expenses to reduce
• Automate savings

Seasonal Variation

Spikes at certain times of year:

• Holiday spending in December
• Summer vacation expenses
• Back-to-school in August
• Plan and budget for these

Income Variability

For irregular income (freelance, commission):

• Look at 6-12 month averages
• Budget based on low months
• Save during high months

Expense Creep

Gradually increasing expenses:

• Compare year-over-year
• Identify growing categories
• Review subscriptions and recurring costs

Troubleshooting

Income Appears as Expenses

• Check category settings—is it marked as income?
• Verify the transaction amount sign (positive = income)
• Review uncategorized transactions

Numbers Don't Match Expectations

• Check for excluded accounts
• Verify transfers are correctly identified
• Look for pending transactions
• Check date range includes all relevant transactions

Budget Lines Missing

• Ensure budgets exist for the filtered categories
• Check that budget periods overlap with the date range
• Verify budget settings are configured

Chart Looks Empty

• Expand the date range
• Check filters aren't too restrictive
• Verify accounts are connected and synced

Related Features

• Explorer - Drill down into specific categories
• Budgets - Set spending limits visible in reports
• Implied Budgets - How filters affect budget lines
• Transfer Detection - Why transfers don't appear
• Categories - How transactions are classified