Help · Goals, monthly room and debt

A PLAN
THAT FITS.

Start from what you can really spare each month, then give it a job: a savings goal, extra on a debt, or both. Nothing here moves money. Plans are yours to follow.

Your monthly room

Your monthly room (Northwise calls it capacity) is what is left each month after everything you must pay and a cushion you keep aside. Goals and payoff plans are sized to it, so they fit money you really have.

1. Open “Set monthly capacity”

   In Plan & AI tools, or from the second Getting started step.

2. Enter three amounts

   Monthly take-home income; all monthly obligations, including bills, essentials and debt minimums; and a monthly cushion to keep aside. Use zero where it applies: nothing is assumed for an empty field.

3. Confirm

   Northwise shows what is available before your saved goal and debt commitments, and what is left after them.

Obligations must include at least the minimum payments on the debts you track. After 30 days Northwise asks you to confirm the amounts again, and it tells you if your saved commitments add up to more than your room.

Savings goals

• Create New Goal on Savings Goals: a name and a target amount.
• Update savings records what you have put aside. Each goal shows the percentage saved and what is left.
• Plan a goal, in Plan & AI tools, drafts a monthly amount and a timeline from your room. You review it before anything is saved.
• A transfer can be linked to a goal, so Northwise counts it as saved, not spent. See Transfers.
• A goal you want kept out of sight can be private. See Private goals.

Debt payoff

Debt Payoff lists your credit cards and loans with what you owe, and projects a debt-free date and the interest you will pay.

• Add debt: a name, the current balance, credit card or loan, and how it is financed: standard interest, a real 0% intro rate, or deferred interest (“no interest if paid in full”), with its deadline. Set terms on a debt records its rate and minimum payment, which the projection needs.
• The cards at the top show Total debt, the Debt-free date and the Interest you’ll pay, each compared with paying only the minimums.
• Extra monthly payment is a slider for exploring: move it to see how much sooner you would be debt-free. It saves nothing.
• The list shows the suggested order: pay the minimum on everything and put the extra toward number 1 until it is cleared, then number 2. Payoff timeline charts the balance on your plan against minimums only.

Projections assume no new borrowing and unchanged rates. They use standard amortization; your lender’s terms may differ.

Choosing a strategy

Promo-first

Deferred-interest promotions first, before their deadline, then the highest rate. Best when a promotion is about to end.

Avalanche

Highest interest rate first. Mathematically the least total interest.

Snowball

Smallest balance first. Quick wins keep you motivated.

Saving a payment plan

1. Open “Plan my payments”

   In Plan & AI tools. Confirm your monthly room first.

2. Enter an extra amount and compare

   The extra must fit within your room. Northwise sets the three strategies side by side; choose the one you want. The planner works in US dollars for now.

3. Save, then check in

   The saved plan shows on Overview with your next priority. Once a week Review progress compares the balances on record with the plan. Turn these check-ins off in Settings › Profile (Show weekly check-ins in the app).