How it works
Your month, in plain dollars.
You enter what comes in and what goes out. DebtShield turns it into a clear read of your month — and a transparent look at the year ahead. Everything runs on your phone.
The Safe Line
Your income is the bar. Essentials — rent or mortgage, food, energy, and debt payments — fill it from the left. Whatever's left is your room for the month. A dashed line marks where essentials are best kept under (around 55% of income). Being a little past the line isn't automatically “tight”: if you still keep a comfortable dollar cushion, DebtShield says so.
The monthly verdict
A single, plain-language read of where you stand — from “in good shape” through “it's tight” to “going into debt” — with the arithmetic behind it one tap away. It weighs whether the month covers itself, your debt load, your dollar cushion, and the trend. At the serious end, it points to free help. There is never a score or a grade.
The year ahead
DebtShield plays your numbers forward across hundreds of simulated months to estimate your chance of dipping into the red, a likely range for where you'll land, and the single change that would move the odds most. It's a projection, clearly separated from your actual history — and every card shows its assumptions. See the methodology.
Spending & comparisons
See each essential as a share of income, your month-to-month trend, and how your costs compare with your county and the U.S. — using public data from the Census, EIA, and BLS. It's context for perspective, never a target you must hit. See the data sources.
Ask — deterministic, not generative
The Ask feature answers questions like “why am I short?” or “how does my rent compare?” using only your entered figures, the app's calculations, and the bundled benchmarks. It never invents numbers. For questions about loans, bankruptcy, benefits, or serious distress, it redirects you to reputable free resources rather than offering individualized professional advice.
Every month, see what changed
When a new month begins, your numbers carry forward as a starting point. Update what changed and DebtShield shows the difference in plain words — actual history, kept separate from the simulated future. An optional, private reminder can nudge you; there are no streaks and no penalty for a missed month.