Better questions to ask your expenses

You can ask Spend questions about your spending the way you would ask a person: no filters, no formulas. The answer comes back with exact numbers and a chart drawn from your own expenses, not a guess.

Some questions work better than others.

Be specific about the period

"How much did I spend on groceries?" invites the question "since when?" Say it: "How much did I spend on groceries each month this year?" and the answer arrives as a chart you can read at a glance.

Compare things

Comparison is where plain language shines.

• Compare this month with last month.
• How does dining out this quarter compare with the last one?
• Which category went up the most since spring?

Ask who and where

• Which vendor did I spend the most with in the last six months?
• What were my five largest expenses this year?
• How much have I spent on travel since January, by month?

Ask what changed

When a total looks off, ask what is behind it: "What made up the increase in transport last month?" is more useful than staring at the list.

What it can and cannot do

The assistant only reads. It looks things up in your expenses using fixed, checked tools, never changes anything, and sees only what you are allowed to see, including inside a shared workspace. The numbers come from your data, and the charts are drawn from the exact figures rather than from what the model says.

Check what matters

For anything you will act on, such as a budget decision or a figure going into a report, glance at the expense list behind it. The question is the shortcut; the list is always there to confirm.