> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://cashflowy.ai/docs/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Safe Owner Pay

> See how much you can safely pay yourself based on your business's actual performance over the last 3 months.

Safe Owner Pay (found under **My Pay** in the sidebar) calculates how much you can safely withdraw from your business based on real financial data - not guesswork.

## How it works

Cashflowy looks at your **last 3 months** of Profit & Loss data and calculates:

<Steps>
  <Step title="Revenue">
    Your total income over the last 3 months.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Minus Expenses">
    All operating costs, producing your average monthly profit.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Minus Tax Reserve">
    A percentage set aside for taxes. Default is **25%**, but you can adjust this based on your tax situation.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Minus Business Buffer">
    A safety cushion to keep in the business. Default is **10%**, adjustable to your comfort level.
  </Step>

  <Step title="= Your Safe Owner Pay">
    What's left is the amount you can safely withdraw each month.
  </Step>
</Steps>

## The dashboard

The My Pay page shows:

* **A visual breakdown** - see exactly how revenue flows through expenses, taxes, and buffer to your safe pay amount
* **Monthly projected net income** - what you can take home

## Adjusting your settings

Click **Settings** on the My Pay page to customize:

| Setting               | Default | What it controls                       |
| --------------------- | ------- | -------------------------------------- |
| **Tax reserve %**     | 25%     | How much to set aside for taxes        |
| **Business buffer %** | 10%     | Safety cushion to keep in the business |

Use the sliders to adjust in real-time and see how it affects your safe pay number.

<Tip>
  **Not sure about your tax rate?** 25% is a safe starting point for most sole proprietors and LLCs. Ask your accountant for a more precise number based on your tax filing status.
</Tip>

<Info>
  Safe Owner Pay is based on your **actual categorized transactions**. The more accurate your [categorization](/getting-started/categorize-transactions), the more reliable this number is.
</Info>