MINTFive money numbers you should know: understand your financial position
Calculate your income, essential expenses, debt, net worth and financial runway with a practical Ghanaian example and a personal money worksheet.
Before we begin
Your salary and your account balance do not tell the whole story.
You might earn GHS 10,000 a month and have little left after commitments. You might see GHS 20,000 in your account when much of it is already needed for rent, school fees or business bills.
Before copying someone's investment strategy, taking another loan or upgrading your lifestyle, make a personal financial snapshot. You need five numbers:
| Number | What it helps you understand |
|---|---|
| Monthly income | What you can reasonably count on receiving |
| Essential monthly expenses | What it costs to keep your essential life running |
| Total debt and monthly repayments | What you owe and what must be paid from each month's money |
| Net worth | What you own after subtracting what you owe |
| Financial runway | How long accessible reserves could cover essentials if income stopped |
These numbers are starting points, not a grade on your life. Reasonable estimates are useful; mark uncertain figures and improve them as you find statements and receipts.
Step 1: Choose a date and gather your records
Use one date for your asset values and debt balances. Use a realistic month for your income and expenses. If you share finances with someone, decide whether this is an individual or household snapshot and keep that scope consistent.
Gather your payslip, bank and MoMo statements, loan balances, investment statements and recent bills. Keep personal account numbers and statements private; the exercise does not require posting your figures online.
Number 1: Your dependable monthly income
Start with take-home salary and other income you can reasonably rely on. For a business owner, use money sustainably available for personal use after business costs and obligations, not total customer payments. A loan is not earned income, and a transfer between your own accounts is not new income.
Imagine Akosua lives in Kumasi. Her fictional monthly figures are:
| Income source | GHS |
|---|---|
| Salary after tax and statutory deductions, before the debt payments listed below | 6,000 |
| Conservative estimate of freelance earnings after work costs and tax provision | 1,000 |
| Planning income | 7,000 |
If freelance income varies, look at several months and plan around an amount you can defend. An unusually good month, unpaid invoice or hoped-for bonus should not quietly become guaranteed income. Keep a lower-income scenario too.
Watch payroll deductions. If your bank receipt already reflects a salary-loan repayment, do not subtract that repayment again. Either add it back to create an income figure before that payment and list it once as an expense, or use the actual receipt and mark the repayment as already deducted. Still include the remaining loan balance under debt.
Number 2: Your essential monthly expenses
Ask what must continue even if you stop discretionary spending: housing, basic food, necessary transport, utilities, medication, dependants' essential needs and required repayments.
Akosua's example looks like this:
| Essential commitment | GHS per month |
|---|---|
| Accommodation provision | 1,500 |
| Food | 1,100 |
| Necessary transport | 700 |
| Utilities and essential communication | 400 |
| School and dependant needs | 600 |
| Healthcare and medication | 200 |
| Required debt repayments | 700 |
| Other essential recurring costs | 300 |
| Total essentials | 5,500 |
Her initial gap is GHS 7,000 − GHS 5,500 = GHS 1,500. That still needs to cover any discretionary spending, savings and other planned uses. It is not automatically GHS 1,500 she can invest every month.
Include bills that arrive less often. A fictional GHS 18,000 accommodation payment covering 12 months averages GHS 1,500 per month. But if the full amount is due in three months and nothing is saved, you need GHS 6,000 per month to meet that deadline. A monthly average explains cost; a payment calendar explains timing.
The CFPB's emergency-fund guide explains why both reserves and the timing of money coming in and going out matter. Its guidance here is used for general planning concepts, not Ghanaian legal rules.
Number 3: Your debt balance and repayment burden
List every genuine repayment obligation: personal loans, salary advances, car loans, digital loans and money owed to family or friends. Record business obligations appropriately: distinguish personal debts and guarantees from a company's own liabilities, and avoid counting liabilities twice if already reflected in your business ownership value.
| Fictional debt | Current outstanding balance | Required monthly payment |
|---|---|---|
| Personal loan | GHS 24,000 | GHS 500 |
| Family loan with an agreed repayment plan | GHS 6,000 | GHS 200 |
| Total | GHS 30,000 | GHS 700 |
The GHS 30,000 is a balance at a point in time. The GHS 700 is a monthly cash commitment. They answer different questions.
Also note rates, charges, payment dates, arrears and any final lump sums. Check statements rather than estimating a current balance by adding future instalments, which may include future interest.
Akosua has already included the GHS 700 in her GHS 5,500 essentials. Do not deduct it again from the GHS 1,500 gap. Showing debt separately gives visibility, not an additional expense.
Number 4: Your net worth
Net worth = current value of assets you own − current liabilities. This is the basic balance-sheet approach described by Investor.gov.
For Akosua, assume:
| Asset or liability | GHS |
|---|---|
| Cash and account balances | 20,000 |
| Investments at current value | 15,000 |
| Vehicle at realistic current resale value | 45,000 |
| Total assets | 80,000 |
| Outstanding debts | −30,000 |
| Net worth | 50,000 |
Use realistic current values, not the amount you wish a buyer would pay. Include only your ownership share of jointly owned assets. Do not count the same money as both an investment account balance and its underlying holdings.
For a financed asset, you can list its full owned value among assets and the outstanding loan among liabilities. Do not also subtract that loan from the asset's value first, or you will count the debt twice.
Negative net worth means liabilities exceed assets at that date. It is information you can work with, not a reason for shame. Track the direction over time as well as the current figure.
Number 5: Your financial runway
Ask: if income stopped today, how long could money I can realistically access cover essential life?
Approximate runway in months = accessible, uncommitted reserve ÷ essential monthly costs during the interruption.
If the reserve is GHS 12,000 and essentials are GHS 4,000 monthly, runway is three months. This assumes no incoming money, steady costs and no additional shock.
Build the numerator carefully. Do not automatically include a house, land, a vehicle you need, locked retirement money, uncertain customer payments or an unused credit limit. Investments with changing values or withdrawal restrictions require caution; their statement value is not necessarily immediate spending cash.
For Akosua, suppose GHS 8,000 of her GHS 20,000 cash is reserved for an imminent obligation outside the recurring costs used below. That leaves GHS 12,000 available. Her GHS 15,000 investments and GHS 45,000 vehicle are excluded from this immediate-access estimate.
GHS 12,000 ÷ GHS 5,500 = about 2.18 months.
Her net worth is GHS 50,000, but her immediate financial runway is only a little over two months. Both statements can be true.
Avoid double-counting committed bills
If you deduct money reserved for a particular upcoming bill from the reserve, do not charge that same bill again in your runway schedule. Equally, do not exclude an expense just because you hope to find money for it later.
For uneven bills, use a month-by-month plan instead of relying solely on division: start with accessible cash, subtract each actual essential payment when due, and see when the balance runs out. Include any dependable continuing income only in a clearly labelled partial-income scenario.
Try it: what happens if Akosua's monthly essentials rise from GHS 5,500 to GHS 6,000?
Her monthly gap falls from GHS 1,500 to GHS 1,000. With the same GHS 12,000 reserve and no income, her approximate runway falls to two months. Her net worth does not automatically change just because the monthly expense estimate changes.
Put the five numbers together
| Akosua's snapshot | Result |
|---|---|
| Dependable monthly income | GHS 7,000 |
| Essential monthly commitments | GHS 5,500, including debt payments |
| Debt | GHS 30,000 outstanding; GHS 700 monthly |
| Net worth | GHS 50,000 |
| Immediate financial runway | About 2.18 months under the stated assumptions |
This reveals more than “I earn GHS 7,000.” She has positive net worth and some monthly room, but her cash buffer needs attention. Her GHS 1,500 gap must also cover spending not shown in the essentials table.
These five numbers do not capture everything: insurance, dependants, job stability, debt terms and asset risks matter too. Use the snapshot to identify what to investigate next.
Turn the snapshot into one practical action
| What you find | A useful next step |
|---|---|
| Essentials exceed dependable income | Identify the gap, review commitments and explore sustainable income changes |
| Repayments are becoming difficult | Check terms and due dates; contact the lender early if you expect a missed payment |
| Positive net worth but little accessible cash | Build an accessible buffer and review upcoming bills before adding illiquid commitments |
| Money disappears despite an apparent surplus | Track discretionary spending, irregular bills and transfers |
| Stable income, manageable commitments and a buffer | Review long-term goals and investment risks before allocating more money |
There is no universal order that fits everyone. Keep necessary bills and required repayments visible, then choose a manageable next action based on your circumstances.
Your personal worksheet
Copy this into a private notebook or notes app:
| Item | Your figure |
|---|---|
| Snapshot date and scope: individual or household | ___ |
| Dependable monthly income and deduction basis | GHS ___ |
| Essential monthly expenses, including repayments once | GHS ___ |
| Gap before other spending and savings | GHS ___ |
| Current total debt / required monthly payments | GHS ___ / GHS ___ |
| Total assets at current values | GHS ___ |
| Total liabilities | GHS ___ |
| Net worth: assets minus liabilities | GHS ___ |
| Accessible reserve after clearly identified commitments | GHS ___ |
| Essential monthly costs if income stopped | GHS ___ |
| Approximate runway | ___ months |
| Next large bill and its due date | ___ |
| One action before the next review | ___ |
Use the budget tool, net-worth calculator and emergency-fund calculator to work through the figures. Read What is net worth? for more detail on asset values.
Review monthly and after a major change in income, debt or family commitments. Keep estimates labelled and use the same method so comparisons are meaningful.
Good financial planning starts with a clear picture of where you are now.
Check your understanding
Choose an answer to see why it works or what to reconsider. You can try every answer. Nothing is scored or saved.
Figures as of 30 October 2026; all Ghana cedi amounts and personal situations are fictional classroom examples. Sources: Investor.gov: figure out your finances (general financial-planning concepts), Consumer Financial Protection Bureau: building an emergency fund (general guidance)