Cushion
Ask Cushion“Can I afford a €600 flight in March?”

Know what’s safe
to spend today.

FintechiOS appAI AdvisorEN 301 549 / WCAG 2.1 AA
Introduction01 / 14

Most budgeting apps show where money went. Cushion tells you what is safe to spend today and an AI advisor helps with every money decision.

Open interactive prototype
Platform
iOS mobile app
Languages
English, Deutsch, Français
Scope
UX, UI, AI interactions, interactive prototype
The problem02 / 14

Your balance doesn’t include upcoming bills.

A balance shows what is there today. It says nothing about rent on the 1st, car insurance on the 2nd or the salary on the 22nd. So people keep a buffer in their head, and still get caught out.

Woman checking her phone on a city street
Current account€7,412.36Rent and insurance due in 8 days
Before Cushion

“I’m fine most of the month. It’s the week before pay day I can’t read.”

Bills land togetherBuffer lives in her headForgotten subscriptions
Overview

Features

“My balance doesn’t know rent is coming.”Safe to spend Feature 01 “Two big bills land on the same week.”The month ahead Feature 02 “Charts show what happened, not what to do.”AI Advisor Feature 03 “I don’t want an app moving my money.”Bank approval Feature 04 “Money leaks where I never look.”Fixes Feature 05 “Saving feels like admin.”Savings goals Feature 06 “My spending is spread over cards and cash.”Accounts and transactions Feature 07
Who it’s for03 / 14

Who Cushion is for

People on a monthly salary who juggle a few accounts and bills that land at awkward times, and want to know what they can spend without doing the maths.

EnglishDeutschFrançais
Woman in a yellow raincoat looking at her phone by the water Lena · 31 · Berlin
Main persona

“I’m careful with money. I just never know what’s already spoken for.”

Role
Product manager
Income
€3,482 a month after tax, plus the odd freelance invoice
Accounts
Sparkasse current account, two credit cards, an ETF plan

Goals

  • Save €2,400 for a trip to Japan in February
  • Stop checking her balance before every purchase

Pain points

  • Rent and car insurance land a day apart
  • Pays for subscriptions she forgot about
How Cushion helpsOne safe number each morning that already counts every bill before pay day.
Jonas

Jonas

34 · Freelance designer · Leipzig
€2,000 to €5,500 a month, variable

“Some months are great. I need to know if this one is.”

How Cushion helpsThe forecast uses invoices that are actually due, not an average month.
Amira

Amira

27 · Nurse on shifts · Hamburg
€2,700 a month, stable

“I take out cash and then it just disappears.”

How Cushion helpsCash withdrawals can be sorted into categories, so markets and taxis still count.
Feature 0104 / 14

Safe to spendHow much you can spend today after upcoming bills.

The problem

A balance doesn’t know rent is due on the 1st. People have to subtract upcoming bills in their head.

What Cushion does

Every bill and transfer before pay day comes off first. What’s left, spread over the days to pay day, is safe to spend today.

Home with €88.05 safe to spend1 See today’s number
Comfort line editor showing the effect on today2 Set your comfort line
Comfort line editor refusing a line that is too high3 Know when it can’t hold

Bills already counted

Rent, insurance, transfers and the salary on the 22nd are all in the number.

A comfort line you choose

Type the balance you never want to go below. Cushion keeps you above it until pay day.

Ask why

The sparkle on the card asks the advisor to explain today’s number in plain words.

Feature 0205 / 14

The month aheadYour balance day by day until pay day.

The problem

Rent and car insurance are due a day apart, and the account dips lower than expected.

What Cushion does

The month ahead draws your balance day by day to pay day, marks the thinnest moment and lists every bill on its date.

The month ahead with the balance line and thinnest moment1 Spot the thinnest moment
Bills and pay to 30 September2 Every bill on its date
Coming up card on the Money tab3 Pay day at a glance

Thinnest moment

The lowest point before pay day, and how far it sits above your comfort line.

Try a different date

See what happens if car insurance moved to the 6th, before you call anyone.

Add what’s missing

A bill the bank feed missed goes in once and joins the forecast.

Feature 0306 / 14

AI AdvisorAnswers that end in a card you can act on.

The problem

Charts show what happened. People still have to work out what to do next.

What Cushion does

Ask in your own words. The advisor answers in plain language, then ends with a card that holds the live numbers and one action.

Chat with suggested questions1 Ask in your own words
Answer about a €600 flight with an afford card2 Get the answer and why
Answer that splits a dental bill across pay day3 Act on it in the card
Afford card
Can I afford it?When it fits, and when it doesn’t
Split card
Split a billDrag to see what stays above your line
Transfer draft card
Transfer draftConfirm, and your bank asks to approve
Category card for eating out
Why is it up?Six months and the places behind it
Goal progress card
Goal checkWhere you’ll be, and how to get there sooner

Same numbers as Home

Every answer uses the forecast behind safe to spend, so they always agree.

Cards you can adjust

Drag a split, edit a draft or save for later, right inside the answer.

Follow-up questions

Each answer suggests the next thing worth asking.

Feature 0407 / 14

Bank approvalCushion prepares transfers and your bank approves them.

The problem

People don’t want a budgeting app to move their money, so suggestions rarely get acted on.

What Cushion does

Cushion fills in the amount, account and reference. Your bank app approves it with Face ID, like any other payment.

Suggestion to move €1,200 into savings1 Cushion suggests it
Sparkasse asking to approve a request from Cushion2 Your bank approves
Transfer draft from a chat request3 Or start it in chat

Nothing moves on its own

Every transfer starts as a draft you confirm.

Your bank stays in charge

Approval happens in the bank app, with the bank’s own security.

Back where you were

After approving, you return to Cushion with the change already shown.

Feature 0508 / 14

FixesDuplicate subscriptions, idle cash and refunds.

The problem

Small costs go unnoticed, like a second subscription, cash sitting in a current account or a refund nobody claimed.

What Cushion does

Cushion spots them, shows what each one is worth, and opens the right place to fix it, from Spotify’s site to a pre-written email.

Cushion explaining a duplicate Spotify plan1 Spotted for you
Spotify’s site opened to cancel a duplicate plan2 Fixed on the service’s site
Duplicate Spotify cancelled with the effect on safe to spend3 See what you saved

Idle cash

Money sitting in the current account for weeks gets a nudge towards savings.

Duplicate subscriptions

Two plans for the same service, with the one to keep suggested.

Refunds

A parking charge that should be refunded comes with the email already written.

Feature 0609 / 14

Savings goalsA plan, a target date and a photo for each goal.

The problem

Most apps show a goal as a progress bar, with no date or plan to get there.

What Cushion does

Each goal shows when you’ll get there, what to change to arrive in time, and a cover photo you choose.

Japan goal page with a photo header1 See when you’ll get there
New goal with an icon grid and photo picker2 Make it yours
Edit goal with the cover photo preview3 Change it any time

A plan, not a bar

“At €140 a month you’ll get there in April. €170 gets you there by February.”

Your own photo

Pick a cover photo for each goal, or upload your own.

Save by asking

“Put €50 towards Japan” drafts the transfer in chat.

Feature 0710 / 14

Accounts and transactionsEvery account in one list, every purchase in a category.

The problem

Spending is spread over a current account, credit cards and cash, so no single place tells the truth.

What Cushion does

All accounts sit in one list with exact balances. Every transaction can be moved to the right category, cash withdrawals included.

Accounts list with exact balances1 All accounts, one total
A €100 cash withdrawal2 Cash shows up too
Category picker3 Sort it in one tap

Search

Find any purchase by shop or category.

Cash counts

Move a withdrawal to Groceries or Transport and the category totals update.

One-off purchases

Mark a birthday dinner as one-off so it doesn’t skew your usual month.

Branding11 / 14

BrandingLogo and colour.

Cushion

A cushion to land on

A cushion invokes safety and security. The name spreads this feeling to every spending decision, so you can manage your money with peace of mind.

CushionOn light
CushionOn night
CushionOn lime
Forest#1A3A0A
Brand and text on lime
Lime#A6E35C
Actions
Night#0C1A18
Safe-to-spend card
Mint#8EEADB
Halftone texture
Ink#121410
Text
Typography12 / 14

TypographyGeneral Sans for titles and money, SF Pro for reading.

Aa

General Sans

Screen titles, amounts and buttons.

RegularMedium
Aa

SF Pro

Everything else. Scales with Dynamic Type.

RegularSemibold
Large title34 / 500 · General SansScreen titles
Title22 / 500 · General SansSheet and card titles
Amount17 / 500 · General Sans€1,340.00
Headline17 / 600 · SF ProRow titles
Body17 / 400 · SF ProAdvisor answers, settings
Subhead15 / 400 · SF ProTransaction details
Footnote13 / 400 · SF ProDates, hints under fields
Caption12 / 500 · SF ProLabels on charts and pills
Safe to spend today €88.05
REWE−€48.20
Miete Oktober−€1,150.00
Gehalt+€3,482.00
WCAG 2.1 AA

Readable for everyone

Banking apps operating in the EU fall under the European Accessibility Act, which applies WCAG 2.1 AA to mobile apps through EN 301 549. Cushion is designed to that level, together with Apple’s own accessibility guidelines.

  • ContrastText meets 4.5:1, large text and icons 3:1. Forest on lime is 8.3:1, lime on night 11.7:1.
  • Dynamic TypeEvery text style scales with the iPhone text size setting, up to the largest accessibility sizes.
  • Touch targetsButtons and rows are at least 44 × 44 pt.
  • Not colour aloneMoney in and out carries a + or − sign, not only green or red.
  • VoiceOverAmounts are read as full sentences, for example “eighty-eight euros five cents safe to spend”.
  • Reduce MotionCard animations and the coin flip switch off when the setting is on.
Themes13 / 14

Light and dark modeCushion follows the phone’s setting, or you can pick one in Profile.

Home in light mode
Money tab in light mode
Home in dark mode
Money tab in dark mode
Design system14 / 14

ComponentsThe six used most across the app.

Every answer card uses the same frame: a title, live numbers, then one main action.

Safe to spend card showing €88.05

Safe-to-spend card

One number, the days to pay day and the comfort line. The sparkle asks the advisor why.

Answer card that splits a dental bill with a slider

Answer card

Live numbers you can adjust, with the effect on your line shown as you drag.

Suggestion card to move €1,200 into savings

Suggestion card

One finding, the reason and a single action. Swipe through them on Home.

Japan goal card with a photo of a pagoda

Goal card

Progress at a glance, with a cover photo you choose.

Coming up card with pay day and the thinnest moment

Coming up card

Pay day and the lowest point before it, in plain words.

Transfer draft card with Confirm and Edit buttons

Draft card

Every action the advisor suggests starts as a draft. Confirm hands it to your bank.

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