Frequently asked questions

Anyone in the UK with more goals than one salary can fund at once: a house deposit, a proper buffer, a pension you keep meaning to look at, a wedding, a someday sabbatical. You don't need to be good with money. You just need to be willing to take one step at a time. You'll need to be 18 or over.

It's where The Long Term starts. Eleven questions, about three minutes, no right answers. There are no figures to enter and nothing to look up. What comes back isn't a type, a label or a score. It's a reflection of how you relate to money, in plain words: what you protect, what you avoid, and how you like to make decisions. Everything else we do is built on it.

Add your goals and some rough figures, and The Long Term builds your plan: what gets funded first, what waits, and why. Then it hands you your first Money Move.

Nothing for your Money Identity. For your plan, rough figures are fine: your income, regular spending, savings, pensions, debts and the goals you're working towards. You decide how much to share, and you can make it more precise later.

No. Everything is in plain English, and every Money Move comes with the reason it fits you. If you like the detail, you can see the numbers. If you'd rather not, you don't have to.

A Money Move is one small, specific thing to do next, such as moving idle cash into a cash ISA or setting up a payday standing order. Each one says how long it takes and why it fits you. Your plan turns into a handful of Money Moves each week, in the order they matter.

Because a list of everything you could do is how nothing gets done. Your plan works out what should come first for you, and puts that Move at the front. The rest wait their turn.

That's fine. Set it aside and your plan carries on with what makes sense next. Life gets in the way, and your plan is built to cope with that.

Your current and savings accounts, ISAs, pensions, investments, property, debts, income, regular spending and the goals you're working towards. You can change any of it at any time, and your plan and Money Moves re-order around it. Your plan also learns from what you do: every Move you complete sharpens the next one, so the longer you use The Long Term, the better it fits.

Your plan is an estimate, based on the figures you give us and assumptions we show you, such as inflation. It isn't a prediction or a guarantee. It updates as your life and your figures change.

No to both. The Long Term gives guidance, not regulated financial advice. We aren't authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority, and we don't recommend specific investments, pensions or other financial products. What it does is help you get organised, understand your options and know what to ask. For big decisions, such as what to do with a pension, a regulated adviser can give you a personal recommendation, and many people use The Long Term before, between and alongside those conversations. Free, impartial guidance is also available from MoneyHelper.

Never. The Long Term can't move, hold or even see your money. When a Money Move involves your money, you make the change yourself, with your own bank or provider.

No. We don't sell financial products, and we don't earn commission for pointing you towards anyone else's.

No. We don't run credit checks of any kind.

If you're behind on bills or worried about debt, free and confidential help is available today from StepChange, National Debt Line and MoneyHelper. They can help in ways we can't. The Long Term will still be here when you're ready.

No. You type in only what you choose to share, and nothing is collected in the background. Connecting your bank accounts is coming soon.

Your data is encrypted whenever it moves and while it's stored, in a database hosted in London. We never sell it or share it with advertisers. Read how we protect your data.

You can delete your account from the app's settings whenever you like, and your personal data goes with it. Our Privacy Policy explains exactly what happens and when.

It's free right now, and you don't need a card to start. If we introduce paid plans in the future, we'll tell you well in advance, and you'll never be charged without agreeing to it first.

A phone app is coming soon. In the meantime, The Long Term works in your phone's web browser. Save it to your home screen and it opens like an app.

Because the details matter. ISAs, pensions, tax bands and the State Pension all work differently elsewhere. We'd rather be excellent for one country than vague for many.

Budgeting apps count what you've spent. The Long Term starts with who you are, then works out what should come first for you, and keeps re-ordering it as life changes.

A chatbot answers the question you thought to ask, then stops. The Long Term asks you the questions, keeps your goals and progress in one plan, and hands you the next step, with the reason it fits you.

A spreadsheet holds your numbers, but it doesn't know that surprise bills knock you sideways, or decide what should come first. Keep your spreadsheet if you love it. The Long Term does the part it can't.