# When Your Credit Card Payment Category is Red > A red Credit Card Payment category means you paid more to the credit card company than was Available in the category. Here's why this happens and how to fix it! Source: https://support.ynab.com/en_us/when-your-credit-card-payment-category-is-red-a-guide-SJDSr3Q1i Last updated: 2026-08-25T17:27:01.234Z ![Red available amount for the Credit Card Payment category is highlighted showing cash overspending](https://cdn.bfldr.com/NIEXAZS5/at/xgmxjk3qrkvr7f9trcv4qff/CCP-Red-iOS-Help-Article.png) Learn why your Credit Card Payment category is red (meaning you sent more money to the credit card company for payment than you had Available in the category). Solve this issue by covering overspending in the current month, and then assign money directly to the Credit Card Payment category to cover the rest of the deficit. #### **Seeing yellow instead of red?** Red and yellow mean different things in your Credit Card Payment category. Red means you paid the credit card company more than you had Available — an overspending problem you fix by moving money now. Yellow (Underfunded) means you haven't set aside enough cash yet to cover what you owe. If your category is yellow, head to our [Underfunded Alert article](https://support.ynab.com/en_us/underfunded-alert-in-the-credit-card-payment-category-a-guide-rkeh40G5h) instead. #### In This Article [What Does the Red Mean?](#red) [How to Fix This](#fix) [Why was my Credit Card Payment Short?](#why) * * * ## What Does the Red Mean? Red Available amounts indicate [cash overspending](https://support.ynab.com/en_us/overspending-in-ynab-a-guide-ryWoxEyi). Red in your Credit Card Payment category means you made a payment for more than you had Available in your Payment column. So, by sending more to the credit card company than you had set aside in your Credit Card Payment category, this created **overspending**_._  [Back to Top](#backtotop) * * * ## How to Fix This 1. The solution, **regardless of the cause**, is to cover any overspending you have in the current month, and then assign money directly to the Credit Card Payment category to cover the rest of the deficit. 1. If you pay your credit card in full, [assign money](https://support.ynab.com/en_us/assigning-your-money-a-guide-SypgkrNJi) to the Credit Card Payment category until the Available (or Payment) amount is green and matches the account balance. You want to have the amount needed to pay the card off in the Available column of the Credit Card Payment category—so if the current account balance is -$250, you would want to make sure $250 is Available in the Credit Card Payment category.  2. If you carry debt, move money to cover the overspending in the Payment category then [set a target](https://support.ynab.com/en_us/paired-targets-BJJI8rdC5#cc-payment) to pay it off over time. 3. If you don't have any dollars available in Ready to Assign, you'll need to [move money](https://support.ynab.com/en_us/moving-money-in-your-plan-ryyCKbBJi) from other categories. 2. To avoid this in the future, double-check the amount you have set aside in your Credit Card Payment category before making your payment. #### Do you pay the card in full? If your Credit Card Payment category ended up red when you paid in full, it means there's a problem you can fix. Check out our article on how to handle [paying your credit card in full](https://support.ynab.com/en_us/paid-in-full-credit-cards-a-guide-Hk56hPMyo#available)! #### Is your actual credit card account **balance** wrong? If your balance is incorrect (and not just the red category amount), our [guide to reconciling accounts](https://support.ynab.com/en_us/reconciling-accounts-a-guide-BJFE3fHys) will help you make an adjustment to get the balance fixed up! You may still need to assign money directly to the Credit Card Payment category to clear out the red, though.  [Back to Top](#backtotop) * * * ## Why was my Credit Card Payment Category Short? There are a few main reasons your Credit Card Payment category might be short **before** your payment or overspent **after** you make it. ### Common Reasons * **Did you overspend on your credit card?** If you had any [credit card overspending](https://support.ynab.com/en_us/credit-card-overspending-an-overview-HkMGpSbJs) in your plan (in the current or a previous month), the Payment amount will be lower than the balance due. This is because your credit card balance increased with that spending, but the amount in your Credit Card Payment category didn't increase along with it. * **Is the Starting Balance involved?** If you have an existing balance on your credit card when you add it to YNAB and you plan to pay down part or all of that balance, you'll need to assign money directly to the Credit Card Payment category to cover it. Assigning money for that balance lets YNAB know you're going to take some of your cash to pay down that existing balance. ### Less Common Reasons * **Did you make an overpayment?** If your payment [created a positive balance](https://support.ynab.com/en_us/credit-cards-with-a-positive-balance-an-overview-By_H6uzJo) on your card, the positive balance is treated like cash and added to Ready to Assign. Assigning those dollars directly to the Credit Card Payment category will bring it out of the red. To check if this has been an issue with your Credit Card Payment category, go to your credit card account and turn on the [running balance](https://support.ynab.com/en_us/running-balance-an-overview-Syk1ZgdRc). We would expect a typical credit card to have red, negative balances or zero balances most of the time. If you notice any **positive** running balances for your credit card, overpayment may be the culprit. To get back on track, [reconcile](https://support.ynab.com/en_us/reconciling-accounts-a-guide-BJFE3fHys) your credit card account before adjusting your Credit Card Payment category. * **Did you make a balance adjustment?** If you made a balance adjustment, categorize the transaction as Income: Ready to Assign (called Inflow: Ready to Assign on Web). This will affect the balance on your card, but won’t change the amount available in the payment category. You will need to adjust the credit card payment category manually after categorizing any transaction to Income: Ready to Assign. * **Did you apply a credit card reward or cash back as a statement credit?** [Redeeming a reward as a statement credit](https://support.ynab.com/en_us/credit-card-rewards-and-statement-credits-a-guide-ryoRzYY0q) lowers your card balance, but it doesn't add anything to your Credit Card Payment category. * **Did you recently enter a return or refund?** If the return sends your payment category negative, it's because the amount you had set aside in your Credit Card Payment category **before** the return was less than the amount of the return. Move the money from that return back to the Credit Card Payment category to cover that overspending. No matter what caused the red amount in your Credit Card Payment Category, **it’s not necessary to go back to previous months to fix anything** — fix it in the current month by covering any overspent categories this month, then moving money to the Credit Card Payment category to cover any remaining negative. [Back to Top](#backtotop) * * * ## Help Us Help You! Our Knowledge Base team reviews article feedback responses weekly, and we actively revise these articles to make them as helpful as possible. That's where you come in! Our articles are scored based on the _Yes_ or _No_ ratings received below. We also collect freeform feedback for any _No_ ratings (so our team can focus in on what you were specifically searching for!). **Success**: Found what you were searching for? It would be super helpful if you click _Yes_ below. **Suggestions**: Didn't find what you're searching for and you'd like to share what terms or topics you wanted? Click _No_ below. 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