It helps you spend smarter with tools like budget creation, goal tracking, and reports (including visual graphs and charts). YNAB is ideal for people who have debts to pay off or savings goals they want to reach. If you like the convenience of all of your financial planning tools in one place, Mint is a solid choice and it can stop you from making the five big money mistakes that I talk about in this article with You Need a Budget (YNAB) You can connect all of your bank accounts, including investments, so you have a quick financial picture at hand. You can track spending, monitor subscriptions, create custom budgets, and more. If you like having all of your financial data in your hands, Mint is worth a look. Automation is a great psychological trick to help you save time and gain control of your finances. For example, you can automate all your transactions. Here are some of the best budgeting apps to help automate money management, which gives you more control over your cash so you can meet your financial goals while thinking about them less.įirstly, take advantage of your bank’s features, including apps that connect to your checking account and credit card to effortlessly monitor expenses. My 2 Favorite Budgeting Apps and Tools to Help with Money ManagementĬraft a conscious spending plan with the tools above, then use budgeting apps with simple technology to streamline your efforts. The formula at the end (subtracting expenses from income) provides a picture of your financial health and can help you figure out how to better manage your money. The free budget spreadsheet is available to download as a PDF and provides a list of proposed income and expense budget categories you just have to fill in the dollar amounts. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) offers another handy budgeting tool. The Federal Trade Commission’s budget worksheet There are also budget calculators to help you stick to your selected budgeting rule, like the 50/20/30 rule (which dictates that 50% of your budget goes to essential fixed and variable expenses, 20% goes to savings and debts, and 30% goes to the rest). If you have a Google account, you can access free templates covering weekly, monthly, and annual budgets. Google Sheets offers another budgeting method. If you have the Microsoft Office suite, you can access these Excel templates for free. There are even specialty templates, such as a personal monthly budget, a college budget, a home construction budget, and an event planning budget. These free budget templates are an easy way to get an overview of your cash flow (monthly expenses versus monthly income). Microsoft Excel isn’t all about complex formulas. Here are some of the easiest: Microsoft Excel budget templates When it comes to budget templates, it’s best to keep them simple, and there are many user-friendly tools available to save you time and stress. Does this mean you need to master complex financial formulas? Not at all. The thought of creating a budget spreadsheet can be intimidating. But without planning for expenses, a big income can lead to big debt.ģ Budget Spreadsheet Templates to Get You Started But it doesn’t have to be! I spoke with a couple in episode 114 of my podcast who overspent on holidays because their earnings combined were a lot. The entire point of these tools is to simplify money management so you can think about your money less, not more.įor many people, budgeting and planning for big expenses like vacations are a struggle. Simplified spreadsheets help develop your plan, and budgeting apps, like those that automate expense tracking, help you stick to it. Finally, you need to stick to your plan.īudgeting spreadsheets and tools are great resources for creating a conscious spending plan. You then need to decide how much money to allocate to each bucket. You need to start with a bullet-proof budget, categorizing all of your expenses into one of these four buckets: fixed costs, investments, savings, and guilt-free spending. Conscious spending is a great way to enjoy life while still building a financially secure future.
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