If you’re a fan of Google Sheets, this might interest you. The template also includes a budget summary, complete with graphic organizers, which breaks everything down, including the top five expenses for the month. It’s perfect for beginning budgeters who want to plug in their income and expenses and have the results automatically populate. If you don't yet have a high-yield savings account consider opening one, such as Marcus by Goldman Sachs High Yield Online Savings, and earning 16 times more interest than traditional accounts.Make Your Money Work for You Mint’s Simple Budget TemplateĪlthough Mint also offers more complex budgeting template options, this simple one lives up to its name. But you could also use the money on non-essential things like dining out or traveling. Ideally, you'd use this extra money to increase your savings, especially if you don't have an emergency fund. On the other hand, if you have more income leftover after listing your expenses, you can increase certain areas of your budget.

It's a good idea to reduce these costs and regularly make adjustments to the amount of money you spend so you can avoid debt. This may include reevaluating how much you spend on groceries, household goods, streaming subscriptions and other flexible costs. You should review your variable expenses to find ways to cut costs in the amount of $300. If you notice that your expenses are higher than your income, you'll need to make some adjustments.įor instance, let's say your expenses cost $300 more than your monthly net pay. The last step in creating a budget is to compare your net income to your monthly expenses. If you find that the average you spend on groceries each month is $433, you may want to round up and set the spending limit to $450. To calculate the average amount you spend on groceries, for example, add up all of your grocery spending during the past three months and divide by three. But fixed utilities, such as electric and gas, and variable costs, such as dining and household goods, often fluctuate month-to-month, so you'll need to do some math to find the average.įor these categories and any where you spending changes from month-to-month, determine the average monthly cost by looking at three months worth of spending. For example, debt repayment on a mortgage or auto loan will cost the same each month. You can look up your spending on bank and credit card statements.įixed expenses are easier to list on your budget than variable expenses since the cost is generally the same month-to-month. After you separate fixed and variable expenses, list how much you spend on each expense per month.

How to make a simple budget spreadsheet