We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again: inflation is getting expensive!
If you’re one of the 73% of Americans who are working on being smarter with their money to ride out the increase in costs, you know a budget plays a critical role in reaching that goal. Without a budget, it’s tough to tell where you stand financially, and how much money you’re actually earning, saving, and investing each month.
To help manage all those details, a budget and/or personal finance template can be a powerful tool to keep track of your information, as well as help you discover details you could be missing out on – such as spending too much on dining out, or not allocating enough of your income to debt repayments.
To keep you, and your financial goals, on track, the Finance Opinion Team has rounded up a few of our favorite spreadsheets and templates designed to help you get smarter about your spending (and saving!).
To help manage all the details, a budget and/or personal finance template can be a powerful tool to keep track of your information, as well as help you discover details you could be missing out on – such as spending too much on dining out, or not allocating enough of your income to debt repayments.
To keep you, and your New Year’s financial resolutions, on track, we’ve rounded up a few of our favorite spreadsheets and templates designed to help you get smarter about your spending (and saving!).
Contents
NerdWallet’s Budget Spreadsheet
NerdWallet’s free budget spreadsheet is built off the 50/30/20 approach to budgeting, which suggests that 50% of your income goes toward your necessities (bills, rent or mortgage payments, groceries, gas… you get it), 30% toward wants (dining out, shopping, entertainment), and the remaining 20% toward savings and debt repayment.
To get started with the spreadsheet, fill out NerdWallet’s quick questionnaire, then click “download” to get an easy plug-and-play budget worksheet, which includes extras for parents, college students, homeowners, and seniors looking for help budgeting during retirement.
Google Sheets
If you’re looking for something a little more customizable, Google Sheets has some great starter templates that you can adjust to fit your needs, including a simple monthly budget spreadsheet that simply takes a percentage of your income for no-frills budgeting, and a more detailed yearly and monthly budget tracking spreadsheet, designed to help you project income and savings, while keeping track of actual amounts spent and saved.
Simply visit Google Sheets template gallery and scroll to the “personal” section to choose the budget spreadsheet that works best for you, then customize how you see fit.
Get Google Sheets Templates Here
Poor Man’s Budgeting Spreadsheet
An oldie, but a goodie! The Poor Man’s Budgeting spreadsheet provides a full calendar year’s worth of tracking, and breaks down your spending habits by the day, so you have a full view of your budget balance (and whether you’re on track to reach your goals), every day of the year.
It also includes helpful cateoriges to give a birds eye view of your overall income and fixed expenses, so you’re always armed with an educated estimate of how much you can really spend each day. (Just be sure to update the year from 2015 to 2022!).
Get a Copy of the Spreadsheet Here
Ben Collin’s Credit Card Tracker Template
If you have multiple credit cards and are looking to get a visual handle on your balances and spending habits, Ben Collin’s credit card tracker template is right up your alley. Broken up into different sheets for transactions, balances, and an automated visual dashboard, this ready-to-go template will arm you with the knowledge you need to understand how much you’re spending where. Plus, with the ability to filter by credit card, you can get detailed insights and analysis per card, and even input a spending cap goal to monitor and track against each month.
The best part? This free resource is developed by Ben Collins himself – a developer, data consultant, and data analytics instructor. He’s also a Google Sheets, Apps Script, and Data Studio guru, so you know you’re getting the best of the best.
As you leverage these tools to help keep your financial goals on track, remember that they do not take the place of a financial advisor, and it’s always best to consult a professional if you have questions or are unsure of where you stand when it comes to your financial health.
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The opinions expressed in this post are for informational purposes only. To determine the best financing for your personal circumstances and goals, we advise you to consult with a licensed advisor.
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