| I couldn't recommend a yearly budget higher. I have a "Banking" spreadsheet and a "Budgeting" spreadsheet that work together. "Banking" tracks current assets/loans/etc as a current picture as well as predicting saving/interest/tax/return rates and giving an estimated assets at age X. "Budgeting" tracks how much money is earned/spent in various categories and if it's on track for the years estimates. It also keeps track of expected yearly savings/spending and I sometimes adjust based on my habits/needs/desires. I at some point every Sunday (either when I wake up or go to sleep usually) spend an hour a week updating all my accounts/spending. It's a great habit I've built over about 5 years now and it's really empowering. It's not about tracking every last dollar but more about knowing generally where your spending is going and if you're okay with those choices. It doesn't have to be set in stone either, but it means that increased spending is a deliberate choice you have to consider and weigh the value of. It's a bit manual but I find rolling your own is really the only way to get everything you want. No software will cut it for sufficiently complex categorization (for example, I know exactly how much I spend on toilet paper because I break it out separately in a household paper category with paper towels and tissues), and building it yourself in code is probably a waste of time. Sheets/Excel really shine here. For reference, I have about 15 or so accounts I check between credit cards, banks, investment accounts, Venmo, etc. |