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What tools can I use to track my spending?
I’m a freshman in college and I want to be able to track every dollar that I spend and make in college and I just wanted to check what tools people use to track their own money. Up until now I’ve been spending pretty irresponsibly, so I want to be able to set aside and save money and track how much I’ve saved. Any tools I can use would be helpful!
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17 answers
Updated
Amir’s Answer
Let's kick things off with a basic Excel or Google Spreadsheet. You can jot down all your expenses in it. Don't forget to keep track of your income too! This way, you'll have a clear picture of your income and expenses. If you notice your income is more than your expenses, that's great news! You can set aside the extra money for savings and even start considering investment options.
There are plenty of helpful websites out there too. For instance, Lunch Money is a handy tool that connects to all your financial institutions and creates easy-to-understand charts and graphs. Just keep in mind, while some of these services offer a free version with limited features, others might require a subscription.
There are plenty of helpful websites out there too. For instance, Lunch Money is a handy tool that connects to all your financial institutions and creates easy-to-understand charts and graphs. Just keep in mind, while some of these services offer a free version with limited features, others might require a subscription.
Updated
Fazal’s Answer
Hi
There are a few devices accessible to assist you with following your spending, going from versatile applications to customary strategies. Here are probably the most ideal choices:
### **Planning Apps:**
1. **Mint:**
- Tracks spending, makes financial plans, and associates straightforwardly to your ledgers to consequently arrange costs.
2. **YNAB (You Want A Budget):**
- Centers around giving each dollar a task, assisting you with dealing with your cash with a zero-based planning framework.
3. **PocketGuard:**
- Demonstrates the way that much you can securely spend in the wake of representing bills, reserve funds, and objectives. It assists you with abstaining from overspending.
4. **EveryDollar:**
- A straightforward planning application that allows you physically to follow your spending, with an accentuation on zero-based planning.
5. **Personal Capital:**
- Basically a speculation following device, yet additionally incorporates elements to follow your spending and plan for monetary objectives.
### **Cost Following Tools:**
6. **Spendee:**
- Permits you to follow spending, make financial plans, and offer costs with different clients for shared services or excursions.
7. **Goodbudget:**
- In light of the envelope planning framework, where you appoint bits of your pay to various spending classifications.
8. **Fudget:**
- A straightforward, nitty gritty cost following instrument that allows you to make arrangements of pay and costs.
### **Spreadsheets:**
9. **Google Sheets/Excel:**
- Make custom financial plan layouts to follow pay and costs. You can robotize computations and modify as indicated by your requirements.
10. **Tiller Money:**
- A Google Sheets/Succeed module that naturally pulls in your monetary information from your records, making it more straightforward to follow spending.
### **Banking Apps:**
11. **Bank or Credit Association Apps:**
- Many banks offer inherent cost following elements that arrange your investing and show patterns over energy.
### **Manual Methods:**
12. **Pen and Paper:**
- For the people who lean toward straightforwardness, you can physically keep your pay and costs in a journal or organizer.
Which one of these sounds like a solid match for you?
There are a few devices accessible to assist you with following your spending, going from versatile applications to customary strategies. Here are probably the most ideal choices:
### **Planning Apps:**
1. **Mint:**
- Tracks spending, makes financial plans, and associates straightforwardly to your ledgers to consequently arrange costs.
2. **YNAB (You Want A Budget):**
- Centers around giving each dollar a task, assisting you with dealing with your cash with a zero-based planning framework.
3. **PocketGuard:**
- Demonstrates the way that much you can securely spend in the wake of representing bills, reserve funds, and objectives. It assists you with abstaining from overspending.
4. **EveryDollar:**
- A straightforward planning application that allows you physically to follow your spending, with an accentuation on zero-based planning.
5. **Personal Capital:**
- Basically a speculation following device, yet additionally incorporates elements to follow your spending and plan for monetary objectives.
### **Cost Following Tools:**
6. **Spendee:**
- Permits you to follow spending, make financial plans, and offer costs with different clients for shared services or excursions.
7. **Goodbudget:**
- In light of the envelope planning framework, where you appoint bits of your pay to various spending classifications.
8. **Fudget:**
- A straightforward, nitty gritty cost following instrument that allows you to make arrangements of pay and costs.
### **Spreadsheets:**
9. **Google Sheets/Excel:**
- Make custom financial plan layouts to follow pay and costs. You can robotize computations and modify as indicated by your requirements.
10. **Tiller Money:**
- A Google Sheets/Succeed module that naturally pulls in your monetary information from your records, making it more straightforward to follow spending.
### **Banking Apps:**
11. **Bank or Credit Association Apps:**
- Many banks offer inherent cost following elements that arrange your investing and show patterns over energy.
### **Manual Methods:**
12. **Pen and Paper:**
- For the people who lean toward straightforwardness, you can physically keep your pay and costs in a journal or organizer.
Which one of these sounds like a solid match for you?
Updated
Cooper’s Answer
Hi Christopher - In my opinion, "Rocket Money" is the best app out there for tracking your spending, budgeting, and credit score. It is an all-in-one interface that includes recurring expenses, daily spending (categorizes your spending as well), and keeps you notified of credit score changes and spending habits. It's a GREAT way to establish a budget and track all spending. I highly recommend it.
Updated
Patrick’s Answer
Christopher, as a college freshman, managing your finances effectively is crucial. There are numerous tools and strategies available to help you oversee your spending and savings. Here are some top suggestions:
1. Budget apps like Mint are great for tracking spending, creating budgets, and keeping an eye on financial goals. It syncs with your bank accounts and credit cards for a complete financial overview. YNAB (You Need A Budget) is another app that helps you assign every dollar to specific expenses or savings goals, promoting active budgeting and financial discipline. PocketGuard simplifies budgeting by showing your disposable income after considering bills, goals, and necessities.
2. Expensify is handy for tracking receipts and expenses, especially if you need to manage spending for specific categories or projects. GoodBudget is a virtual envelope budgeting tool that helps you divide your money into different spending categories.
3. Many banks and credit unions provide their own budgeting tools within their mobile apps or online banking platforms. These tools can assist in tracking spending patterns and setting savings goals.
4. If you like a more hands-on method, creating a custom spreadsheet can help you monitor income and expenses. Online templates are available to help you get started.
5. Personal Capital offers both budgeting and investment tracking features, giving a comprehensive view of your finances.
Besides these tools, it's worth setting up a budget that suits your income and expenses, defining specific savings goals, and regularly checking your financial habits. By using these tools and strategies, you can gain better control over your finances and establish a strong financial foundation throughout your college years and beyond.
1. Budget apps like Mint are great for tracking spending, creating budgets, and keeping an eye on financial goals. It syncs with your bank accounts and credit cards for a complete financial overview. YNAB (You Need A Budget) is another app that helps you assign every dollar to specific expenses or savings goals, promoting active budgeting and financial discipline. PocketGuard simplifies budgeting by showing your disposable income after considering bills, goals, and necessities.
2. Expensify is handy for tracking receipts and expenses, especially if you need to manage spending for specific categories or projects. GoodBudget is a virtual envelope budgeting tool that helps you divide your money into different spending categories.
3. Many banks and credit unions provide their own budgeting tools within their mobile apps or online banking platforms. These tools can assist in tracking spending patterns and setting savings goals.
4. If you like a more hands-on method, creating a custom spreadsheet can help you monitor income and expenses. Online templates are available to help you get started.
5. Personal Capital offers both budgeting and investment tracking features, giving a comprehensive view of your finances.
Besides these tools, it's worth setting up a budget that suits your income and expenses, defining specific savings goals, and regularly checking your financial habits. By using these tools and strategies, you can gain better control over your finances and establish a strong financial foundation throughout your college years and beyond.
Updated
Leleah’s Answer
I see lots of recommendations for Mint but unfortunately that was removed at the beginning of 2024. I tried a few different apps but ultimately decided to use Rocket Money because it gave me the same feel as managing my money with Mint.
I would recommend setting yourself up for success by having a completely separate saving account and sending a portion of your direct deposit to that account with each paycheck so you don't even have to touch it. You could also setup an automatic transfer from your check to your savings on payday to accomplish the same thing. This way you can make sure you are paying yourself first.
Next, instead of trying to nail down every dollar I would set time aside to review the previous day's spending each morning. You can do it on the toilet. If there is any fraud on your account this will enable you to catch it timely but you will start to build up an understanding of where you money is going with each transaction.
Then I'd create a budget based on what you learned about your spending and how you want to direct your money. For example: setting a budget of $10 for coffee for the month would be really difficult if you didn't realize that you were actually going twice a week so starting your budget at once a week will likely have you more successful with trying to reach your goals.
I would recommend setting yourself up for success by having a completely separate saving account and sending a portion of your direct deposit to that account with each paycheck so you don't even have to touch it. You could also setup an automatic transfer from your check to your savings on payday to accomplish the same thing. This way you can make sure you are paying yourself first.
Next, instead of trying to nail down every dollar I would set time aside to review the previous day's spending each morning. You can do it on the toilet. If there is any fraud on your account this will enable you to catch it timely but you will start to build up an understanding of where you money is going with each transaction.
Then I'd create a budget based on what you learned about your spending and how you want to direct your money. For example: setting a budget of $10 for coffee for the month would be really difficult if you didn't realize that you were actually going twice a week so starting your budget at once a week will likely have you more successful with trying to reach your goals.
Updated
Allie’s Answer
Echoing the earlier responses, how you track spending is a personal choice. I’ve tried apps, but I’ve found that manually reviewing every dollar earned and spent has made me more intentional and responsible with my money. At the end of each month, I use Google Sheets to review my bank accounts, credit cards, Venmo, etc., tracking income and expenses. Categorizing spending can also give you a clear picture of where your money goes, allowing you to adjust as needed.
I also recommend saving your receipts—both paper and digital. There have been times when I’ve seen a charge on my account but couldn’t recall what it was for because I didn’t save the receipt. In those cases, I’ve had to cross-check my Google Calendar to remember what I did that day. A helpful habit is to set aside a percentage of each paycheck for savings. I allocate 80% to checking and 20% to savings, which has helped me reach financial goals. Even if you’re only working a few hours a week, putting aside a little can go a long way, and it’s good practice. Setting a savings goal, like putting money aside for concert tickets, can make the process more motivating and rewarding, encouraging you to build healthy financial habits.
P.S. I also use ChatGPT or similar A.I. tools to manage my finances. As I’m starting a new job, ChatGPT helped me assess my financial situation and create a solid plan!
I also recommend saving your receipts—both paper and digital. There have been times when I’ve seen a charge on my account but couldn’t recall what it was for because I didn’t save the receipt. In those cases, I’ve had to cross-check my Google Calendar to remember what I did that day. A helpful habit is to set aside a percentage of each paycheck for savings. I allocate 80% to checking and 20% to savings, which has helped me reach financial goals. Even if you’re only working a few hours a week, putting aside a little can go a long way, and it’s good practice. Setting a savings goal, like putting money aside for concert tickets, can make the process more motivating and rewarding, encouraging you to build healthy financial habits.
P.S. I also use ChatGPT or similar A.I. tools to manage my finances. As I’m starting a new job, ChatGPT helped me assess my financial situation and create a solid plan!
Updated
sofia’s Answer
the best way is to do a 80/20 ensure you are saving no less than 20%. Track your luxury spending , ask the need vs want before you buy. Also if you don't have an emergency fund and have debit. then the first goal is to reduce /eliminate your debt, then save enough for 3 months worth of expenses. Also create goal funds - be specific of what and by when * what are you saving for will help you keep focus and accomplish that item.
Updated
Anthony’s Answer
There is an app by Dave Ramsey I use called Every Dollar. Also some other apps out there. I would recommend downloading a few free versions and finding what interface you like the best. Or keep an excel spreadsheet like an old check book.
Updated
Crystal’s Answer
It's great that you're taking steps to manage your finances responsibly. There are several tools and apps available that can help you track your spending, save money, and set financial goals. Here are some popular options:
Budgeting and Expense Tracking Apps
Mint:
Features: Tracks your spending, creates budgets, and provides a comprehensive overview of your financial situation. It also offers bill reminders and alerts.
Cost: Free
Platforms: iOS, Android, Web
YNAB (You Need A Budget):
Features: Focuses on proactive budgeting, helping you allocate every dollar. It offers detailed reports and goal-setting features.
Cost: Subscription-based, with a free trial available
Platforms: iOS, Android, Web
PocketGuard:
Features: Tracks spending, creates budgets, and shows how much disposable income you have after bills and savings.
Cost: Free with optional premium features
Platforms: iOS, Android
Goodbudget:
Features: Uses the envelope budgeting method, where you allocate money into different categories (envelopes) for various expenses.
Cost: Free with optional premium features
Platforms: iOS, Android, Web
EveryDollar:
Features: Created by Dave Ramsey, it helps you create a zero-based budget where every dollar is allocated to a specific purpose.
Cost: Free with optional premium features
Platforms: iOS, Android, Web
Banking Apps
Chime:
Features: Online bank that offers automatic savings features, spending tracking, and real-time transaction alerts.
Cost: Free
Platforms: iOS, Android, Web
Simple:
Features: Offers tools for budgeting and saving, including expense tracking and goal-setting features.
Cost: Free
Platforms: iOS, Android, Web
Investment and Savings Apps
Acorns:
Features: Rounds up your purchases to the nearest dollar and invests the spare change. It also offers spending tracking and budgeting tools.
Cost: Subscription-based
Platforms: iOS, Android, Web
Digit:
Features: Automatically analyzes your spending habits and saves small amounts of money for you. It also offers goal-setting and budgeting features.
Cost: Subscription-based
Platforms: iOS, Android
Spreadsheets
Google Sheets or Microsoft Excel:
Features: Highly customizable and flexible for tracking income, expenses, and savings. You can create your own budgeting templates or use pre-made ones.
Cost: Free (Google Sheets) or part of Office 365 subscription (Excel)
Platforms: Web, iOS, Android
Tips for Effective Money Management
Set Financial Goals: Define what you want to achieve financially, whether it's saving a certain amount, paying off debt, or sticking to a budget.
Track Every Expense: Be diligent about entering every purchase, no matter how small, into your tracking tool.
Review Regularly: At the end of each week or month, review your spending to see where your money is going and adjust your budget as needed.
Automate Savings: Set up automatic transfers to a savings account to ensure you save consistently.
Limit Impulse Purchases: Give yourself a waiting period before making non-essential purchases to avoid impulse spending.
By using these tools and following these tips, you'll be able to better manage your finances, save money, and achieve your financial goals. Good luck!
Budgeting and Expense Tracking Apps
Mint:
Features: Tracks your spending, creates budgets, and provides a comprehensive overview of your financial situation. It also offers bill reminders and alerts.
Cost: Free
Platforms: iOS, Android, Web
YNAB (You Need A Budget):
Features: Focuses on proactive budgeting, helping you allocate every dollar. It offers detailed reports and goal-setting features.
Cost: Subscription-based, with a free trial available
Platforms: iOS, Android, Web
PocketGuard:
Features: Tracks spending, creates budgets, and shows how much disposable income you have after bills and savings.
Cost: Free with optional premium features
Platforms: iOS, Android
Goodbudget:
Features: Uses the envelope budgeting method, where you allocate money into different categories (envelopes) for various expenses.
Cost: Free with optional premium features
Platforms: iOS, Android, Web
EveryDollar:
Features: Created by Dave Ramsey, it helps you create a zero-based budget where every dollar is allocated to a specific purpose.
Cost: Free with optional premium features
Platforms: iOS, Android, Web
Banking Apps
Chime:
Features: Online bank that offers automatic savings features, spending tracking, and real-time transaction alerts.
Cost: Free
Platforms: iOS, Android, Web
Simple:
Features: Offers tools for budgeting and saving, including expense tracking and goal-setting features.
Cost: Free
Platforms: iOS, Android, Web
Investment and Savings Apps
Acorns:
Features: Rounds up your purchases to the nearest dollar and invests the spare change. It also offers spending tracking and budgeting tools.
Cost: Subscription-based
Platforms: iOS, Android, Web
Digit:
Features: Automatically analyzes your spending habits and saves small amounts of money for you. It also offers goal-setting and budgeting features.
Cost: Subscription-based
Platforms: iOS, Android
Spreadsheets
Google Sheets or Microsoft Excel:
Features: Highly customizable and flexible for tracking income, expenses, and savings. You can create your own budgeting templates or use pre-made ones.
Cost: Free (Google Sheets) or part of Office 365 subscription (Excel)
Platforms: Web, iOS, Android
Tips for Effective Money Management
Set Financial Goals: Define what you want to achieve financially, whether it's saving a certain amount, paying off debt, or sticking to a budget.
Track Every Expense: Be diligent about entering every purchase, no matter how small, into your tracking tool.
Review Regularly: At the end of each week or month, review your spending to see where your money is going and adjust your budget as needed.
Automate Savings: Set up automatic transfers to a savings account to ensure you save consistently.
Limit Impulse Purchases: Give yourself a waiting period before making non-essential purchases to avoid impulse spending.
By using these tools and following these tips, you'll be able to better manage your finances, save money, and achieve your financial goals. Good luck!
Updated
Karthik Kumar’s Answer
Hello Christopher,
It's great to hear that you're already considering how to save money at a young age. I remember feeling overwhelmed with this topic when I was in my 20s, but now at 40, I have a better grasp on it. My father was a master at managing money, and I learned a lot from him. I'd like to share some of the practical advice I've gathered over the years:
1. Prioritize saving before spending. There are many formulas out there suggesting how much you should save, but I believe it's a personal decision. Determine an amount that you're comfortable with and put that aside before you spend on anything else. This is a habit I practice consistently.
2. Think of money as a tree. It needs time and regular care to grow. This means consistent savings are essential. In my experience, setting aside money on a monthly basis works best.
3. Familiarize yourself with the concept of compounding. I recommend doing a quick search online to understand how compounding works and how you can use it to your advantage.
Best of luck on your financial journey,
Karthik.
It's great to hear that you're already considering how to save money at a young age. I remember feeling overwhelmed with this topic when I was in my 20s, but now at 40, I have a better grasp on it. My father was a master at managing money, and I learned a lot from him. I'd like to share some of the practical advice I've gathered over the years:
1. Prioritize saving before spending. There are many formulas out there suggesting how much you should save, but I believe it's a personal decision. Determine an amount that you're comfortable with and put that aside before you spend on anything else. This is a habit I practice consistently.
2. Think of money as a tree. It needs time and regular care to grow. This means consistent savings are essential. In my experience, setting aside money on a monthly basis works best.
3. Familiarize yourself with the concept of compounding. I recommend doing a quick search online to understand how compounding works and how you can use it to your advantage.
Best of luck on your financial journey,
Karthik.
Updated
Elyse’s Answer
There are plenty of budgeting apps out there! Some people prefer other methods like an old-fashioned Excel sheet or a Notion Budgeting template. It's all about figuring out what works for you the best and which method you'll be the most consistent in.
Updated
Stacy’s Answer
A tool to track your credit like credit karma would be a good start to see where you are. When you know what your score is then you can help yourself better understand what you can do to improve your score. When you have good credit you can make better choices and SAVE MONEY! Good luck!
Updated
Susan Su’s Answer
Here's how you can take control of your finances: Start by keeping an eye on your spending. There are various tools you can use to do this effectively. Let's explore these tools, their advantages and disadvantages, and how monitoring your spending can pave the way to financial success.
Tools to Help You Monitor Your Spending:
Budgeting Apps:
Mint: Syncs with your bank and credit card accounts, organizes your spending, and gives you a comprehensive view of your finances.
YNAB (You Need A Budget): Encourages proactive budgeting by assigning a purpose to every dollar, helping you plan for future expenses.
PocketGuard: Keeps track of your spending and shows you how much you can spend safely after considering bills, goals, and savings.
GoodBudget: Uses the "envelope method" to help you allocate money to different spending categories.
Spendee: Lets you create shared wallets with family or friends and syncs with your bank accounts to monitor spending.
Spreadsheets:
Excel/Google Sheets: Build your own budget trackers, manually enter your expenses, and customize the format to your liking. There are also many templates available online.
Banking Apps:
Many banks provide built-in budgeting features that categorize your spending, display trends, and assist you in managing your finances based on your actual transactions.
Pen and Paper:
A simple yet effective method for those who prefer a more hands-on approach. You can manually record your expenses in a journal or notebook.
Expense Tracking Software:
Quicken: Provides detailed tracking of expenses, investments, and even tax management. It's more advanced and suitable for managing both personal and small business finances.
QuickBooks: Perfect for business owners who want to monitor expenses, income, and even prepare taxes.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Monitoring Spending:
Advantages:
Financial Awareness:
Helps you understand where your money is going, making it easier to spot unnecessary expenses.
Control Over Spending:
Helps you identify spending patterns and adjust them to avoid overspending.
Budget Creation:
Helps create realistic budgets based on your actual spending habits.
Goal Achievement:
With clear financial goals, tracking helps you stay on course to reach savings targets, pay off debt, or invest more.
Debt Reduction:
Close monitoring of expenses can help you allocate more funds to pay off debts or avoid new debts.
Stress Reduction:
Knowing where your money goes can reduce financial anxiety and boost your confidence in your financial decisions.
Improved Decision-Making:
Helps you make informed financial decisions, like adjusting your spending habits to align with your long-term financial goals.
Disadvantages:
Time-Consuming:
Manually tracking expenses can be time-consuming and require effort, especially with numerous transactions.
Overcomplication:
If you use too many tools or overly complex systems, tracking can become overwhelming and lead to frustration.
Requires Consistency:
You need to consistently track expenses for it to be effective. Missing entries may distort the data.
Temptation to Micromanage:
Some people might get too focused on details and micromanage every expense, which can lead to financial stress rather than improvement.
Initial Learning Curve:
Some apps or tools may have a learning curve, and it might take time to find the right tool that suits your specific needs.
How Monitoring Spending Paves the Way to Success:
Improves Financial Discipline:
Monitoring your spending makes you more mindful of how you use money. You’re less likely to make impulse purchases when you see the impact of every transaction.
Encourages Goal-Oriented Behavior:
Financial tracking can help you allocate funds to short-term and long-term goals, such as buying a house, saving for retirement, or starting a business.
Reduces Debt:
By staying aware of your financial standing, you're more likely to pay down debt faster and avoid new debts, which strengthens your financial future.
Creates Stability:
Financial tracking brings order and predictability to your financial life. This stability can reduce stress and provide a foundation for taking on new opportunities (e.g., starting a business, investing).
Better Decision-Making:
Financial clarity helps you make informed decisions about saving, spending, and investing. It gives you control over your future and fosters confidence.
Improves Work-Life Balance:
When you have your finances under control, you’re less likely to experience work-related stress, allowing you to focus more on other aspects of life.
Increases Savings:
Regularly reviewing your spending habits can help you identify areas where you can cut back and put more money toward savings, investments, or other financial goals.
Monitoring spending is a key to financial success. By regularly reviewing and adjusting your habits, you can lay a solid financial foundation for the future.
Tools to Help You Monitor Your Spending:
Budgeting Apps:
Mint: Syncs with your bank and credit card accounts, organizes your spending, and gives you a comprehensive view of your finances.
YNAB (You Need A Budget): Encourages proactive budgeting by assigning a purpose to every dollar, helping you plan for future expenses.
PocketGuard: Keeps track of your spending and shows you how much you can spend safely after considering bills, goals, and savings.
GoodBudget: Uses the "envelope method" to help you allocate money to different spending categories.
Spendee: Lets you create shared wallets with family or friends and syncs with your bank accounts to monitor spending.
Spreadsheets:
Excel/Google Sheets: Build your own budget trackers, manually enter your expenses, and customize the format to your liking. There are also many templates available online.
Banking Apps:
Many banks provide built-in budgeting features that categorize your spending, display trends, and assist you in managing your finances based on your actual transactions.
Pen and Paper:
A simple yet effective method for those who prefer a more hands-on approach. You can manually record your expenses in a journal or notebook.
Expense Tracking Software:
Quicken: Provides detailed tracking of expenses, investments, and even tax management. It's more advanced and suitable for managing both personal and small business finances.
QuickBooks: Perfect for business owners who want to monitor expenses, income, and even prepare taxes.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Monitoring Spending:
Advantages:
Financial Awareness:
Helps you understand where your money is going, making it easier to spot unnecessary expenses.
Control Over Spending:
Helps you identify spending patterns and adjust them to avoid overspending.
Budget Creation:
Helps create realistic budgets based on your actual spending habits.
Goal Achievement:
With clear financial goals, tracking helps you stay on course to reach savings targets, pay off debt, or invest more.
Debt Reduction:
Close monitoring of expenses can help you allocate more funds to pay off debts or avoid new debts.
Stress Reduction:
Knowing where your money goes can reduce financial anxiety and boost your confidence in your financial decisions.
Improved Decision-Making:
Helps you make informed financial decisions, like adjusting your spending habits to align with your long-term financial goals.
Disadvantages:
Time-Consuming:
Manually tracking expenses can be time-consuming and require effort, especially with numerous transactions.
Overcomplication:
If you use too many tools or overly complex systems, tracking can become overwhelming and lead to frustration.
Requires Consistency:
You need to consistently track expenses for it to be effective. Missing entries may distort the data.
Temptation to Micromanage:
Some people might get too focused on details and micromanage every expense, which can lead to financial stress rather than improvement.
Initial Learning Curve:
Some apps or tools may have a learning curve, and it might take time to find the right tool that suits your specific needs.
How Monitoring Spending Paves the Way to Success:
Improves Financial Discipline:
Monitoring your spending makes you more mindful of how you use money. You’re less likely to make impulse purchases when you see the impact of every transaction.
Encourages Goal-Oriented Behavior:
Financial tracking can help you allocate funds to short-term and long-term goals, such as buying a house, saving for retirement, or starting a business.
Reduces Debt:
By staying aware of your financial standing, you're more likely to pay down debt faster and avoid new debts, which strengthens your financial future.
Creates Stability:
Financial tracking brings order and predictability to your financial life. This stability can reduce stress and provide a foundation for taking on new opportunities (e.g., starting a business, investing).
Better Decision-Making:
Financial clarity helps you make informed decisions about saving, spending, and investing. It gives you control over your future and fosters confidence.
Improves Work-Life Balance:
When you have your finances under control, you’re less likely to experience work-related stress, allowing you to focus more on other aspects of life.
Increases Savings:
Regularly reviewing your spending habits can help you identify areas where you can cut back and put more money toward savings, investments, or other financial goals.
Monitoring spending is a key to financial success. By regularly reviewing and adjusting your habits, you can lay a solid financial foundation for the future.
Updated
Kevin P’s Answer
Christopher, first and foremost, I wish I had the foresight you do at your age. How is one part of the problem, how to stick to it is another.
Before we get to tracking, lets talk about some numbers. A decent rule of thumb is the 50/30/20 rule.
50% of your income should go to your needs - rent, car payment, phone bill, utilities.
30% of your income should go to your wants - new pair of shoes, tickets to the movies.
20% of your income should go to your savings - this can be rainy day fund or investment.
Through life, these percentages may change a little but should be a pretty good framework.
Now, how do we track this. I am old school. I created my own excel spreadsheet with formulas that work for me.
First I added up all my income.
Next, I created my columns with formulas, needs, wants, savings, extra. 50/20/20/10.
Extra is the vacations, that is important to me. Thats how I pay for vacations and reduced my want column.
I have formulas embedded. For each dollar tracked, the percentages change.
The want column was my most difficult. I like to enjoy restaurants. So instead of always adding another charge, I go based on what I owe on my credit card. If I stay within that 20% then I have done okay.
I hope that makes sense. When I did this I learned I can cut out alot of the stuff I was unaware of. No one needs 6 streaming services. This exercise helped me reduce that. I would argue, I need 4. I stayed within the 50%.
However, this is old school and can be time consuming. Most banks have a budget tool within their site or within their app. Definitely check that out. You can also find some on line tools that might be to your liking.
But the big thing is to not get overwhelmed. If you do, that is not the point of the exercise. Start small and add to it every couple weeks. Start small and build on it. That will lead to consistency.
Best of luck and start saving!!
Before we get to tracking, lets talk about some numbers. A decent rule of thumb is the 50/30/20 rule.
50% of your income should go to your needs - rent, car payment, phone bill, utilities.
30% of your income should go to your wants - new pair of shoes, tickets to the movies.
20% of your income should go to your savings - this can be rainy day fund or investment.
Through life, these percentages may change a little but should be a pretty good framework.
Now, how do we track this. I am old school. I created my own excel spreadsheet with formulas that work for me.
First I added up all my income.
Next, I created my columns with formulas, needs, wants, savings, extra. 50/20/20/10.
Extra is the vacations, that is important to me. Thats how I pay for vacations and reduced my want column.
I have formulas embedded. For each dollar tracked, the percentages change.
The want column was my most difficult. I like to enjoy restaurants. So instead of always adding another charge, I go based on what I owe on my credit card. If I stay within that 20% then I have done okay.
I hope that makes sense. When I did this I learned I can cut out alot of the stuff I was unaware of. No one needs 6 streaming services. This exercise helped me reduce that. I would argue, I need 4. I stayed within the 50%.
However, this is old school and can be time consuming. Most banks have a budget tool within their site or within their app. Definitely check that out. You can also find some on line tools that might be to your liking.
But the big thing is to not get overwhelmed. If you do, that is not the point of the exercise. Start small and add to it every couple weeks. Start small and build on it. That will lead to consistency.
Best of luck and start saving!!
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Tommy’s Answer
As others have mentioned, there are plenty of apps to track spending! I personally use Empower as my personal finance app - it tracks my spending, net worth, investments, and retirement trajectory. I end up exporting most of the info to excel so I can correctly categorize/manipulate on my own, but it is very helpful to see your net worth over time (and how that coincides with your spending).
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Clarisse’s Answer
Hi! I started tracking my income and expenses during college, and here’s what my journey looks like:
Pen and Paper: I began with this traditional method to plan my expenses. Initially, I listed down the meals I planned to eat for the week since most of my expenses revolved around food as a dorm resident.
Budgeting Apps: I transitioned to budgeting apps for automation. I mainly used the Money Lover app on my phone, which did the job. However, the app had limited options for viewing my overall financial situation, so it felt like I was just tracking for the sake of tracking.
Excel: I moved to Excel for more flexibility. It allowed me to add features and create charts to get an overview of my finances, providing a more comprehensive understanding of my spending and saving patterns.
Google Sheets: Currently, I use Google Sheets, which functions similarly to Excel but feels more casual and less professional. It’s also more accessible since I can view and update it from any device.
You can always go with apps for convenience, but I personally prefer using my desktop for better viewing and customization. Instead of creating your own spreadsheets from scratch, I recommend finding tracker templates online. There are plenty available on Etsy!
This approach worked well for me, and I hope it helps you manage your finances better too. Good luck!
Pen and Paper: I began with this traditional method to plan my expenses. Initially, I listed down the meals I planned to eat for the week since most of my expenses revolved around food as a dorm resident.
Budgeting Apps: I transitioned to budgeting apps for automation. I mainly used the Money Lover app on my phone, which did the job. However, the app had limited options for viewing my overall financial situation, so it felt like I was just tracking for the sake of tracking.
Excel: I moved to Excel for more flexibility. It allowed me to add features and create charts to get an overview of my finances, providing a more comprehensive understanding of my spending and saving patterns.
Google Sheets: Currently, I use Google Sheets, which functions similarly to Excel but feels more casual and less professional. It’s also more accessible since I can view and update it from any device.
You can always go with apps for convenience, but I personally prefer using my desktop for better viewing and customization. Instead of creating your own spreadsheets from scratch, I recommend finding tracker templates online. There are plenty available on Etsy!
This approach worked well for me, and I hope it helps you manage your finances better too. Good luck!
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Annaleigh’s Answer
Hi Christopher!
This is such a great question, and it's so important to ask! I would say you have one of two options: you can always create or find a spreadsheet of sorts to track your spending yourself and set goals, or find an app that can help! I find that an app to automate can be very nice. There are so many apps like this out there such as Mint, Goodbudget, Acorns, and Digit! Look for what your needs are specifically and find something that matches that.
I also would recommend putting a percentage of your money in savings and pretty much pretending it's not there! You're in college, you want "fun money", but if some of your money is in an account you can't touch, it can be easier to budget!
Best of luck to you!
This is such a great question, and it's so important to ask! I would say you have one of two options: you can always create or find a spreadsheet of sorts to track your spending yourself and set goals, or find an app that can help! I find that an app to automate can be very nice. There are so many apps like this out there such as Mint, Goodbudget, Acorns, and Digit! Look for what your needs are specifically and find something that matches that.
I also would recommend putting a percentage of your money in savings and pretty much pretending it's not there! You're in college, you want "fun money", but if some of your money is in an account you can't touch, it can be easier to budget!
Best of luck to you!