It’s an easy-to-use accounting software that helps you keep track of all your spending in one place, so you can see where your money goes.

Maybe you have tried budgeting the old-fashioned way and want to try something else. A personal finance app like Quicken may be the answer!

By using Quicken, you’ll have a clear picture of how much money is coming in, pay bills and track due dates, and how much is left over for fun and savings. It’s never been easier to take charge of your finances!

In this Quicken review, we will look at the benefits of using Quicken and talk about the new features that can make a difference in your budget.

Quicken

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What Is Quicken?

Quicken is one of the best personal softwares available. It helps you gain control of your spending and savings so that you can live the life you want and achieve financial freedom.

Quicken has been around since 1983. It was first introduced as a DOS program account software by Intuit Inc, but in 2016 Quicken was sold to Equiline Partners. 

It’s a personal finance management tool that helps you keep track of your spending and saving.

It’s easy to use, so it’s perfect for beginners or anyone who wants to take control of their money.

You connect your membership with your bank accounts, credit cards, investments, loans, and other financial institutions, so everything is automatically updated.

That way, you always know where every dollar goes and how much money you have leftover at the end of the month.

The software has come a long way since it first hit the market, and there are now different versions to suit everyone’s needs.

There’s a Quicken for Mac and Windows users, plus there’s a Quicken mobile and web companion app. They also offer Quicken Home and a Business version.

Who Benefits From Quicken?

Quicken has become a popular accounting software with several different types of Quicken users:

People who want things simpler

Quicken is helpful for people who want their budget to be simple to understand and can check it on the go. Some other companies will have you pay for features you don’t need

Simplifi by Quicken is the newest program designed specifically for people who are new to budgeting, who want advice on how to save and make the most out of their money.

It also has automated sorting- so when you buy things, it gets placed in a category right away so you know how you’re doing. You’re out buying some groceries?

Simpifi will know, and you’ll both know right away if you’ve got to spend less on groceries! It’s so helpful to get alerts for overspending and unusual spending, Simplifi and Quicken make it easy and do all the leg work!

To learn more, read our full Simplifi Review here. 

People who like details

Quicken is a great accounting software solution for people who want to track their spending and understand where their money goes each month.

People can create budgets and see how well they’re doing each month and do a better job managing their money.

Investors

Quicken is also popular with investors. Not only can people track their investment portfolio and see how investments are doing, but they can also create detailed budgets for each investment.

Budget newbies

Now we’ve been budgeting for a very long time, but we know some of you are new to the game! Budgeting doesn’t have to be overwhelming, but it can be difficult knowing where to start exactly.

Not every Quicken program is made for big businesses with billions to keep track of. You can find the perfect option for you with Quicken to budget your money without being bogged down by the financial minutia.

Simplifi by Quicken is made for those who want a simpler want to budget that doesn’t bewilder you with financial jargon or have you pay for a bunch of features you won’t use!

This option is perfect for college students just starting out who need help saving money or college graduates who want a good plan for paying back their student loans.

Not only is it a great option for college students/grads, but it’s also for people who like the simpler visualization or for busy people on the go – powerfully simple.

Business people who want to track both home & business in the same place, separate but together

Quicken is a great way to keep track of business expenses and get business accounting software that works for you.

It can create different spending categories for business expenses to track how much is being spent on things like office supplies and any other expenses that are relevant to doing business.

People who want accessible personal finances

Have you noticed how some budget programs aren’t exactly cell phone friendly? It can be frustrating not having access to your budget when you’re on the go.

You can check your spending as you shop with Quicken and make sure you aren’t wrecking your personal finance stats!

Well, Quicken created Simplifi specifically for us techy folks who want a Quicken mobile app budget that is quick and practical- and, of course, usable at all times!

People who don’t trust the cloud

Quicken is popular with people who prefer not to connect their financial institutions and personal information with the cloud.

They don’t want to use mobile apps and like keeping everything on their computer to be accessed very easily. You can opt to add in your transactions manually or let Quicken do it for you.

Quicken Pricing & Programs

Quicken is an accounting software that uses a subscription model with its users.

They have four packages/subscriptions that offer different features, ranging in price from $28.68 to $71.88 when you pay annually.

Quicken is available at electronic stores, online on their website, or through Amazon. If you choose to subscribe to Quicken, there are automatic updates on all versions of Quicken for one year for free.

There is a 30-day money-back guarantee, but you lose automated downloads from financial institutions on Quicken if you choose to cancel your subscription.

Each package comes with the Desktop version and Quicken web & mobile companion app. You can also create a simple one-month budget with each package, sync your bank accounts (if you want), and pay bills online with the bank bill pay feature.

The packages Quicken offers are Simplifi By Quicken, Quicken Starter, Quicken Deluxe, Quicken Premier, and Quicken Home & Business. Let’s take a look at each package!

Simplifi By Quicken

Price: $28.68 per year 

Features:

Simplifi by Quicken was built for web and mobile, whereas the Quicken packages work best on desktops.

It’s made for people who are new to budgets, who don’t need excessive features to manage their money.

Its most notable features are the custom monthly spending plans, their updated pies and graphs (great visuals!), easy-to-navigate financial reports, and it has some investment account tracking options for your portfolio, unlike Starter and Deluxe.

It’s simpler than the experienced investor features you get with other Quicken plans.

Quicken Deluxe 

Price: $35.88 per year

Quicken Deluxe helps you track all of your financial accounts and provides easy-to-use charts, graphs, and reports. Setting up your budget at the beginning of the month/year is easy. 

Features:

Quicken Deluxe lets you create custom reports and track loans, investments, and retirement accounts.

Quicken Premier 

Price: $50.28 per year

Quicken Premier offers even more features for the advanced investor.

Features:

Quicken Premier includes every feature of Quicken Deluxe, plus the ability to pay your bills through the software and see the current fair market value of your home through Zillow.

Quicken Premium also offers front-of-the-line access to Quicken support.

Quicken Home & Business

Price: $71.88 per year

Quicken Home & Business is the most comprehensive plan Quicken offers and is suitable for people who want to track their home and business/rental finances all in one place.

Features:

Quicken Home & Business is available to Windows users.

It includes every feature of the other Quicken plans, plus you can create invoices and track your income and expenses related to your business.

The dashboard is easy to navigate and has personal and business financial data features.

Some additional features are:

• Rental property management, where you can view your rental properties’ information, your rent receipts, your rental property tenants, and much more
• Personal property management, where you can add the assets you own and their estimated property value
• Tenant management, where you can record rental payments, track tenant information, and more
• Vehicle management, where you can add your car’s information, including the make, model, year, and mileage
• Tools for checking the security prices every 15 minutes and the “What ifs” of buying and selling investments

Quicken Features 

Like any personal finance app, changes get made along the way to be better for you!

The most recent changes were made in 2021 during the pandemic, but many of the 2021 features for Quicken are just tweaking old stuff.

However, a few updates may be of interest to potential users:

Tracking Spending/Expenses 

One of the changes that Quicken made was to change the spending dashboard to see all your spending and expenses in one place.

You can view all your accounts in one place and make sure your bills are paid and that you aren’t overspending.

You can now see your spending by category, merchant, or date and even break it down by household members. Doing this will help you quickly and easily identify where you are overspending in your budget.

Another feature of Quicken is that you can check your transactions to make sure they are legitimate transactions, giving you an extra layer of protection to your finances.

Financial Planning- Money Tracking

Financial planning with Quicken 2021 is made a little easier with the ability to create budgets, long-term financial plans, and tax planning.

You can also use the Debt Reduction calculator to help you reach your financial goals.

The budgeting tool in Quicken is one of the most popular features that allows you to track your spending and savings to make sure you stay within your budget.

You can set it up to automatically create a budget for you based on your income and expenses.

Another popular feature is the Savings Goals feature. You can set it up to automatically save money for a specific goal, like a vacation or a new car.

The Savings Goals feature helps you make sure you reach your short and long-term goals by setting a deadline and showing you how much money you need to save on a monthly or yearly basis.

Quicken also offers a Tax Center. The Tax Center includes the option to all the information you need to file your taxes, including how to report income and expenses, what deductions you can claim, and more.

Bill Management (Bill Pay)

Bills are a huge part of personal finances- and making sure your head is above water!

That’s why Quicken makes it easy to handle your bills by paying directly from your checking account.

In August 2020, Quicken moved from a Bill Pay platform to a new platform called Quicken Bill Manager.

The new platform has the latest features and is available to Premium package users and higher. Starter and Deluxe users can add it to their packages for $9.95 a month.

The Quicken Bill Management feature allows you to do everything from one place in the Bills dashboard.

You can track your bills, pay your bills, stay up-to-date with all your account balances, plus even download a copy of your invoice.

Online payments can be made through a Quicken service, either online or by mail to anyone in the United States.

Investment Tracking

Quicken investments are available for users on Quicken Deluxe, Premiere, and Home and Business.

Investment management software is important for investors to know how their stocks and bonds are doing, plus other investments like cryptocurrency.

Quicken connects with over 14 million financial institutions, so you can be sure your investment changes will be tracked at any moment. 

What I like is that Quicken can track your investments, but also it can also calculate capital gains and losses on your portfolio options.

Retirement Overview

The retirement tool in Quicken allows you to get a summary of your retirement accounts.

You can see exactly how much money is available to you at certain times throughout the year and what your monthly income would be if you started drawing from this account today.

The 401(k) retirement tool is helpful to project how long your current savings will last in retirement.

It doesn’t take the place of independent financial advice but it is valuable for those who are nearing retirement and want to know what their options are.

Quicken For Mac

Now we all know that some programs don’t translate well to Mac products, and vice versa for iOS systems.

However, Quicken for Mac is their way of making sure Mac users get all the same benefits and less of the glitches!

Before the updates, Quicken was slower on Apple devices- graphs were slow to load, account linking would take more time, etc.

But they revamped things to be twice as fast, with better graph designs and better Portfolio views.

The dashboard is all new for users, so your Home runs smoothly- it has 5 category cards: Income, Expense, Spending by Category, Recent Transactions, Uncategorized Transactions, and Top spending Payee.

Some users still think the PC version runs smoother than Quicken for Mac, but I don’t feel like it’s all that lacking when we use it.

I do use it mainly from our computer rather than the mobile app, and mobile is for quick peeks at all your accounts, so there could be some lagging on the go that I don’t see very often.

Account Synchronization 

One of the best features of Quicken is that it can be synchronized with all your personal finances, including investment accounts and credit card accounts.

Hooking up your financial institution or other accounts gives you the most benefits with Quicken’s features.

This means that all of your financial information is in one place, and you don’t have to worry about tracking multiple websites to see your account balances.

The synchronization process is simple and can be done in a few minutes. You enter your information on the Quicken website, and it will connect your accounts and download all of your transactions.

Then you choose which accounts and categories you want to be synced with Quicken and click “Update Accounts.”

Some people choose not to synchronize their accounts due to security concerns. Quicken gives assurance about the robust 256-bit encryption security of Quicken data transmitted. 

Quicken Interface

The Quicken interface is one of the most popular features of the software.

The interface is very minimalistic but has a straightforward layout that is easy to navigate. Different functions are available on the home page, but they are all tucked away neatly in one place.

If you have never used Quicken before, then there is a Resources page on their website where you can watch tutorials and get more information about various features of Quicken like One Step Update or the Investment Tracker.

Signing Up With Quicken 

Quicken is a subscription model that you can pay month to month or annually, and you get access and help with your finances as long as you’re a current user.

You can access Quicken immediately upon signing up and get all your budgets lined up quickly and efficiently.

The signup process takes about 5 minutes- all you have to do is enter your name and email address, select a password and security question, and then confirm that you accept the terms of use.

Then download the software, and you are ready to go and get your finances under wraps!

Not everyone likes Quicken, so you can try the 30-day trial first, but you can also check out other options to track your money.

Pros & Cons

There are many benefits of using Quicken, which is why it has been such a popular personal finance software for over 40 years.

Here are some of the key pros and cons of the Quicken software.

Pros 

• Different versions to suit your needs – There is a Quicken for everyone, no matter your needs, and it’s usable on multiple computers, Windows devices as well as Mac products.
• It’s secure – Quicken uses bank-level security, so your information is always safe.
• A clear picture of your finances – With Quicken, you can see all your spending and save in one place. This gives you a clear picture of how much money is coming in, what bills are due, what your net worth is, and how much you can afford to spend on fun things.
• It helps you stay organized – Quicken helps keep you organized and on top of your finances, which is especially helpful if you have to keep track of multiple bills to pay or investments.
• Budgets and bill reminders – Quicken makes it easy for you to set up a financial plan by creating a budget so you can start saving more money. And you can also set up bill pay reminders to never miss a payment again.
• Excellent customer support team – The support team is available online and by phone. Live chat representatives are available during regular business hours, and you can email inquiries 24/7. Phone support hours vary depending on the day of the week but are typically open from 8 am to midnight EST. There is also an active online community plus a Resources page for users.
• Small business version – It helps people who have small businesses keep track of their expenses and income related to their business.
• Investment tools – This tool can help you make smart decisions about where to put your money.
• Ability to connect to your bank and download transactions directly into the program – This helps keep track of your balance and prevents you from over-drafting your account.

Cons

• The program is not free – The full version of the software is $5.99 per month, billed annually for businesses. There are free programs and Quicken alternatives like Mint, with fewer bells and whistles, but the cost is zilch!
• Quicken can be complicated – Some people can be overwhelmed by everything Quicken offers, and it can take some time to get used to the program.
• A subscription model means a monthly or annual fee to us – To keep using Quicken, you have to pay a yearly subscription fee. The price depends on the version of Quicken you have and the current price at the time of renewal.
• Quicken’s Mac version lacks some features compared to the Windows version – Some of the features that you can get in the Windows version aren’t available on the Mac version, making it less useful for some people.However, it is highly rated by Quicken for Mac customers, especially over the past 3 years.
• It may not sync with your bank – Quicken may have trouble syncing with some banks, which can be frustrating.

Quicken Alternatives: Other Money Management Tools

Not sure Quicken is the personal finance app for you? Well, Quicken is great but it isn’t the only option to track your finances and better manage your money.

If you are looking for alternative personal finance trackers, two great options are Mint and Empower.

Mint 

Mint is a free, ad-supported program that offers many of the same features as Quicken but is less complex and less customizable, making it suitable for those who want a simple program to help them with their finances.

Mint also has an excellent mobile app that enables you to keep track of your investments on the go.

You can hook up your bank account, savings accounts, and even credit card accounts and get a clear picture of where your money is going and how much money you have at any given time.

If you want a more detailed comparison, read our Mint Vs. Quicken rundown to get a better idea of which is better for you.

Empower (Formerly Personal Capital) 

Empower is another option if you are looking for a more user-friendly alternative to Quicken.

They have a free version and a paid version with other features, but they really shine as an investment tracker!

We love Empower because we can track our income and spending, but we can also keep a close eye on our investments and make sure we’re on track for our retirement plan.

It is similar to Mint in some ways, but investors particularly like Empower because it offers comprehensive investment tools that are easy to use.

Empower tends to push users to focus on their wealth management services, which is the big draw of the program, and some people prefer Quicken to avoid the upsells. 

Check out our in-depth Empower Review to find out how well the app can manage your finances and investments! 

Final Thoughts

If you’re looking for personal finance software that can help you track your spending, save money, and manage your investments, Quicken is a great option.

Overall, Quicken is a great program for personal finance that can help you keep track of your budget, bills, and investments.

It has various features that cater to different needs, plus can be used on computers, Android phones, and iOS mobile devices.

As we mentioned earlier, it is one of the most popular personal finance programs available, and it has a lot of features to offer.

However, it can be expensive and complicated to use, so be sure to consider all of the pros and cons before deciding if it’s right for you.

Quicken

Take complete control of your finances with Quicken! Plan for today and tomorrow with their award-winning software and apps.

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Monarch Money is a new financial planning app that simplifies tracking and budgeting your accounts.

In this blog post, we’ll provide an in-depth Monarch Money review, from its best features to its pros and cons.

Monarch Money

The modern way to manage your money!

Track all of your accounts in one place, collaborate with your partner, and create a long term plan to achieve your goals. Get personalized advice along the way.

Get Started Now

Monarch Money Review: Key Takeaways

Here’s a few quick things you need to know about Monarch Money:

• With Monarch Money, you can connect all your financial accounts – bank accounts, credit cards, and investment accounts – in one place. This makes it easy to keep track of your balances, transactions, and investments.
• The Monarch Money app analyzes your spending patterns and provides insights on optimizing your budget. You can set up custom categories and budgets to monitor expenses and avoid overspending.
• Monarch Money also tracks your investments and provides performance analysis. You can see how your portfolio is doing and get personalized investment recommendations.
• The app helps you create a financial plan based on your goals and income. You can set up savings goals, debt reduction plans, and retirement plans to stay on track with your financial objectives.
• Monarch Money has a user-friendly interface that makes it easy to navigate through different features. You can customize the dashboard to show the information that matters most.

What Monarch Does

Monarch Money is an app that helps users track their income, track their expenses, and create budgets.

The app’s features are designed to help users stay on top of their financial accounts and make sound financial decisions.

The app allows users to set up multiple accounts and connect them to the app to track their spending and budget to save money easily.

Monarch Money also features various tools that make it simple to view accurate financial reports and monitor account activity.

Monarch Features

Account Syncing (Bank Integration)

One of the most powerful features of the Monarch Money App is its ability to sync with over 11,200 financial institutions.

Monarch is different from other companies because it uses multiple data aggregators to get more information from different sources other than financial institutions.

It allows you to see all your financial institution account activity conveniently in one place on the app dashboard.

You can easily view all your primary bank accounts’ transactions, including deposits, payments, transfers, etc.

It’s also possible to sync up with realtor apps to see your home’s value, which can help you decide when to sell your house.

Monarch Dashboard

The Monarch Dashboard is an interactive money management tool that allows users to analyze their financial habits over time so they can grow their net worth.

The dashboard shows graphs and charts that illustrate trends in income versus expenses.

You can get an objective overview of how much money you make or spend each month or year and your net worth.

The dashboard also provides personalized budgeting tools like bill reminders and debt payment plans so you can tackle debt easier than ever.

Create Financial Goals

Creating financial goals doesn’t have to be complicated with this financial app.

With Monarch Money, you can set up as many goals as you need in seconds!

With the financial goals, you can specify how much money you want to save each month, how much you want to invest, or any other financial objectives.

And with the Monarch Money intuitive dashboard, you can easily add those goals and track your progress!

Just input the amount you’ve saved toward each goal and watch as the progress bar fills up- it’s that simple.

Track Income & Expenses

If you’re like most people, keeping track of all your income and expenses can be challenging. Not everyone has the time to learn to budget, and we get it.

That’s why Monarch Money App makes it easier to track spending and see where all your money is going.

The app automatically syncs with your bank account to track your income and expenses in real-time.

That means you don’t have to manually put in any information or have tedious spreadsheet updates- everything is taken care of for you automatically!

Investment Tracking

If investing is part of your overall financial plan, then Monarch Money can help you track investments and create a financial plan.

With the app, investment tracking your entire portfolio is easy, including your 401(k) plans and taxable brokerage accounts, and you can see how they’re performing over time.

Users can view detailed analytics such as profit/loss, return on investment (ROI), overall performance, etc., all essential information when making decisions about investing strategies.

It also provides helpful insights into which investments may be best suited for meeting different goals depending on individual needs and risk tolerance levels.

Net Worth Tracker

The Monarch Money net worth tracker is a tool that allows you to view your total assets and liabilities in one place.

With this single view, you can easily see where your money is going and track your progress toward your net worth goals.

And it’s all updated in real-time, so you always have an accurate picture of your finances.

The app also provides visualized charts and graphs that help you see changes in your net worth over time and keep tabs on your overall progress.

Bill Center

The Bill Center feature helps users stay organized by keeping track of all their recurring bills in one place.

You can add payments due each month or create customized payment plans for each vendor or creditor if needed.

The Bill Center will send notifications when bills are approaching their due date, so you’re always aware of upcoming expenses.

However, don’t mistake Monarch Money for your bank- it doesn’t pay the bills for you, only tracks them and reminds you to pay them on time.

Personalized Financial Advice

The Monarch Money App also provides personalized advice tailored to users’ needs and goals.

After analyzing a user’s financial data, the app will provide helpful suggestions on managing their money and reaching their desired objectives faster.

This feature is especially valuable for those new to managing their finances or who need more experience.

Whether it’s budgeting advice or investment strategies, it can provide detailed guidance to help you make informed decisions about how best to manage your money.

Plus, all advice is free of charge- no hidden fees or extra costs!

Monarch Pricing

Here are your current options for a Monarch Money account:

Free Trial

Monarch Money doesn’t offer a free account, but it provides a 7-day free trial to test its features.

After the 7-day free trial, Monarch Money charges a subscription fee.

Premium Account

Premium is their main account as of this writing, and you have 2 ways to pay for the same great features:

• Monthly Plan: $14.99 per month
• Yearly Plan: $99.99 per year

You can expect the same service and benefits regardless of your chosen payment plan.

It ultimately comes down to personal preference and what works best for your budget and usage needs.

Monthly plans are ideal for users who want to test a service or product for a short period before committing to a longer-term plan.

However, choosing the yearly plan can save you some money in the long run.

The yearly payment is cheaper even though it’s an upfront cost. It comes to about $8.33 a month.

How To Sign Up For Monarch Money

1. Sign Up Page

• Go to Monarch Money.
• Click the “Sign Up Button” at the top.
• They send a verification code to your email- verify it to finish up.
• Set up a strong account password.
• Then set up your account.

2. Select Payment Plan

• You can choose to sign up first with the FREE 7-day trial.
• Or, sign up for a monthly or yearly plan.

3. Pay & Start Using

• Enter your payment information.
• Click Enter.
• You’ll then be ready to set up your Monarch Money dashboard.

FAQS

Is Monarch Money safe to use?

So, is Monarch Money safe to use?

Absolutely! With its emphasis on security and privacy, you can trust Monarch with your financial information.

Monarch uses Plaid as its primary data aggregator, the industry leader in data aggregation, and maintains strict security standards.

This means that your financial information is protected by one of the most trusted names in the business.

To further enhance security, Monarch offers multi-factor authentication for account logins, so even if someone has your password, they need additional verification to access your account.

How easy is it to start budgeting?

We found it very easy to use Monarch Money for budgeting, and you can undoubtedly use it quickly and easily to manage money.

Once you download the financial app from the App Store or Google Play, create an account and link your financial accounts.

From there, you can start tracking your expenses and setting up a budget that fits your lifestyle.

Can people outside the U.S. use Monarch?

At this time, Monarch only works with the United States dollar as a currency.

You might be able to connect accounts with different currencies (Euros, British Pound Sterling, etc.), but the numbers would be shown as United States dollars and might be inaccurate.

We don’t recommend doing this, especially if you mix accounts with different currencies because it can be more complicated and inaccurate compared to other budgeting apps.

Can you make shared accounts with Monarch?

Yes, Monarch Money offers the option to create shared accounts for couples and families.

This feature is especially useful for financial planning with joint finances or households with multiple income streams.

To share an account, simply move your cursor over the account you wish to work with, click the gear icon, and select “Share Account” from the menu.

When you invite someone to your household in a Monarch Money account, they receive a separate login and view all the same data and financial info you do.

They can edit and add things as needed, just like you can, which is great for couples to update their income and make sure all credit cards are added to track everyone’s expenses.

Other Budgeting Options

One of the best things about the Monarch Money app is its user-friendly interface. You don’t need to be a financial expert to use this app – everything is laid out clearly and concisely.

The app provides personalized financial advice based on your spending habits and goals.

But Monarch Money isn’t the only customizable finance app that people use to track their money- and there are some free options out there to use.

Here are three other budgeting apps and other options that can do just that:

The Savvy Couple Budget Binder

Are you interested in budgeting templates so you can do budgeting by hand rather than using your phone?

The Savvy Couple Budget Binder is a great budgeting option that likes paper-based financial planners to track their financial progress rather than digital software.

This binder includes everything you need to set up your budget, including forms, charts, and worksheets.

It also provides helpful tips on how to stay organized and keep track of your complete financial picture. Plus, it’s very affordable at just $27 on sale right now!

Empower

Empower (formerly Personal Capital) is another great option if you’re looking for a budgeting app that automatically does the work for you.

It’ll help you stay on top of your personal finances without feeling overwhelmed by too many bells and whistles.

Empower offers automatic savings programs that make sure your money is going towards long-term goals like retirement or emergency funds instead of frivolous spending.

It also has credit score monitoring and keeps track of it so you can make informed decisions about when to apply for new loans or credit cards.

Empower also sends actionable alerts, so you know what steps to take next to reach your financial goals faster!

Read our in-depth Empower Review to see what features they offer to manage money and investments.

Mint

Mint is one of the most popular free personal finance apps- and it’s easy to see why!

Mint allows users to sync all their money accounts into one platform to get a comprehensive view of their financial situation at any given time.

With Mint, users can easily create custom categories to categorize expenses into different buckets, such as “entertainment” or “groceries,” which makes tracking spending much easier.

Plus, they can set up customized budgets based on these categories, so they always know exactly how much they should save each month!

Check out how Mint compares to other financial accounts in our Mint Vs. Empower article!

Our Thoughts

Gone are the days of blindly earning and spending money- it’s time to spend wisely and save more so you can reach financial freedom fast!

Monarch Money is an excellent budgeting app for those who want an easy-to-use platform for managing their financial accounts.

From budgeting tools to investment tracking, it has everything needed to keep track of your money without searching through multiple websites or applications.

Monarch Money is a paid service at $14.99 per month or $99.99 per year, but this fee is quite reasonable compared to other platforms offering similar features and services.

So if you are looking for an all-in-one personal finance app for managing your money, try Monarch Money today!

But we’re here to make money management much easier and help you fill your savings account and keep more money in the bank.

There are 9 steps in organizing your personal finance. After following these steps, you should have a very clear picture of what your personal finance looks like.

Not only do we have easy steps for you to follow, but we also have a few money management tips to help you gain focus- so let’s get into it!

9 Steps For How To Manage Money Effectively

It’s never too late to learn how to manage your money, and we’re happy to help you get it together and put you on the right path to success.

It’s time to share our personal finance strategy that will help you manage your finances like a pro with a simple straightforward approach that’s easy to follow. 

For these money management steps, you’re going to need to be logged into your bank account, loan account, and whatever else you got- and grab your calculator!

Let’s talk about the main factors of managing money and taking better control of your money:

1. Calculate Your Net Worth (Assets and Liabilities)

The first step to money management is knowing what you own and what you owe, which leads to you’re net worth. 

Many people believe that calculating your net worth is difficult. In actuality, it’s probably the simplest step in starting or learning to manage your finances.

To calculate your net worth, subtract your total debt from your total assets (Assets – Liabilities = Net Worth).

Assets: These include money from your checking and savings account, retirement funds (IRAs), vehicles, stocks, bonds, annuities, and home equity.

Liabilities:  This includes student loans, mortgages, car loans, personal loans, credit card balances, and any other debt you might have.

Write down everything that has value to you, and write down all of your debt- check your bank account for money and check your credit cards for debts. Then subtract liabilities from debt to get your net worth.

If your debt is higher than your assets and cash flow, resulting in a negative net worth, it’s not a great sign!  It likely means you need to start learning more, paying off debt, and get saving.

2. Earning Vs. Spending Money: Income vs. Expenses

The next part of money management is checking your bank account more closely to see how much you’ve earned and how much you’ve spent. 

Figuring out your cash flow and creating a budget is critical in getting your finances organized.

The first 2 steps provide a great overall picture of your personal finance. They show how you are doing financially as a whole, which is very important. Equally as important is understanding your monthly cash flow.

Income: This includes your hourly wage, salary, bonus, side hustles, side business, etc.

Expenses:  Fixed expenses (that don’t change price often) include rent, mortgage, insurance, student loan payment, cell phone bill, internet, gym membership, etc. Variable expenses (that change cost) include utilities, groceries, discretionary money, donations, gas, etc.

List all the income you receive in a month. Then write down all of your monthly expenses. Subtract your expenses from your income, and you’ll know how much money you have available for other things like savings and vacation.

If you’re just starting to organize your personal finance, pen and paper work great. Keep it simple write everything down with a name and dollar amount.

Other options include an excel spreadsheet or using a free website like Mint. It has free overviews of your money and can create graphics for you to check out.

Or check out Empower (formerly Personal Capital), which is like the next step up- where you can track your investments, get financial advice, and more!

3. Calculate Your Overall Cash Flow

Now that you know how much money you’re making and spending, you can use those numbers to figure out your cash flow.

This is also a simple equation. To calculate your monthly cash flow, take your income and subtract your expenses (Income – Expenses = Monthly Cash Flow).

In money management, your cash flow is basically your “money in and money out.”

Your overall cash flow is probably the most useful tool in your efforts to manage your finances because it gives you a constant checkpoint to see how effective your various financial strategies are.

As your income goes up and expenses go down, this calculation will show you concrete proof that you’re moving in the right direction. 

4. Get a Hold of Your Credit Scores and Reports

You know your overall net worth (Assets – Liabilities) and your monthly cash flow (Income – Expenses). That’s a great start for money management!

The next step in organizing your personal finance is getting a hold of your credit score.

Think of your credit score as an insurance policy to lenders, so they can know you can manage your money and not max out your cards without paying that money back.

Your credit score is extremely important in getting the very best rates on loans. Having a good credit score can literally save you hundreds of thousands of dollars over your lifetime. 

You have lots of free options here. Companies like Credit Karma and other credit score apps will provide you with a free credit score.

5. Evaluate Your Personal Finances From All Of The Above

So we did a bunch of math and have some numbers- now what? What do these have to do with better money management skills?

Having the information is great, but understanding it is a different story.

You need all these numbers to figure out where you’re at, where you can save money, how you can make money, if you have enough money month to month, and so much more.

Now that you have your net worth, cash flow, income and expenses, and credit score, it’s time to start evaluating and see what it all means:

– Net Worth

Your goal with your net worth should always be positive- that’s what financial success typically looks like. If you have more assets than liabilities, you have a positive net worth; congrats!

If your net worth is negative, it’s a good wake-up call to get your finances in check. Knowledge is power. Once you know your net worth, set some obtainable financial goals to increase it.

– Cash Flow

Your cash flow should be a positive number, this is very important. If you have a negative cash flow you are bleeding money from your accounts.

From time to time, you will have a bad month where your expenses out weight your income. If your goal is financial freedom, you can’t let this happen very often.

Always aim to have a positive cash flow every month. Be sure to include any money you are investing or putting into retirement accounts as an expense. This is money that is not liquid and you will not be able to use in the near future.

The entire premise of knowing your cash flow is maintaining a budget and grasp on your financial situation. In tracking your expenses, you’ll have a clear picture of what your biggest monthly expenses are. Y

You’ll also see where you are overspending, and knowing can help you change your spending habits and get things under control.

– Credit Score & Credit Report

Credit is a side piece of money management- when you keep your debts down and work on spending less, you keep your credit up!

Compare your credit score to the graph below from Experian. If your credit score is lower than you like, don’t fret! It’s easier than you may think to increase your credit score to excellent.

Go through your credit reports thoroughly. Understand what is being reported and why. Errors do happen in credit reports, and correcting those are important.

Contact the credit bureau directly to make them aware of the error so they can get started in correcting it.

Negative entries on your credit report will stay active for up to 7 years. After the 7 years are up, the negative entries will be removed from your credit report.

6. Create Monthly and Yearly Budgets

Once you have gotten this far, you should know where you’re at and can manage your money thoroughly Now that you know where you are, you can start planning where you want to be and get into better spending habits.

A budget is a must, and we’ve already talked about it a little, but now is the time to sit down and plan where your money will go, make sure you don’t overspend, and reach savings goals.

For example, you know that Christmas happens every year, so make sure that you start saving a “Christmas fund” at least a few months in advance, so you have enough money for gifts without going into debt.

Add it into the budget for a given month, as applicable, to make purchases you know are coming, such as birthday gifts, back-to-school supplies, or even oil changes. 

Once you’ve set up a recurring but slightly customized budget for each month of the year, you’ve got a chance to see the entire year at a glance.

Make a note of things like the total amount needed for those here-and-there birthday gifts, any party costs, etc.

As the year moves on, you may find yourself able to save for an entire budget item that spans months in a shorter amount of time, freeing up cash in later months to be applied elsewhere. 

Always remember that budgets should be followed pretty strictly, but they should also have room for change if absolutely necessary. 

7. Stay Motivated!

The next step to manage your money is to really keep going and keep a positive money mindset! If you start to have a bad money mindset or resent your money management plan, then things will head south.

People will start a budget and lose motivation and give up on it, and you can’t do that and expect your savings to grow and your spending to stay under wraps.

Figure out the real reason why getting your personal finance organized is important to you, such as attaining financial freedom.

Do you have savings goals so you can start investing or retire early? Do you want to pay off debt quicker and put down more than minimum payments? Set financial goals, stick to your plan, and go after it!

Once you have your purpose and goals, getting motivated will become much easier. 

8. Ongoing Review

After completing steps 1-8 it’s important to continue to review. Set a time each month to check on your finances. If revisions need to be made, make them. Continue to stay informed on what is going on in your financial life.

Don’t fall back into your old ways after learning your financial situation. Mistakes will be made and that’s okay, get back up and start over again. It might be frustrating at first, but once you get a system in place it’s extremely rewarding.

It’s also a great habit of doing a thorough review of your financial situation on a yearly basis.

Compare your net worth from one year to the next; hopefully, you are seeing it grow. Compare your monthly budget from year to year as well.

This is a great way to make sure you are always living under your means.

During this time of review, it’s always a great idea to also go back through your investment accounts to make sure everything is squared away. 

9. Relax

As silly as it may sound, it really is important to stop and take a deep breath once in a while as you’re going through your financial journey. Managing finances can be truly stressful when you have debts and work a lot!

Yes, it’s important to make extra money, pay off debt, and stop overspending, but your finances take time, and you shouldn’t become a ball of stress over it. 

Don’t forget to stop every so often and take some time out to recharge as needed. It’s totally reasonable to budget for an occasional (read:  infrequent) break, sort of like taking a little “vacation day” from all your financial work.

Go see a movie, order takeout, or plan a little weekend getaway. Just make sure you don’t undo all your hard work!

Money Management Tips

Now that we’ve gone over the individual parts of money management, here are some general money management tips to get you started and keep you focused:

Know your financial goals. 

The very first thing to consider with money management is your financial goals. How will you know you have financial success unless you know what it looks like?

We can give you all the quick financial tips you could want, but if you don’t have your goals clearly defined, it won’t matter because you won’t know which tips might apply to you and which would send you in the wrong direction. 

Do you want to retire early? Do you have debts to pay off? Are you a parent who intends to pay for your kid’s college degree, or are you wondering if that’s even remotely possible?

Some people just want extra money in the bank week to week, where others want to become rich.

The specifics for managing money in your 20s are far different than in your 60s. Over time, your financial goals may differ, and you may decide to invest more or pay yourself first rather than do traditional budgeting.

Have a rough path forward. 

Money management doesn’t have to be exact- especially when things change as you go. Flexibility is important to manage your money effectively.

You can have a general outline of what to do and how to reach your goals and keep extra money to your name.

The specifics of your next action steps will depend on the results of the steps outlined later in this article. 

Generally speaking, you’ll want to go into all these steps and any calculations knowing the big picture of how you want to proceed, which in turn tells you which financial planning tips you need. 

Do you want to pay off debts first, then save for retirement, then pay off your mortgage (following the advice from the wise Dave Ramsey)?

Do you want to chip away at debts while saving for a down payment for your first home, then worry about retirement? 

Get Saving!

Do you have an emergency fund or any savings?

If you answered “no” then you need to get on it. Life is unpredictable and things are going to happen. Things like car repairs, surgeries, and death’s in the family are going to happen.

Having an emergency fund prepares you to deal with those situations financially. The last thing you want to worry about in an emergency is “how am I going to pay for this”.

How much of an emergency fund you need varies. The typical rule of thumb is at least 3 months of living expenses. Ideally, you would have more than 6 months of living expenses saved up.

Use the tools you need, and find new ones as necessary. 

There are some great tools out there to manage your money! You just have to decide if you want to do a budget by hand yourself or use a free or paid program that does some of the work for you.

If you’re looking for a simple pen-and-paper solution, try budget templates that have blank spaces and guides to manage your money- check out our Budgeting Binder, which can cover all your budgeting needs!

Some things really do need to be done a little more particularly. While pen and paper work just fine for budgeting, you might find that you need a budget app to have it more automatic and ready to use at any moment.

If you choose not to work with a professional for some of your personal financial management needs, you’ll definitely want to consider investing in some quality money management software, such as Quickbooks.

Final Thoughts

Money management doesn’t have to be rocket science, and we’ve gone over the best money management steps and tips to get you started right away.

We have gotten where we are today by having a clear plan and always reviewing our financial situation monthly. It’s actually really hard for us to imagine not being financially organized; it’s scary.

If you are looking for a digital way to track and organize your finances, try out Empower and test how well it can help you manage your money!

We LOVE our free account and highly recommend them. If you’re not as tech-savvy, a pen and paper always works wonders.

Now that you have the knowledge, it’s time to take action. Get your personal finances organized today!

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Creating a budget can be a little overwhelming, but we Savvy folks know how to make it simple for you!

We’ve created this guide on making a household budget in an Excel spreadsheet to help you create a monthly budget plan that you can follow easily.

Let us help you make an easy budget spreadsheet to get your finances on track and help you on your journey for financial independence!

Why Use A Spreadsheet Vs Printable?

Now we are a fan of the pen-and-paper method. It’s really the fastest and easiest way to get started when you are a beginner. 

But we also see why people like the ease of spreadsheets as well. 

The great thing about using a spreadsheet to organize your budget is that you can use it again and again once you have your setup done and formulas created.

A spreadsheet allows you to use different formulas or functions that help you organize your data into useful information, such as how much cash is left at the end of the month or if you’re over budget.

Plus a spreadsheet like Excel means you can more easily find expenses and income in your budget. For example, if you want to track your budget for health care expenses, you can filter expenses by category and make everything easy to find.

Why Use Excel?

Excel is an excellent program for creating budgets because it is a powerful and flexible program. It’s top-rated for personal finance usage!

It’s also easy to use and helps you organize your information to make sense for your financial plan.

You can create a budget with just a few simple formulas, and you can adjust the spreadsheet to your specific needs as they change over time.

Another great option with Excel is the budget templates that are available online. If you don’t want to follow steps for how to make a budget in Excel, you can find one that fits your needs and plug in the numbers for each month.

How To Make A Budget In Excel

Now that we’ve told you why you may want to make a budget in Excel, let’s show you how it’s done!

You can create a new sheet with ease, and separate your records however you please, but we’ll give you run down of how we make our budget at our Savvy home:

1. Identify Your Financial Goals

 It’s essential to remember that budgets are all about planning for your spending, so the first step is to identify your financial goals. It will be much easier to create your monthly budget once you have all of your goals in mind.

What are your current financial goals? Are you saving each month, or have something to save for? Are you paying off credit cards or student loans?

These are all questions that you can use to help determine your financial health and the best budget plan for you.

The answers to these questions will help you set your short-term and long-term goals. Having specific, measurable goals in place will make it easier to track your spending habits throughout the month.

2. Get A Blank Excel Document Open

To create your own budget spreadsheet, you’ll need to get a new blank workbook open in Excel for your budgeting spreadsheet.

If you already have Excel downloaded on your computer, go ahead and open it up. After you’ve opened the program, click on the Blank Workbook in the top left corner or in the center area of Excel.

If you don’t want to make your own Excel budget template to use, you can use an Excel template. When you open the Excel program, choose “New” on the main screen and use the search bar in the middle to search for “budget” in the templates.

3. Create A Table For Income Streams

Now that you have a blank sheet open, the first step in making a budget in Excel is organizing your income sources.

In the first section of your spreadsheet, make columns for your primary source of income and any secondary sources of income. For this section, we are going to use Columns A-E.

If you want borders like I do, you can highlight the section you’ll use, then click on the box underneath the font size to get some options for your borders.

First, we are going to label the columns. In Column A1, type “Income Streams.” Next, in Column B1, type “Date.”

In Column C1, type “Estimated.” You could also call it “Planned Income.” Type “Actual” in Column D1.

In the last column, type “Difference” in E1.

For our example, let’s say you get paid a planned income twice a month from your regular job and twice a month from your side gig.

Under the column labels, type in the names for your income in Column A. In our example, we just use “Paycheck” for someone with a typical job week to week.

If you have a few jobs or are self-employed as a freelancer, you can use “Income 1”, “Income 2”, “Side Gig 1”, “Side Gig 2”, and so on.

You can put them in as numbers, by client or job name, or however is easiest for you to organize.

Type “=sum(C2-D2)” in E2 to get your total difference, and repeat this for all of your boxes in the Difference Column (D3-C3, D4-C4, etc.).

We’ll get those full totals in Step 5, don’t worry about it just yet!

4. Create An Expenses Table

We will skip Column F and start our next section for Expenses.

For the Expenses columns, you can highlight your entire Income Streams table and then click “Ctrl + C” (at the same time) to copy them. After you’ve copied your table, go over to Column G1 and paste it using “Ctrl + V”.

Now, change Income Streams to Expenses, and start filling in your table with your expenses.

We used a few expenses that most people have each month in our example-for rent, car insurance, or child care expenses. Your budget may have more. If you do, go to the top of the Excel bar and use the Insert section to add other rows.

I put 1/30/2022, as I track monthly expenses for how much I’ll spend in that category for the whole month. So you’ll see in I4, I expected to spend about $200 in Take Out, but didn’t actually get much take out in January.

You can estimate per month like me, or you can use your due date for bills as I did for Rent and Car Insurance.

Now, let’s get out totals ready with the next step.

5. Formulas For Your Totals

Now we are going to get the totals and differences in the amounts- to do this quickly, we add formulas to your spreadsheet.

Now that you’ve got e need your total income for each column across the bottom.

For this, we use the sum function: type “=sum(C2:C10)” for Estimated, D2:D7 for the Actual column, and E2:D7 for the Difference column.

Next, we need your total spending for each column across the bottom. For this, type “=sum(I2:I6)” for Estimated, J2:J6 for the Actual column, and K2:K6 for the Difference column.

Lastly, I create a monthly total in Columns F and M- that way I can sum up how much I made in January, etc., and how much money I spent each month.

6. Monthly Totals (Are You Overspending Money??)

Now, you may be wondering- “How do I keep track of how I’m doing each month?”

Well, we can create new cells to check those totals. To make it easy for me, I put my monthly income totals in between my tables, in Column F.

To do this, just like our other sums, you can type “=sum(” and simply highlight all the cells for all the paychecks that month- you can see above that I did it for all the paychecks in January.

Next, you’ll do the same for your Expenses in Column M (shown in the picture below). 

The last thing I do is make a section labeled “Overspend or Underspend?”, so I can subtract my expenses from my income and see how I really did that month.

This is totally optional if you want to see the numbers laid out for you, but some of you are cool just looking at the totals to compare.

If you check out my screenshot, you can see I actually overspent in January- so it may be time to rework my budget!

Now some people prefer their budget like this- a continuous list of expenses and income flow- but this isn’t the only way to set up your budget.

You could also make these tables for separate months, and start with a new blank workbook every month- whatever you prefer!

You could copy your entire budget month to month, and paste it so it’s ready and set up the same way. 

Try our method, and see how it fits into your style- feel free to adapt and change as you get familiar with Excel.

7. Keep It Up!

And voila, you’ve just created your own Excel budget spreadsheet out of a blank workbook!

But your work isn’t quite done yet…

After adding the formulas and you have your budget frame started, it’s time to keep filling it in!

Most budgets are planned out and then left to languish with no attention. And that’s the problem!

Every start of the month, get in that spreadsheet and estimate what you’ll make and spend.

Then get your pay stubs, bank account statements, and card statements to show your real income and expenses.

Type in the amounts of your income and expenses in the corresponding columns, and add in the formulas to keep your totals going.

The spreadsheet’s total balance should change as you add the amounts to reflect the total income and the total expenses

Now you’ve got a whole setup to copy and paste again and again for whatever new budget you need, and it’ll automatically populate values, quick and simple.

8. Do You Need Some Changes?

You may be surprised to see what the actual totals are once they’re all in one place!

If the totals at the bottom of Columns are positive, you have cash left over- or in your monthly totals, you may be red and looking shy on money that month.

However, if it is negative, you have gone over-budget and need to increase your income or get your expenses down!

It’s totally normal that you may spend more on bills than you expect or other expenses pop up during the month.

Don’t let it discourage you! It may just be time for some changes in your spending habits.

The best way to keep your budget in the black is by regularly making adjustments to your planned vs. actual spending, tweaking it based on what has happened since the last time you looked at it.

This keeps things from going off track and helps you stay on top of your spending. Making adjustments also gives you a chance to try new things, leading to some excellent savings!

If you need inspiration when your budget turns red, try asking yourself these 3 questions:

1. How can I increase my monthly income? (Maybe a new income source, like a side hustle?)
2. How can I lower my actual expenses?
3. Do I need to start saving money?

Budgeting Help

Are you tired of trying to manage your finances alone? There are lots of budgeting tips out there in addition to premade templates and empty spreadsheets!

Watch A Tutorial!

There are a lot of tutorials on YouTube. We have a lot of budgeting videos on our YouTube Channel. Some of our favorites are:

• How to Budget Your Money the Easy Way
• 5 Reasons to Build an Emergency Fund
• 10 Ways to Save on Your Electric Bill

If you can’t find what you are looking for on our channel, use the YouTube search to find more budgeting information.

Make Graphs 

Sometimes it’s easier to see how your family budget is going if you graph where your money is going.

Making a graph can be very helpful to see the different expenses you have and how much you spend each month. You can use different graphs, such as a line graph, a bar graph, or a pie chart.

There are a few different ways to make a graph, but one of the easiest ways is to use Excel. Excel has a lot of different options for graphs, and you can customize them to fit your needs.

Debt Spreadsheet & Planning 

If you’re working on paying off debt, it’s crucial to track your progress in an Excel spreadsheet. Having all your information in one place helps you stay accountable for the money you are using towards your debt.

Make sure to include categories for each bill or payment being made. You can also include a category for savings if you try to put an extra $5 or $10 towards debt each month.

The next step is to set up a budget with your spreadsheet. The main categories you’ll want to look at are fixed monthly bills (housing, groceries, transportation), variable costs (entertainment, gas), and saving money goals.

If you’re looking for more guidance on this topic, you can read about how to make a budget.

Use Budget Templates 

Maybe you would rather have a printed personal budget template instead of using an Excel budget template. That’s fine too.

You can find budget templates online for a zero-based budget or make your own using Excel or Google Docs.

Your Key For Cell Formats

One thing that you will use in your Microsoft Excel budget spreadsheet is cell formatting and formulas. The following are some examples:

• AutoSum – Use the sum function to add a series of numbers in a column or row. Type the equal sign sum (=sum) and then the column letter and row number you want to add. You’ll use this to get the total income and total expenses.
• Multiplication symbol – When typing in a cell, you can add a multiplication symbol if you press “Alt *” (the same key as 8). A multiplication formula looks like this – A4*B6. Then hit enter.
• Division symbol – When typing in a cell, you can add a division symbol if you press “Alt /” (the same key as ? symbol). A division formula looks like this – A4/B6. Then hit enter.

If you need help with more, here is a great cheat sheet to check out!

Final Thoughts

Excel can be a powerful tool to track your spending and create a budget. It’s not hard to create an Excel budget. By following this step-by-step guide, you will learn how to make a budget in Excel.

The best part is that you can use Excel online for free using Google Sheets. You’ll have the tools right at your fingertips, so you don’t have to pay for an expensive program or other alternatives.

If you don’t want to create your own budget template, you can also check out personal finance software to see if it’s right for you. Many options are available today like Mint and Empower, making it easy for everyone to find the one that works best for their needs!

Now that you’ve learned how to make a budget in Excel, why not try it out? Good luck with planning the budget of your dreams!

We all know that budgets have so many benefits, but it can be a hassle- that’s why we have Mint. But they aren’t your only option.

We researched the best Mint alternatives and there are some budgeting apps and other programs to help you with money management.

The following apps are great alternatives to Mint if you’re looking for something different, so let’s get started and find out your best pick!

15 Helpful Mint Alternatives

Mint is a budgeting app that can help you take control of your finances, track your net worth, and help you create a budget.

What’s better? It’s free to use and will import data directly from your bank accounts and credit cards to properly track your transactions in one place.

But it’s not the only one! Here are 15 helpful Mint alternatives for you to consider.

1. Empower (Formerly Personal Capital)

Empower is one of the best Mint alternatives, and we’ve compared it to Mint before if you want to learn more about their difference.

It’s free to use on phones and tablets so people can manage their money, credit cards, and investments on the go.

It’s also very easy to link your financial accounts in one place with Empower, which makes it easier to keep track of all of your finances.

Empower links to all of your financial accounts, displaying where you’re spending money and suggesting methods to save more. It also has tools for investment tracking and retirement planning.

Live advisors are available to answer your questions 24/7 a week as well as wealth management services for those who need them. It has a Two-factor authentication system in place so you can feel safe when using the app.

2. EveryDollar

Consider using a different budgeting tool, such as EveryDollar for you Dave Ramsey fans.

It works off the principle of zero-based budgeting which gives every dollar a job and guides you through Dave Ramsey’s well-known Baby Steps.

For those who are new to budgeting, this is a fantastic way to ease you into it while also keeping the focus on your financial goals. It helps you to take control of your financial future in a proactive, planned way.

There is a free version, as well as paid versions that come with added features such as phone support or automated transaction imports/downloads.

There are three tiers, a 3-month, 6-month, and 12-month tier, for the Ramsey+ Premium Versions with prices starting at $59.99 and going up to $129.99.

3. Quicken

Quicken is a personal finance app that we’ve also compared to Mint. Quicken is still the most sophisticated personal finance software available to show your cash flow, according to many consumers.

If you want to switch to a Mint alternative, Quicken is probably the option for you depending on your specific requirements, such as investment tracking, linking your financial institutions, and figuring your net worth.

You can access your accounts in one place, pay any outstanding bills that you may have, and much more from this dashboard. But unlike Mint, Quicken costs $34.99 a year at a basic plan.

They save your information on a storage server, but you can also download transactions and documents to your computer because it’s a useful location to manage your finances, check tax obligations, and more.

4. You Need A Budget (YNAB)

For people who want to improve their money habits and create financial plans, You Need a Budget is an excellent choice. The goal of the program is to help you plan ahead, set a budget, and avoid making large purchases.

YNAB follows a system called “aging your money”.

It means that money from your income from last month will cover this month’s expenses, and so on forever. It is a great way to avoid living from paycheck to paycheck and slowly build up your savings account.

You can test it out with an interactive 34-day free trial, no credit card is needed, but it is a paid service after your trial, which may affect your pick on this one.

The monthly cost is $11.99 per month; however, if you want annual billing, you can save $7 per month and pay around $84.

At the time we’re writing this, the price is scheduled to go up to $98.99 on December 1, 2021.

5. Mvelopes

Another effective Mint alternative is Mvelopes, which helps you to build a budget and allows you to integrate your bank accounts to help you stay on top of your spending habits.

Mvelopes uses the “envelope system,” where you distribute every dollar into categories (or virtual envelopes) that you consider important and then spend as little as possible from them.

Syncing transactions is also automated which makes it easy to see where you are with your “envelopes” spending at any moment in time.

Mvelopes offers three different monthly plans: $6, $10, and $20 per month depending on which plan you choose. The most inexpensive one comes with limited features, while the other plans have additional bells and whistles.

If you want to save money on what you buy and have more money saved in your envelopes, sign up for an app like Honey that can show you when the price of products goes up or down and also gives you coupons to save on your transactions.

6. Tiller

Mint is a very popular budgeting app, but some people want something different for their needs- that’s where Tiller comes in.

Tiller Money is an alternative to Mint that enables you to view and manage your existing financial information in an automated daily spreadsheet, which is then saved and updated.

It uses Google Sheets and Excel templates as budget spreadsheets, so you can manage all things in one place.

Tiller Money encrypts and keeps your customer information private. They don’t see or sell your data or show advertising and your customer data is secured by 256-bit AES encryption.

You can sign up for a 30-day trial. A credit card is needed to sign up but it won’t be charged anything until after the free trial is over, so be sure to pay attention and decide beforehand if you’ll take it or leave it.

After your free trial is up, you’ll be charged $79 per year (about $6.98 a month).

7. MoneyPatrol

The MoneyPatrol app lets you build a budget for your money by allowing you to define spending categories. It keeps track of how much money you spend in each category and whether or not it fits with your planned expenses.

The Money Patrol strong financial tracking system automatically sorts your transactions into spending classes and labels them according to the merchant once you link your accounts. You also have the ability to enter any additional purchases manually.

Another feature is the ability to create monthly and weekly budgets while keeping track of your accounts’ purchases and running important reports.

The service is free for the first 15 days, but after that, it costs $84 per year or about $7 each month.

8. PocketSmith

Most people use Mint when they are budgeting because it’s completely free, efficient, and simple to use. However, if you’re looking for an alternative app that stands out, PocketSmith may be perfect for you.

PocketSmith is a budgeting app that allows you to manage your finances from anywhere. It’s never been easier to stay organized and get ahead of your finances on the go.

This program will help you set up budgets and calendars for the future months with ease – it even tracks one-time expenses and income so there are no surprises!

This app has a lot of features, including one that lets you analyze your spending habits and generate financial forecasts. The “What Happens If” section is really helpful because it explains what would happen to budgets if there were changes in income or other planning tools!

9. Banktivity

Banktivity is a native application for Apple’s macOS operating system. It also offers mobile synchronization with your Apple iPad, iPhone, and even Watch!

It is the ultimate money management app. Not only does it support multiple currencies, but you can pay bills and monitor investments within Banktivity as well!

What makes things even better?

The “tagging” feature allows users to track different expenses under one broader category like transportation or food- making life way easier in general when trying to stay on top of spending habits without overdoing anything at once!

With its free 30 day trial period that will give you everything, you’ll be able to explore this money management app to see if it’s right for you. Credit cards are required, however, and they will be billed after the free version is over.

10. Goodbudget

Goodbudget is the digital version of an old-fashioned envelope system, similar to Mvelopes.

The envelope system is an age-old budgeting technique because it forces users to think about what they’re spending their money on before actually creating expenses. You pick your important budget categories and plan around them

It helps you create envelopes for monthly and future spending, even infrequent categories like birthday shopping or auto maintenance, so you can stay on top of your finances!

This way, you can plan your spending versus just tracking it. It’s a great idea for people who are looking at their bank accounts and feeling overwhelmed by all the money going out every month with no end in sight!

With the free plan, you can have up to 20 envelopes with one account and two devices. The paid version of GoodBudget is $7 a month or $60 annually and comes with unlimited envelopes, unlimited accounts, and five devices.

11. Moneydance

Moneydance has taken Quicken’s functionality while leaving out the outdated software, resulting in an interface that looks sleek and clean.

The most appealing program for individuals who want to create their own extensions and personalize them as they choose is MoneyDance. You can do that with an open API by using a free, downloadable Extension Developer’s Kit.

MoneyDance has many features, including budgeting and tracking investments. With the app, you may track your expenses and invoices. There’s also free bill pay so that your bills are paid on time!

Would you like to migrate from Quicken to MoneyDance? Simply import your Quicken account into MoneyDance and you’re ready to go.

12. Simplifi

Simplifi is a new mobile budgeting app by Quicken that helps you manage your money better. It does this by analyzing what expenses and incomes are coming in, so it can create an effective spending plan for the future months ahead of time!

You’ll be able to identify recurring subscriptions or other regular payments like rent before they happen, giving you a heads up on your budget.

There’s no cost for the first month, so if it doesn’t work well with your schedule or needs then simply cancel before the trial period ends!

Simplifi helps you track transactions by automatically categorizing your expenses and keeping tabs on what is coming up in the future. You can also set savings goals to help you reach your goals faster.

If there are any bills or subscriptions you no longer use, then you can find them with ease using the watchlists and limits feature. This way when they come up again in the future, it will be easy for you to avoid them!

You can also use the Trim artificial assistant to help you keep track of your subscriptions and even find ways to reduce your bills!

13. CountAbout

CountAbout was created for users wary of Mint and Quicken. Users can input financial data directly from Quicken and Mint using the Internet application.

You can use CountAbout on both the iOS and Android platforms which allows you to look at your budget from anywhere.

It’s not an investment management tool, but it does provide basic financial information and tools. Basic memberships start at $9.99 per year or Premium memberships are $39.99 per year, but you can give it a test run with their 45-day free trial.

14. QuickBooks

Quickbooks is a software that is geared more for small business needs but can also be used by individuals who want a more in-depth look at their personal finances.

QuickBooks can’t be beaten for managing the financials from part-time side hustles to a full-time company.

It has many other features that Mint doesn’t have, including cash flow forecasting and custom reporting options and it has a free 30-day trial so that you can try all the features.

15. Budgeting Templates

While there is no one perfect way to budget, many people find that traditional budgeting templates are the best fit. There are free printable budget templates for you to try budgeting the old-fashioned way.

With a traditional spreadsheet, you can set up your budget any way you want and even use Google Sheets rather than Excel if you prefer. What’s more, people often take their time when entering them in order to really examine each expense and think about whether or not they’re worth it.

Our Budgeting Template is a great example for those looking for something easy to use, grab your freebie version of it right here! We also have a Budget Binder that will change your lives for the better- just like it improved ours!

Alternatives FAQs

Is it better to budget digitally or physically?

It’s a tough question to answer because there are pros and cons for both.

Many people prefer using physical spreadsheets and notebooks to track their budgets because they can customize them any way they want and have more flexibility than with digital versions. They also don’t need an Internet connection in order to use these tools.

However, some people find tracking expenses on a spreadsheet takes too much time, especially without a good template to use. Using mobile budget apps is easy because they can keep track of their expenses on the go, their spending is tracked in one easy program, and most of it can be managed and planned within minutes.

Is Mint the best for budgeting?

Mint is a great budgeting tool to help you find and fix your money leaks. It helps you know exactly how much you’re spending on things like food or travel and helps you realize areas where you need to save money.

Mint also reminds you when bills are due and what payments are coming up in the future so that you can plan accordingly. The app lets users track their budgets by automatically categorizing transactions for them, which means less work!

Mint does not offer investment tools or advice about money planning, but not everyone needs features like that when they create a budget.

The Bottom Line – Mint is a great tool for those who want a little extra help managing their money. It’s easy to use it and the intuitive interface makes it simple to set up your budget and track your spending so that you can get on top of things as quickly as possible.

But it doesn’t hurt to look for Mint.com alternatives.

Which alternative is most similar to Mint?

The best personal finance software that is most similar to Mint is Empower (Personal Capital), in our opinion. We value how much it can help you with your retirement and investment accounts.

Empower lets you connect all of your brokerage accounts, checking accounts, savings accounts, and loans into one place. You can also link retirement accounts like 401Ks or IRAs so that Empower can calculate your net worth.

Just like Mint, the app will automatically categorize your expenses for you so all you have to do is spend money as you normally would. You can also track your budgets and savings goals, see what’s coming up in the future.

What options are free for budgeting and personal finance?

Mint is a great free personal finance tool but there are other options that are also free for budgeting and personal finance. Many free options are ideal for those just getting started. After you’ve got a good handle on things and want more detailed information, then you may want to upgrade to one of those premium services we mentioned earlier.

Some of the free budgeting and personal finance tools are:

• Empower
• PocketSmith
• EveryDollar
• GoodBudget
• Budget templates using Google Sheets or Excel

Can any of these apps track investments or even loans?

The best Mint alternatives that can track investments or even loans are:

• Empower
• Quicken
• Simplifi
• Monarch

Budgeting Tips

Here are some budgeting tips to help you on your budgeting journey.

Use your credit card less to prevent overspending or impulse buys, plus it helps you reduce your debt when you use your debit card instead.

Keep your goals in mind when you budget- don’t forget that sometimes you need to cut back on expenses when money gets tight, but you can be flexible month to month.

And don’t stress over your budget! It’s all about making life easier on you in the long run!

Most people spend their lives living paycheck to paycheck, struggling to make ends meet. Budgeting can help you end this cycle!

Live Frugally

Learning how to live frugally is the best money hack that can lead you towards financial freedom. Making small, everyday changes in the way you spend money can add up to a huge difference over time.

For example, if you’re spending $15 on takeout for dinner every week, then consider buying ingredients and cooking at home. Same quality, more quantity, but it’s cheaper!

Similarly, if you enjoy going out with friends, look for free music festivals in your area where you can spend time together.

Save More, Spend Less

It makes sense- the less you spend, the more cash you have for the future.

You can save money without changing your lifestyle drastically, freeing up more of your income for savings and investments.

You can save money with programs like Ibotta, Capital One Shopping, and Rakuten, earning cash back, rewards, or snagging coupons on many of your purchases!

Look for ways that you can save money without compromising all the time. Small changes can have a big impact over time!

Avoid Lifestyle Inflation

When people start earning more money, they tend to upgrade their standard of living. This is known as lifestyle inflation, and it’s one of the biggest threats to maintaining a stable financial situation.

The best way to avoid lifestyle inflation is to embrace what you already have. If you get a big raise at work, avoid lifestyle inflation by funneling any extra money into your emergency fund.

Once your emergency savings are fully funded, then consider putting some of it towards larger goals like homeownership, investments, or retirement.

Our Thoughts

Have a hard time keeping your finances in check? Mint is not the only option for personal finance software out there that may help you. 

You can find other programs to help you organize and manage your money, avoid debt, keep track of spending habits, calculate budgets, save money on taxes or create an emergency fund.

If you’re looking for some alternatives that will work better than Mint for your needs then one of the Mint alternatives we mentioned might help!

Have you given much thought to your finances? You may want to know the best apps to track your money, develop a budget, manage investments, and improve your finances.

Quicken and Mint are two popular money management tools that can be used to track your personal finances.

Although they both have a lot of good features, there are a few important differences that you should know about. Let’s take a look at their differences so you can decide which one is the better budgeting tool for your needs.

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Description: Take complete control of your finances with Quicken! Plan for today and tomorrow with their award-winning software and apps.	Description: Say hello to the FREE app that takes the work out of personal finances. Track spending, detect fraud, and keep tabs on rising subscription costs.
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Top Pick

Description:

Take complete control of your finances with Quicken! Plan for today and tomorrow with their award-winning software and apps.

4.5

Get Started Now

Description:

Say hello to the FREE app that takes the work out of personal finances. Track spending, detect fraud, and keep tabs on rising subscription costs.

4.5

Track Your Finances For FREE

Mint Vs. Quicken Snapshot

Mint is a family favorite for budgeting, making it simple and easy for just about anyone- but some people are looking into Mint alternatives to see what other features they would benefit from.

They have both been around for a while and have a lot of features in common. However, they do have some important differences that you should consider carefully before deciding between them to manage your finances.

Mint

Mint is a free cloud-based application that has been around since 2006. You can connect with whatever financial institutions or banks you use, and manage all of your financial data like tracking your bank accounts, credit cards, and investments, and also create budgets in one place.

Because Mint is an online tool, the app is always kept up to date with the latest information.

You can access your accounts from anywhere by using a computer or other web-enabled device. No need to worry about having enough storage on your phone to download the app.

One of the positives in Mint’s favor is that the online interface has security measures built into the cloud-based app.

However, one of the negatives working against Mint is the fact that Mint’s customer support system lacks email or phone support specifically for Mint. Customer service for Mint is through Intuit’s customer service and can be slow.

Quicken

Quicken is another popular budget app that has been around for almost 30 years helping people manage their money. It is sometimes known as “the granddaddy of personal finance software”.

Users must download the software and the dashboard is usually restricted to desktop usage with Quicken. With Quicken, if one device has an issue or malfunctions, you need to download the software again on a different device.

The Quicken software is available in four versions – Starter, Deluxe, Premier, and Home & Business. There is also a new Quicken app named Simplifi that is available to use on iOS, Android, and web platforms.

Quicken has excellent customer support with a quick response time to both phone and email. The customer service reps are knowledgeable and quick to help.

Mint Vs. Quicken Breakdown

There are similarities between the two budgeting apps, but also many crucial differences.

Mint Vs. Quicken Similarities

1. They have similar capabilities when it comes to helping you manage your money. They can both accurately categorize receipts, payments, transactions, and so on to assist users in seeing where their money is going each month.

2. The two budget apps have online account integration so you can upload transactions from your bank accounts and credit cards.

Although both are good budgeting tools, they have many differences.

Which one is better for you?

Pricing

Do you not use budgeting software because you’re worried about what it’ll cost you?

Pricing is one of the first differences that you should consider especially if you are on a budget. And one of the main Quicken vs. Mint differences is how much they each cost.

Mint

What makes Mint so popular is that it is completely free to use. That’s right! Mint is free for your personal finance needs! It doesn’t have any hidden in-app purchases fees that you will need to pay after setting it up and using it for a bit.

Mint makes money by showing ads on their website and the mobile app. They don’t show a lot of ads like some sites but they are there to help keep the site and app free.

Quicken

Quicken’s software and Simplifi app are not free to use. The software packages also come with a companion app on iOS and Android.

The basic Quicken software package is called “Starter” and is currently priced at $35.99 a year. The other packages go up in price.

The most expensive is the “Home & Business” and is regularly priced at $103.99, but don’t forget to check for deals and sales on the software. At the time of this writing in late November 2021, the software was marked down 40% on all packages except for the Starter package.

The Simplifi by Quicken app is also not free to use and is a finance management app. It is currently is available in two plans – a yearly and a monthly. The yearly plan is currently $2.99 a month and is billed yearly. The monthly plan is currently $5.99 a month.

Read our full Simplifi Review here. 

Budgeting Tools

Not a fan of doing budgets by hand? Well, that’s where Mint and Quicken can help you!

You can use personal finance software or mobile app to help manage your money by tracking spending. In this section, we will look at the different ways you can manage your budgets through Mint and Quicken.

Mint

The Mint app has a lot of features and tools that can help you make budgets, plan for bills, save money, and more.

Mint has one that you can use before you even sign up for a Mint account. The Mint free budget calculator can help you understand your monthly finances and provide insights into where you’re spending the most money (and where you may cut back!).

The app’s simple interface makes it easy for anybody to operate. Just enter your details, and it will calculate your total monthly income, total monthly expenditures, and total monthly savings automatically. You can see whether you’re spending above or below your budget by consulting the provided results.

Mint allows you to create budgets that track your income and expenses with their Budget Tracker. You can set goals like saving for an upcoming vacation or purchase and see how close you are to meeting that goal.

You can connect your financial accounts like your credit cards, bank, investment, mortgage accounts, etc. It will track all of these accounts to help you see where you are spending your money and create a budget to help you stay on track. It also can recommend ways to save more money.

Quicken

Quicken has a lot of the same budgeting tools as Mint. It is a powerful money management tool that you can use to create a budget.

The Quicken software looks at your spending and income and creates a budget based on those values.

It allows you to create roll-over budgets and forecast your balances, and it’s simple to import Excel data from Quicken. Monthly, quarterly, and yearly budgets are also easy to make and can be changed as needed.

The software can also help you set goals for yourself like saving up money for a vacation or home repair.

Savvy Tip: If you are new to budgeting, make it easy and less stressful by choosing the tool that may not have all the features you want at first but will help you take smaller steps to learn to budget.

Credit Score Monitoring

Your credit score may be the most valuable tool you’ve ever used. A strong one may save you a lot of money on items like loans, credit cards, insurance, and other expenses.

Let’s take a look at the Mint vs. Quicken Credit score monitoring tools.

Mint

Mint has a great credit score monitoring tool that is easy to use and understand.

With Mint, you can access your free TransUnion 3.0 VantageScore. It allows you to monitor the different factors on your score and how it changes over time.

Within minutes, you’ll receive your free credit report summary after you verify your identity. It’s really handy to have your credit score and accounts all in one spot. You don’t have to log in anywhere else to another website.

Quicken

Quicken offers a credit score monitoring tool that is easy to use and understand. While Mint offers TransUnion’s score, Quicken offers the credit score from Equifax.

You can get your free VantageScore credit score model based on Equifax data from Quicken as well. It tracks your different credit accounts and what you have paid for each one, as well as other factors that affect your score.

The software also offers a detailed analysis of the factors that affect your score and how it may be improved.

Savings

Both Quicken and Mint have features that allow you to track your savings goals– and try to get that $1,000 emergency fund like Dave Ramsey suggests. Some key differences are worth pointing out.

Mint

Mint has a savings goal feature, but it’s pretty limited if you want to do more in your personal finances.

Users can create only one goal for savings at a time with Mint. This is helpful if you are saving up for something specific like a vacation, car repair, or house. But it limits you if you are saving for several different things.

When your savings goal is linked to a savings account and the total in this account equals or exceeds your target, the program indicates that your aim has already been achieved.

Quicken

Quicken can handle multiple savings goals at once and allows you to save more than one savings goal at once. The software allows you to set up multiple buckets of money with different names for each one.

For example, if you are saving up for a vacation and also for Christmas gifts, you can do both of these things at the same time. You can even set your savings goals on an irregular schedule like bi-weekly or monthly.

Debt Repayments

It is important to have a plan for paying off your debts. Quicken and Mint both allow you to see your debt in one place and then create a plan to pay off your debts.

Mint

Mint did, at one time, offer Bill Pay. They discontinued offering Bill Pay in June 2018.

Even though you can’t pay the bill with Mint, you can still keep track of all your bills and money in one location. You’ll be aware of when you’re required to pay when it’s due, and what you can afford.

Mint also offers the Credit Card Payoff Calculator. It helps you determine your monthly payment amount and when you can completely pay off a credit card.

Quicken

Quicken has switched to a new Bill Pay system besides having pointers on taking care of your debt! Quicken Bill Manager includes two options for paying your bills with Quicken:

• Quick Pay: Quicken can send electronic payments to billers (payees) that have online accounts that may be accessed by Quicken. There are over 11,000 billers listed in this category.
• Check Pay: You can send a check to anyone in the United States with an address. The payment is processed through Quicken. You won’t have to print or hand out checks anymore.

Quicken offers a debt reduction planner to help you repay your debt sooner. Basically what you do is put in your debt amount and the amount of the monthly payment you want to make. The software will tell you how long it will take to repay the debt.

It’s not exactly 100% accurate, but it can be helpful.

Retirement Accounts

Do you track your retirement investments? This can help you to grow your money for the future.

Mint

Mint has a Retirement Calculator that you can use before you sign up. The Retirement Calculator helps you see how much money you will need to save for retirement.

Mint can help you figure out how much money you’ll need for retirement. Fill in the calculator with your data and retirement goals, and Mint will give you an estimate of how much cash you’ll require to make your retirement aspirations come true.

You may try out a variety of scenarios to see how your retirement outcomes vary depending on circumstances like your retirement contributions.

This tool will help you keep track of your retirement savings progress and make sure you’re on track to retire comfortably.

After you sign up for Mint, you can link your retirement accounts including IRAs, pension plans, and 401(k)s to Mint. You can add a variety of investment accounts and each one will be listed separately on the app.

Mint users may create retirement goals and a budget to reach them to stay on top of their retirement planning.

If you’re comparing a normal and Roth IRA, Mint can also help you choose which is the better option.

Quicken

Quicken offers the ability to link your tax-deferred accounts like 401(k)s and IRAs. It also allows you to keep track of your education savings plans, like 529 plans.

You can create financial goals or even watch lists for opportunities that might open up in your different accounts.

Quicken vs. Mint, retirement accounts, personal finance

Tracking Investments

It’s difficult to keep track of your investments, especially if you have several different investments.

One way to make it easier is to use a personal finance tool that can help you with investment tracking.

How does Quicken vs. Mint investment tracking abilities compare?

Mint

Mint is an investment aggregator. It does allow you to link your investment accounts, but the capabilities are limited.

If you are only looking for an Investment Calculator, Mint has one that you can use before signing up for an account.

You can create investment objectives, project investment growth, and search for opportunities to improve your portfolio’s performance by entering a few important figures!

Quicken

There are some investment tracking features offered in the Quicken Deluxe version but there are even more investment tracking available in premium plans – Premier and Home & Business versions.

Quicken lets you:

• track any publicly traded equities you don’t own to monitor them, create stock watchlists.
• track your assets and retirement accounts
• use Morningstar’s Portfolio X-ray tool to analyze your assets.
• Examine your cost basis and produce tax reports to see whether any changes are required.

Finance Reports

The reports that you may create are an important weapon in your money management arsenal. Mint and Quicken provide personal finance reports to help you manage your money.

Mint

Mint has mini-reports that cover your Net Worth, Credit Score, Current Debts, Monthly Income vs. Monthly Expenses, and Investing Performance.

It also allows you to find out your daily statistics, a monthly summary, and an annual overview of your spending.

Quicken

With Quicken, users can get more comprehensive financial reports including budget spreadsheets, monthly spending by category, and cash flow projections.

Quicken has reports on cash flow from investments, purchases by payee or category, and recent investment activity, among other things. You may personalize this report to include only the data that is of interest to you.

You can export your reports as PDFs and then print or share them electronically with tax professionals or advisors to help with your tax reports.

If you are comparing Quicken vs Mint in the area of financial reporting, it’s easy to see that Mint has limited capabilities when it comes to creating reports about your personal financial situation!

Bank Reconciliation

A bank reconciliation report is a comparison of your financial transactions between your bank card statements and the bank statements.

Mint

Mint currently doesn’t provide a bank reconciliation report.

Quicken

Quicken provides a bank reconciliation function that can help reconcile both online banking account balances and the bank account with a paper statement.

Reconciling isn’t required, but some people want to reconcile their accounts to ensure that their data in Quicken matches what appears on their bank’s statement.

Transactions in the period indicated on your current bank statement, as well as prior transactions, might all have an impact on reconciling.

You also have the option to reconcile accounts connected to online services in addition to the accounts where you have manually entered transactions.  

Property Management

Property management is all about keeping records of your house or any real estate you manage. It’s important to know the value of your home, the amount you owe on your property, and also keep up with tax-related payments.

Mint

One of the features Mint offers is a property management feature. With this feature, you can add your vehicles, real estate, and other property you may own. This will help calculate your net worth.

Quicken

Quicken also offers property management in a couple of different ways. You can add your personal property like in Mint but Quicken Home and Business also has the feature to manage your rental property.

There are numerous things you can do with the Rental feature. You can get a report of lease payments, accept online rental payments through PayPal, check security deposits, and you can also track tax-related payments and export them to the tax software.

Usability

One of the things you should look for when comparing financial software is how easy it is for the user to learn and use the software or app. Mint and Quicken both have similar features but you must decide which one is more user-friendly for you.

Mint

The Mint user interface is simple to use and readily accessible. Even a first-time user will be able to grasp it quickly, as the app walks you through each step.

It is easy to navigate the sleek and modern Mint dashboard. Since it is free for users, you will see a few advertisements.

Quicken

Quicken is also very accessible and somewhat easy to use. It takes a few steps before you can get started and it can be a little complicated to understand the software once you start using it.

Customer support is there to help answer and guide you in any questions you have about the software.

Final Verdict: Mint Vs. Quicken

It’s hard to say which one is the better budgeting tool because Quicken and Mint both have their strengths and weaknesses as budgeting tools.

It all comes down to what features you desire and need in the end. Here are some suggestions for making your decision.

Pick Mint If:

• it comes down to your financial situation. Mint is free and can get you by with the basics.
• you are looking for a mobile app with a user-friendly interface. Mint has a simple and modern interface that is easy to use.
• a cloud-based application is what you are looking for in a personal finance tool.
• you don’t mind slow customer support.
• budgeting is new to you and you don’t want to stress about learning a new software while learning to budget.

Pick Quicken If:

• budgeting software to download to your computer is what you need. 
• you need the extra features that Quicken has such as property management for rental properties.
• need more detailed reports run than Mint offers.
• you are willing to pay the yearly cost of the program.
• quicker customer support (email, phone support, etc.) is a requirement.
• you are used to a money management program to help you pay your bills in one place.

Other Alternatives

Mint and Quicken are not the only personal finance software.  There are several great alternatives to Quicken and Mint for financial management:

Empower (Formerly Personal Capital)

Empower is a powerful tool to manage your investment accounts. It not only tracks your spending and investments, but it also can help you optimize your asset allocation, financial goals, and even retirement planning.

Did we mention that it is free for you? When it comes to comparing Empower vs. Mint, once again it comes down to what you need in a personal finance app.

EveryDollar

EveryDollar is also a good alternative to Mint and Quicken, making it easier for you to manage your money. It’s especially useful if you find yourself not sticking to your budget because it forces you to stay within the guidelines of your weekly allowance.

Tiller

Tiller is an easier alternative if you just want to track your spending. It doesn’t have all the bells and whistles of Mint or Quicken, but it is free and without any ads.

Final Thoughts

Mint and Quicken are both great personal finance tools to manage your money, pay off debt, and more.  Picking the best one always comes down to you- it depends on what you’re looking for in budgeting tools.

If you need help getting started with your budget, then Quicken and Mint can both get the job done with their simple set ups and great service tools. 

Quicken is a fantastic option for individuals searching for an in-depth approach to actively manage every aspect of their finances. It’s great for people who would rather have locally installed software on their computer.

Mint is the best personal finance tool for individuals who want something that is free and is simple to use. It’s perfect for those who enjoy cloud-based software and powerful mobile apps that can keep up with a busy schedule.

The best advice we can give is to take into consideration your needs and then pick the one that best meets them. You can try Mint since it’s free first, see how you like it- after all, why pay for something when you can get by on freebies.

We can’t all be great at math or keep great paper records, so the easy-to-use online spreadsheets can make a big difference for those who struggle to stay organized with time and money.

Why Budget?

Budgets get a bit of a bad rep for sometimes being time-intensive, but we think that it’s essential when it comes to building wealth.

We tend to give it a bad rep generally because we hear people turn down things like fun nights out because they’re “on a budget” – which means that we equate budgets with not being able to do fun things.

However, here at The Savvy Couple, we think of things a bit differently. We actually think that if you want to do fun things, you need to budget.

If your goal is to obtain a bright financial future, you need a budget to get started and keep you on track.

How to Budget with a Spreadsheet

A budget spreadsheet is what you want if you’re looking for something quick and responsive and can do all of the math and number crunching for you.

Many spreadsheets come with help options or you can check the manufacturers’ website for instructions- but my favorite is watching a YouTube video so I can get a play-by-play of the action and repeat it myself.

There are lots of different ways that you can set up a budget using a spreadsheet – it’s all about what works best for you.

Many come with budget templates to use, where you can just plug-and-chug your own information easy-peasy.

7 Free Budget Spreadsheets to Make Life Easier

1. Microsoft Office – Excel 

Microsoft Office has been well-known for years and its programs can make your lives easier! So many people have access to Excel through work or school, so why not give it a shot?

Plus you may have used Excel for spreadsheets in high school or college, so it’s something you’re already familiar with- if not, we have a guide to making a budget with Excel!

The great thing about using Microsoft Excel is that you start from scratch, meaning you can customize it to look how you’d like and include all the relevant details you need

If you don’t know where to start, there are Excel budgeting templates you can search through to find a simple budget.

If you have been thinking about getting a monthly budget planner to track your monthly income and expenses, we highly recommend it.

2. Google Drive – Google Sheets

If you don’t have access to Microsoft, Google Sheets can be a better option for you – and it’s free to use.

Google Sheets works in a very similar way to Excel, but be wary if you move a spreadsheet because the formulas don’t always match up when transferring data.

You don’t have to be a spreadsheet whizz to set up something simple, such as entering your daily spending or monthly expenses for a basic budget.

Another great feature on Google Sheets is that they have a template gallery where you can find or monthly or yearly budget templates to make starting easy.

3. Mint

Mint is a free budgeting site that we love! You can create a free budget spreadsheet without doing much work!

They have helpful tools for your budget, such as a spending analysis, bill pay reminders, and credit monitoring.

You can link all of your accounts within Mint, from credit cards to loans, which gives you a good overall look at your personal finances.

It’s also great there’s credit report monitoring quarterly to see if there have been any changes to your credit score.

If you’re worried about the security side of things with linking all of your accounts, know that they have multi-factor authentication and fingerprint log-in.

4. Vertex42

If you’re looking for free budgeting tools, Vertex42 is a fantastic place to find budgeting spreadsheets.

There are a few systems that they are compatible with, such as Excel, Google Sheets, LibreOffice, and more.

There are a bunch of different spreadsheets that you can use based on what kind of thing you want to use them for.

For example, there is a college budget sheet, monthly household budget sheet, personal monthly budget sheet, and more.

Something that we think is really cool, is that they have provided videos on most of the sheets so that you can see how to use them, which is perfect for beginners.

5. NerdWallet

NerdWallet is one of our favorite money sites, and we love that they are offering a budgeting spreadsheet for free.

NerdWallet recommends using the 50/30/20 budget method on their worksheet, where you split up your expenses into 3 categories: 50% towards your needs, 30% towards your wants, and 20% towards savings and/or debt.

On their site, they have a budget template worksheet where you can check how your expenses compare to the budgeting method.

You can download the Excel spreadsheet for free or sign up for NerdWallet to start your budget.

6. It’s Your Money

Over on It’s Your Money, you can find a bunch of different spreadsheets to choose from depending on what kind of thing you are after.

There are both free and paid spreadsheets, and these are separated on the page so you can head straight to the free ones if that’s what you want.

Some of the available spreadsheets include ones like a cash-flow budget spreadsheet, a spending plan spreadsheet, a spending plan spreadsheet, and more.

7. Tiller

Tiller is a top-rated option for online budgeting, mainly because they offer hands-on integration with your bank accounts.

You can connect your bank account to the app and launch the Foundation Template as a base for your budget categories as well as loads your transactions.

It’s a Google Sheet that you put in your information, like income, bills, or debt payments, but it has more features than your typical Google setup.

Budgeting Apps vs. Printable Spreadsheets

So when you want to create a budget, you have the option to do it by hand or electronically, it’s all about your preference.

If you’re new to budgets and aren’t quite sure how to put budget spreadsheets together, then you may want to start with a template spreadsheet.

You can find printable budget templates online that have the important budget categories listed and ready to be filled out.

We’ve checked out some budget templates to take the guesswork out of getting started on your budget.

If you’re tech-savvy, then an electronic budget spreadsheet could be the best option for you. Some of the options below have apps to download so you can update on the go.

Avoiding the Challenges

There are some challenges you may face with your budget, but mostly because we have avoided delving into our finances in the first place!

The main challenge that comes with budgeting is staying consistent and on track with your budget spreadsheet.

When you first start budgeting, you will need to track your daily spending, which can feel like a bit of a chore.

There is a method to the madness, however!

The key thing to do to get around any lack of consistency is to make it part of your daily routine- schedule a time to fill out your budget, even set alarms and reminders, and soon it will become a good habit!

You need to keep your finances a priority in your life, so track well to get realistic numbers and analyze your spending. Once you know where you’re at, you can start obtaining your financial goals.

Other Budgeting & Money Saving Ideas

When it comes to saving money, there are so many ideas that you can try out.

Budget By Hand

Something that you may want to try out is budgeting by hand to track your spending.

Try printable templates with fill-in categories.

Many people like doing this because it feels like the numbers really sink in psychologically and take more thought to work on your savings.

Get Cashback

We love getting cash back on the items we’re going to be purchasing anyway, and some of our favorites include Ibotta and Rakuten.

Use Coupons

You can download browser extensions such as Honey or Capital One Shopping to find coupons for you automatically at checkout.

Some Takeaways

Budgeting is personal and is a necessity if you want to save money for the future while still living the good life.

Like it or not, budgeting should be part of your lifestyle from now on. You work hard to earn your income, so it’s time to make sure that it’s going towards the things that you actually want.

A budgeting spreadsheet can make budgeting easier for you by automatically formatting everything for you, rather than using a printable monthly budget template by hand.

We even make goals for how to better ourselves and how we want to live our lives.

But we have to find out how to achieve those goals!

We are big fans of setting goals and find them instrumental to our success.

If you’re not sure what kind of goals to set, we will run through some simple financial goals that you will want to implement this year. 

Let’s get started! 

1) Fully Fund An Emergency Fund

An emergency fund is a stack of money that you have in case of emergencies.

How much money you put in your emergency fund is up to you, and should be whatever amount makes you feel most comfortable.

It is typically recommended that you start with $1000 or 3 months worth of expenses.

You want to be able to easily access your emergency fund, but we’d also advise you to keep it somewhere that you won’t dip into it.

A sale at Target is not an emergency! (Sadly).

Setting up savings funds for other things that you will need to pay for is a good idea, and try to leave your emergency fund alone until you need it.

An emergency fund is a good short term goal, which can have long term benefits.

We recommend opening an account with CIT Bank with their industry leading high interest rates. 

2) Start a Simple Monthly Budget (Money Plan)

If you haven’t got a budget in place already, creating one will put you in the best possible position for 2023 and the future.

A lot of people think of a budget as restrictive, but it’s actually the opposite.

A budget isn’t just writing down your bills, but putting together a complete financial plan for your life. Learning how to manage your money is one of the best things that you can do.

You will start with writing down your bills of course, but then you will need to work out how much you are spending on your other expenses.

Look back through your bank statements and add up how much you have been spending in other areas, such as groceries and entertainment.

This will put together the fixed expenses and variable expenses of your budget.

You will then get your income and subtract the expenses above. The money that is left over should go towards your goals, such as paying off debt or savings.

3) Cut Expenses

This is a good next step to come to after creating your budget.

You will have a list of your expenses – both fixed and variable. You can go down the list and choose some expenses that you can cut.

You could start with your bills – shop around and see if you can find what you currently have for a lower price. Or maybe you could cancel some things that you don’t really need altogether.

When it comes to your variable expenses, it needs to be realistic. As outlined in the step above (creating your budget), these numbers come from what you are actually spending.

You may want to set yourself a little challenge – this could be something like picking 2 expenses per month to reduce.

Living a bit more of a frugal life can dramatically reduce your costs but still let you have a good time.

4) Start a Side Hustle

Money making side hustles are becoming more and more popular, as people realize that you can make a lot of money outside of your 9-5.

We are huge fans of the side hustle and have had some very profitable ones – notably this blog and VIPKid.

The side hustle that you choose will depend on what you enjoy, and how much time and money that you are able to put into it.

You may feel like you don’t have a lot of time to start up something new, but there are lots of students and moms who are starting up side hustles and getting big success.

Even if you don’t want to start something massive, it’s a good way of generating extra income that you can use towards your goals. Starting a side hustle and wanting to scale it up is a great long term goal.

You could start off with something small, such as surveys or babysitting. Or if you want to do something bigger, try dog walking or teaching English online.

5) Pay Off Debt Quickly

A major goal that you should concentrate on for 2023 is paying off your debt ASAP.

If you don’t have debt, great! Feel free to skip past this step.

With the total US consumer debt (that’s not including mortgages or student loans) at a figure of $13.86 trillion, there are a lot of Americans who are in debt.

There are many reasons for paying off debt, but we feel like the main one is that it holds you back.

What could you do with the money that you are currently putting towards your debt?

There are a couple of popular methods of paying off debt called the debt snowball method and the debt avalanche method. One focuses on paying off the debt with the highest interest rate first, and the other with tackling the smallest debt amount first.

6) Automate Your Savings

This is something that is essential to set up if you are someone who struggles with saving.

You should be saving about 20% of your income each month, but saving automatically will also save you some hassle!

The best thing about setting up automated savings is that you don’t have to think about it. Often, thinking about whether we should move money to savings or not ends in us not taking action.

Set up an automatic savings transfer with your bank that happens right after getting paid, so you are used to the money not being there to spend.

7) Save For Retirement

This is definitely an important goal for 2023. It’s one of those goals that you think “ah…retirement is ages away, I have time!” – and then you look at some math and you quickly change your tune.

Before you even start saving for retirement, we recommend that you go onto a retirement calculator and fiddle about with some numbers.

When you start looking at how much you need to save each month to retire by a certain date, saving for retirement suddenly becomes a whole lot more exciting!

Aiming for early retirement is a good goal to have too, as you don’t know what will happen in the future. Even if you decide you want to carry on working, it will bring peace of mind to know you have the cash there.

A good first step is to max out your 401k and go from there.

8) Get Super Organized

This may sound like a bit of an odd goal to include on this list, but all of the steps in this article are basically this – get organized.

Ideally, you want to get organized in all areas of your life, but your finances are a good place to start.

Download our Budget Binder, or use an app like Personal Capital to be able to see your finances in one go.

Set your bills up on auto-pay, get your savings automated, keep your documents stored nicely, and you will be setting yourself up for success.

9) Read More Personal Finance Books

A common habit of highly successful people is to read a lot of books.

There are some popular personal finance books out there that will get you started on the right foot.

If you are on the step of paying off your debt, a good book to start with is The Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey.

10) Protect You and Your Family

Regardless of any other goals that you have for yourself, protecting your family should be of vital importance.

Have Life Insurance

Make sure that you have adequate life insurance so that your family will be ok upon your passing.

Haven life insurance is a great option to try. Make sure that you are honest with everything on there and are completely covered.

Emergency Binder

Grab the Emergency Binder that has everything in one place for when there is an emergency.

If something happens to you, you will want to make sure that it is not stressful for your family. 

This is where you would find your accounts, your life insurance information, where your will is, etc.

Some other things that you could include in your emergency binder include:

• Emergency contacts and important phone numbers
• Copies of important documents
• Medical information
• Insurance documents
• Legal documents
• Evacuation checklist
• Emergency plan

Money can be used as a tool to ensure that you and your family live a safe, happy life.

Ignoring your finances only leads to stress and worry. If you are organized and have a plan, these goals will be easy to reach.

By following a plan and having good goals, you could even reach early retirement, or do the things that you’ve always dreamed of doing, such as traveling the world or buying your dream home.

When you ask a friend if they want to go out for food, and they say “Oo no I can’t, I’m on a tight budget” it makes you think badly of budgets.

This makes a lot of us think that following a budget means that you can’t do anything that you want to do, ever.

That’s the opposite of what a budget does! 

A good, balanced budget is a spending plan – you decide what you want to spend your money on, and then you follow that financial plan.

Have $200 to spare after bills and want to go out for an evening meal? Do it!

That’s the power of learning how to budget. You get to decide exactly what your hard earn money does for you. 

Head here to learn the best budgeting tips and best money quotes around. 

What Exactly is a Monthly Budget?

A monthly budget is a monthly plan for your money. Every month you will get money coming in, and you will have money going out.

This way you’re taking all your finances- your income and your payments- into your hands! It’s the best way to achieve independent wealth and take care of yourself financially.

A budget will show you exactly how much you have going in and out, and make sure that you are living within your means. 

You will make a list of all of the incoming money that you have such as your weekly or bi-weekly paychecks and side hustle income. 

Then you will write down all of your expenses, and this is where it will get interesting. For most people who don’t have a budget, the expenses are what can take you by surprise when you add up how much is going out of your account each month.

With budgeting, you will be able to see the flow of money, and redirect the flow towards better things, to make sure that you are able to work towards your goals.

How to Budget: 6 Simple Steps Anyone Can Follow

1. Make the Commitment to Stick to a Monthly Budget
2. Write Down Your Monthly Take-Home Income 
3. Pay Yourself First 
4. Write Down That Month’s Expenses 
5. Calculate, Review, and Adjust 
6. Rinse and Repeat Every Month 

Now let’s get into each one of these steps a little deeper. 

1) Make the Commitment to Stick to a Monthly Budget 

Every month, you will have to create a new budget. Yes, every month – because every month is different. You may get an extra paycheck one month out of the year, you may have more things to pay for in one month than the next, etc.

Budgeting is fun because you can see the progress that you are making towards your goals.

At the end of every month, sit down and work out a new budget. You can, of course, use most of the information from the previous month, but there will be things that vary from month to month, depending on what you have planned.

Remember – a budget is a tool that will help you achieve your goals, and stop you from wasting your hard-earned money on things that you don’t even really want or need.

2) Write Down Your Monthly Take-Home Income 

Look at your bank statement and see the exact amount that you have coming in each month. You’ll most likely have incoming money for things like:

• Husbands income
• Wifes income
• Side hustle income

Make sure that you put down the exact money that you will have coming into your account, but if you aren’t 100% sure, it’s worth checking your bank to see.

If you aren’t sure about whether you will be receiving certain money or not, I would suggest leaving that out of your budget, in case you don’t get it. Only budget using money that is guaranteed.

3) Pay Yourself First 

What a lot of us tend to do, is to pay our bills, spend money on the things that are taking our fancy, and then try and save any money that is left after that – which is not a lot.

This is one of the biggest budgeting challenges that gets people stuck. Once you get paid, make sure that you pay yourself first.

What this means, is that you think of saving money as a non-negotiable like a bill, and move money straight over to savings before you are tempted to spend it.

4) Write Down That Month’s Expenses 

You can look at your bank account to see the things that you need to pay for that month, which will probably be things like:

• Mortgage/Rent
• Gas/electricity
• Water
• Sewage
• Trash
• House insurances
• Medical
• Groceries

There will be other things that you will be paying for, so it’s best to check your bank statements and look at previous months.

When it comes to your variable expenses, you can again look back at previous bank statements to see how much you spent in previous months.

This is an important step- if there are things you want to save for, you need to compare to what you’ve spent before or do an estimate. If you want to go camping but stay within budget or have a fun staycation with the family, then you need to take saving for it into account ahead of time.

With categories such as groceries and eating out, this can be guessed wildly wrong in terms of how much is spent, so tracking these expenses will help you to make a realistic budget.

Your calendar will help you to work out the things that you will need to pay for from month to months, such as birthdays and various occasions. 

You will want to get your expenses as low as possible so that you have more money left for the important stuff.

5) Calculate, Review, and Adjust 

Once you have your income and your expense totals, you can minus the expenses from the income, and see how much is left.

Your bills need to be paid each month – these are non-negotiables. Once you are confident that your bills will be paid, you can see how much is leftover and move that money into various pots.

The pots that we’ve been discussing are things like: sinking funds (for birthdays, Christmas), savings, fun money, emergency fund, etc. It’s up to you to decide how much goes into which.

You can change your mind, and adjust what you originally thought you were doing to do – it’s 100% down to you, just make sure that you are realistic and are prepared for things to crop up.

6) Rinse and Repeat Every Month 

A budget isn’t a one-trick pony. You need to keep on top of it and make sure that you change and review it each month.

The more that you look at your budget, the more that it will sink in, and you will be on top of your money. If you are working towards a goal, this will help you to stay on track and keep motivated.

Will a Monthly Budget Really Work For Me?

A monthly budget will definitely work, but we need to remember that we are only human, not a calculator.

What I mean by this is that it’s easy to manipulate the numbers to work for you, and give you loads of extra spare cash each month, but if you are changing habits of a lifetime, you will need to give yourself a bit of slack and be realistic.

If you normally spend $1000 a month on food, putting in the budget that you’ll only spend $100 next month is extremely unrealistic.

An easy way to see how much you have been spending on the variable expenses (so the expenses that change on cost from month to month) is to go back through the last few months bank statements and add up how much you have been spending on those particular things.

The success of the budget is down to a realistic one being created and sticking to it. If you have down $200 for gas that month, don’t go over that amount. If you think you will go over it, then over-budget for it, so that if you don’t go over, you can move that money somewhere else, and have no stress.

The budget that you create is personal to you, so you can decide exactly how much you want to spend on things, and give yourself money for that daily Starbucks treat, or the cute top you’ve had your eye on for weeks if that’s what you genuinely want to do.

Why is Monthly Budgeting so Important?

I am a huge advocate of budgeting because I believe that we should all have things that we are working towards, and as much as we like to tell ourselves that money isn’t important, it sure does help pay for a lot of the things that we desire!

We aren’t talking about a wardrobe that would make the Kardashians jealous, but things like a forever home for your family. Perhaps a career change into a job that will bring you so much happiness, compared to the dead-end job that you’re stuck in now because you need to pay the bills.

Personally, I have used budgeting to keep my head above water when struggling financially, manage my money to enable me to pay off my debts, save up for things that were important to me, and now I am using it to keep my bills paid and to save for a house and a down payment.

If you don’t keep track and control of your money, that’s where the holes open up.

Not sure where your money is going every month? It’s probably going on some random things like clothes or nights out, and those aren’t going to help you to achieve your big goals.

This isn’t the same for everyone of course, and some people manage fine without a budget, but it will certainly help the vast majority of you to get your money going where you want it to go.

What Types of Budgets Are There?

There are a few different budgets out there, but the most popular (for good reason) tend to be the zero-sum budget and the 50/20/30 rule budget.

The Zero-Based Budget is where you allocate all of your money to various things so that you are left with a sum of $0.

As mentioned previously, if we leave ourselves with some money in our accounts ‘just in case’, it’s all too easy to end up spending that money on stuff we didn’t even really want that much.

The zero-based budget will help you find a place for your money so that all of your bills are covered, your savings, money for doing whatever you want with e.g. if you want to spend $100 on nights out that month, then put that into the budget.

The 50/20/30 budget is where you divide your spending into percentages – 50%, 20%, and 30%.

The 50/20/30 Rule basically helps you categorize and prioritize where your money goes:

The 50% is for your fixed essential expenses – the ones that aren’t changing each month, such as your mortgage/rent, insurance, etc.

The 20% is for your savings, or any other financial goals that you are working towards, such as paying off your debt.

The 30% is for the variable expenses that you have each month – so the ones that change from month to month. Examples are groceries, gas, fun money, etc.

The beauty of the 50/20/30 budget is that once you have paid for the essential things (like housing) and your very important savings (the 20%), you need to make the rest fit into the 30% that’s leftover.

This will mean that you will have to be careful with what you are spending on the variable, non-essential items, and make you think about what you are spending your ‘spare’ money on.

Why is a Budget Hard to Stick With?

A budget is hard to stick with if it’s something that you aren’t used to. Like mentioned at the beginning of this article, budgets can throw up negative emotions, and you may feel as though you are restricted when previously you could be free to spend your money on whatever you wanted.

If you’re completely honest with yourself, you probably already know the areas that you are overspending, but you may not be sure how to tackle that problem.

This is where your budget will help you! There are other things that can help you too that go hand in hand with budgeting, such as meal planning, no spend days and tracking your expenses.

It’s going to be hard if you are thrown curveballs. This will always happen, no matter how much you plan, but you can still be prepared for them. When you are budgeting, you should start to put savings into various pots.

Examples that are popular in the personal finance world are emergency funds and sinking funds.

Now just to clarify, emergency funds are for emergencies, like your car has blown up, or your washing machine. Some people may not view those as emergencies, but you will if you need to get to work or wash your kids clothes!

What I mean is, an emergency fund is not for use when you have overspent on your groceries, and need extra for some trainers for your kids. It’s not for buying Christmas gifts or Halloween costumes either – but we will cover those in sinking funds.

Unfortunately, emergencies do crop up, and they do always seem to come at a very inconvenient time!

Putting some money aside for any emergencies that come up, will keep you on track with your budgeting.

Sinking funds – this is another way of saving, but it’s not for emergencies. Instead, it’s for the things that you know you will have to pay for, such as Christmas, Thanksgiving, Halloween, birthdays, weddings, school trips etc. They always happen, at the same time every year, so there’s no excuse for forgetting about them.

You can work sinking funds into your expenses, and this is helpful because you can save up throughout the year, rather than being hit with one big sum nearer the time.

These tips will make it easier to stick to your budget because you will be able to handle any curveballs that life will throw at you.

How to Budget When You’re Terrible With Money?

I don’t believe that anyone is terrible with money, just that perhaps you aren’t sure where to start when it comes to managing it, or understanding the best financial decisions for you and your money.

Positive actions come from positive thoughts. If you think that you are terrible with money, then you probably will be.

If you think to yourself “I may not have done well with money in the past, but I am going to work on ways to learn how to manage my money better”, this will have a much more powerful effect on how you view your finances.

We all need a goal. We need a why. 

Why should I save my money each month when Chick-a-fil is calling my name?

Why should I budget when I want to buy new clothes every other day?

Why should I earn extra money on the weekend when I can hang out with my friends?

Those things probably sound tempting, and they are. We aren’t saying that you can’t ever do those things, just that they need to be in the budget, and to be realistic about how often you will want to do those things.

But back to the why. You need a reason to stick to this because nowadays there are a million different temptations trying to take our money – just take a look around you at all of the various marketing ploys.

Budgets will help you channel your money into what you personally find important. Want to travel the world with your partner? Add it to your list and find out how to travel cheap to stick with your budget!

Want to set up a business so that you can be a stay at home parent like Kelan? Find out what low-cost businesses you could start and make a profit on!

These are examples of amazing, but achievable goals and dreams.

You work hard for that money, and you deserve to be able to do the things that you really, truly want to do.

It’s all about mindset and finding the best methods that work for you. Some people find that using only cash works best for them, and some find that they can only use card. The beauty of personal finance is that it’s completely personal to you.

Monthly Budgeting Tools

When you start budgeting, it can be a bit confusing wondering what to write down, and knowing where to start.

You can use good old pen and paper if that helps you, or there are some other great options that are available to you – it’s all about finding out which one works best for you.

1. Budget Templates 

There are some great budget templates out there that are more than capable of helping you manage your money. 

Most of them should include the basics of home, food, insurance, and auto – with a further breakdown under each one to help you allocate your money into the categories.

Budget templates are a good option if you just want something simple, that you can print off and stick on your fridge.

2. Budget Planners or Binders

If you are a pen and paper type of person than getting a budgeting planner that works for you is a must. 

Budgeting planners and binders are great because there are so many different options to choose from. 

You can find a planner that works specifically for you and your families needs. 

3. Spreadsheets

Are you a fan of Excel? You can create your own budget spreadsheets, and set them up exactly how you want them.

Use them to calculate for you how much money you have extra, and you can use formulas to help you work things out when you need to adjust your budget – it’s your very own budget calculator.

4. MINT

Mint is a great place to manage your money because you can link all of your bank accounts, credit cards, retirement accounts – to give you an overview of your money, and this will help you to manage it better.

It’s free to use, and because it has all of your financial information, MINT can look at the money that you have available and make recommendations based on what it thinks you can save.

5. Empower (Formerly Personal Capital)

We recommend a combination of Empower and Mint to manage your finances, as it gives such a good picture of your money situation.

Empower is a place where you can digitally track your finances – and it’s also free to sign up.

They have financial tools that will show you how well you’re doing and if you are going to be ok in the future too. This is very handy as it saves you from having to do all of the calculations yourself!

6. EveryDollar

EveryDollar is a budgeting app that has been created by Dave Ramsey and is also available to download for free.

It will help you work out your budget by asking you to put in your income, expenses and will help you to track your money throughout the month to stay on top of it all.

BONUS: Extra Budgeting Tips & Tricks 

Living frugally will get your expenses very low, and will also help you to assess what is important for you to spend money on. You may have thought that you needed to buy your coffee every day, but find that you don’t miss it, and can cut it out of your budget.

It will make you think about what you want to do with your money, how to manage it better and avoid temptation. Basically, help avoid stupid money mistakes. 

Budget Percentages Dave Ramsey Recommends

Let’s take a look at the different categories and the recommended budgeting percentages to manage your money:

Giving — 10 percent

Saving — 10 percent

Food — 10 to 15 percent

Utilities — 5 to 10 percent

Housing costs — 25 – 30 percent

Transportation — 10 percent

Health — 5 to 10 percent

Insurance — 10 to 25 percent

Recreation — 5 to 10 percent

Personal spending — 5 to 10 percent

Miscellaneous — 5 to 10 percent

Budget Percentage Category Explanation

Ok so now we know what the budget percentages are, but what does that actually mean?

We can look at each different budget category and see what Dave means about each one.

Giving — This is an important category for Dave Ramsey, as he believes that you should always give, even when you are in debt. He recommends 10%.

Saving — Dave Ramsey advises that you should be saving 10% of your income towards your retirement. The most common retirement accounts are an IRA or 401(k).

Food budget percentage — Dave says that you should be spending 10 – 15% of your income on your food for the month, including both groceries and eating out. The grocery budget percentage is very important.

Utilities — Utilities are bills for things such as your gas and electricity. The budget percentage recommendations for this category are 5 – 10 % of your budget.

Housing budget percentage — This is a biggie, and one that many people may not be able to do straight off the bat – Dave Ramsey says that this category should make up 25% of your budget.

Transportation — This includes everything that relates to transportation. He suggests that you spend 10% of your income on your transport costs. These costs could be things like gas, insurance, car payments, parking, etc.

Health — This category is for all health-related costs, and he says it should be 5 – 10% of your budget.

Insurance — This should be 10 – 25% of your budget. Insurances include health insurance, life insurance, disability insurance, etc. Generally speaking, this means insurance that relates to your life rather than “extra” insurance such as home or car. 

Recreation — This budget category is one that Dave recommends you spend 5 – 10% in. This is your ‘fun’ or ‘entertainment’ category. This is for things like gym memberships, kids sports activities and entertainment like Netflix.

Personal spending — Dave recommends that you spend 5 – 10% of your budget on this category. This will be for things like haircuts, clothes, shoes, etc.

Miscellaneous — It is a good idea to have a miscellaneous category in your budget, as there are always expenses that pop up that you can’t predict. He says to put 5 -10% of your budget in miscellaneous.

Why Use Budget Percentages?

If there’s no one budget for everyone, why is it a good idea to use percentages to create your budget that works?

A good reason to use percentages to create your budget is if you aren’t sure where to start.

A lot of people have never created a budget before and simply don’t know how to allocate their money.

It is handy to have a guideline to work towards and tweak it to fit your personal situation and finances as you go along.

It’s also good because it shows you things in black and white. Your $1000 a month rent payment may not seem that much until you look at the percentage and realize that it’s 50% of your take-home pay.

With that in mind, it is a good way to assess your overall budget and how much of your income you are spending on certain categories and make any changes that you want to.

How Do I Determine the Right Budget Percentages?

You’ve decided that you want to create a budget and figure out the percentages – but how to know what the right budget percentages are for you?

Using Dave Ramsey’s budget percentages is a helpful place to start, as it lists a bunch of categories that you are likely spending in.

You can look at those and decide if you are happy with the percentage amounts that are allocated.

Have a look at your current spending and budget, and see what the differences are.

You may want to ask yourself questions such as:

• Am I happy with spending as much as I am in certain categories?
• Do I want to decrease my spending in some areas?
• Do I want to increase my spending in other areas?
• Are there any categories that I can improve on?
• What do I want to be my biggest outgoing percentage?

Have an honest conversation with yourself (and your partner if you have one) and come to percentages that make the most sense for you.

Sample Household Budget Percentages

To show you how this works in real life, let’s have a look at an example. Everyone has a different income, but just for the sake of this example let’s imagine that your income is $2000 per month.

We can look at housing budget percentages for you.

In terms of Dave Ramsey’s budget percentages, this is how it would look, roughly:

Giving — (10%) $200

Saving — (10%) $200

Food — (10 – 15%) $200

Utilities — (5 – 10%) $100

Housing costs — (25%) $500

Transportation — (10%) $200

Health — (5 – 10%) $100

Insurance — (10 – 25%) $200

Recreation — (5 – 10%) $100

Personal spending — (5 – 10%) $100

Miscellaneous — (5 – 10%) $100

What if I Have Debt?

If you have debt, you may have noticed that there isn’t a category for debt in Dave’s recommended percentages.

This does seem a little strange when you consider how he is all about paying off debt, but that may be for a good reason.

Dave always advises that you should get a second job or extra income coming in, and should also reduce spending in other areas so that you can throw as much as possible towards your debt.

It’s worth noting that this is a guideline for people to work off, not one-size-fits-all.

How Do I Make a Budget That Works?

The best way to make a budget that works is to make one that is realistic for you and your family.

Looking at the percentages, it may be really tempting to try and drastically change them to fit how you want them to look.

However, this may not be the best action to take. Any changes that you make will need to be slow and over time as you adjust to something new.

The best way to find out what is realistic for you is to look at what you are spending now and work from that.

You will want to make a plan for every dollar, making sure that your bills are paid and your goals are covered.

What Budgeting Method Options Are There? 

There are a lot of other budgeting methods that are out there – you don’t just have to go with this one if you don’t want to.

There are also sites where you can find budget percentage calculators to work it out for you.

Some good budgeting methods that you could try out include:

• 50-20-30 method
• Cash envelope system
• Reverse budgeting method

50-20-30 method

This is another method for percentage-based budgeting, and you may find this more useful as it isn’t broken down into lots of different categories.

The method breaks down the budget categories like this:

• 50% – necessary expenses such as housing budget percentage and transportation
• 20% – your financial goals such as savings, retirement, debt payments
• 30% – this is for your personal spending

Cash Envelope System

Dave Ramsey preaches using cash envelope system for good reason. It works! 

It helps you to save a lot of money because you have the cash in front of you, which is a lot harder to spend than swiping a card.

To use this system, you will work out how much your budget categories are, then withdraw cash for each envelope per category.

Reverse Budgeting Method

Have you come across the term “paying yourself first?” This is what this budgeting method is all about.

What you will do is pay yourself first before you do anything else – meaning, you give yourself money for your goals before you spend any.

You will obviously need to make sure that your bills are covered, but any money left over you can spend on whatever you like.

Best Budgeting Apps To Consider

In order to help you get started and stay on track with your budgeting, there are some apps out there that are designed just for that.

Printable Budget Templates

There are printable budget templates out there that you can get printed on your home printer!

We have templates that you can use that we personally created, for you to fill out your family budget.

Mint

When it comes to looking for a platform that will help you with your budgeting, Mint is one of the best out there.

You can see an overview of your finances, and Mint has tools on there to help you, such as budgeting, spending analysis, bill pay reminders, and credit monitoring.

Empower (Formerly Personal Capital)

The main focus of Empower is tracking your investments, but it is a great free site for an overall view of your finances.

You can check things within your Empower account such as net worth, investable cash, cash flow, budgeting, portfolio balance, and retirement savings.

EveryDollar

This is a simple budgeting app will help you to set up a basic financial plan.

It’s free but keep in mind that if you want to add financial tracking and to link your bank, you’ll have to upgrade to the premium account for $99 a year.

YNAB

This is one of the most popular budgeting apps out there, known either by the name YNAB or You Need a Budget. This also comes with a subscription fee. 

You can connect your bank accounts to this app, but please note that you can’t do any detailed financial analysis – this is purely a budgeting app.

Excel or Google Sheets

Another great way to set up a budget is to use Excel or Google Sheets.

If you know about formulas that definitely helps, but if not, you can still input your income and expenses and make a basic budget that way.

Mvelopes

This is a digital equivalent of the cash envelope system which allows you to use virtual ‘envelopes’. It offers multiple paid subscription levels 

The best part about using this cash envelope method is that you can link your bank accounts so that you can keep up to date with your finances.

Final Thoughts on Budget Percentages

You may not decide that you like Dave Ramsey’s budget percentages – and that’s ok.

It is meant as a guideline to help you see if you are overspending in any categories, and help to create the categories in the first place.

Regardless of if you want to use budget percentages or not, it is always a good idea to create a budget and figure out a way that works best for you.

To create your ideal household budget, you will need to look at your spending and create a realistic budget from your numbers.

A budget will save your financial future, and there are programs out there that will make budgeting a breeze.

With that being said, there are 2 free tools (we LOVE) that can help you with your finances, which we will go over today.

Empower Summary

The first one that we will look at is Empower (formerly Personal Capital). Have you heard of it? We love it!

The main focus of Empower is investing. There are 2 different parts to Empower- a free one, and a paid one. We will just look at the free aspect of it today for the sake of comparison.

The company was founded in 2009, and they have over 2 million people using it, with over $9 billion in assets under management.

In the account, you are able to see a good overview of your finances, which include things like:

• Net worth
• Investable cash
• Cash flow
• Budgeting
• Portfolio balance
• Retirement savings

To read our in-depth Empower review click here. 

Top Personal Finance Software

Empower

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Mint Summary

Mint has been going a little bit longer, they were founded in 2006, but they were acquired in 2009 by Intuit.

People use this for beginner budgeting because it’s free and easy, but there are some Mint alternatives out there if you’re interested in more features and investment management.

We love how you can see an overview of all of your finances – this is a great site for budgeting.

It has personal finance tools on there to help you, such as:

• Budgeting
• Spending analysis
• Bill pay reminders
• Credit monitoring

Mint

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How are they the same?

Cost

Both Mint and Empower are free to use.

Linking Accounts

You can link up your various financial accounts to collect all in one place, such as your bank accounts, loans, investments and so on.

Tracking Expenses

Both sites will show you where you are spending your money each month and which categories your expenses are going into. Very handy for budgeting like Dave Ramsey!

Email Notifications

Both sites will send you email alerts if there are any changes to your finances.

How are they different?

Now that we’ve seen the similarities between Empower vs. Mint, it’s time to look at the differences. This may help you to make your decision when deciding between the two.

Mint

Budgeting

If you are looking for a platform that will help you with your budgeting, then Mint is a great one to use.

Advice on Savings

Mint will give you recommendations on the ways that you can save money on the things that you have linked e.g. your credit cards, investments

Credit Report Monitoring

We’ve covered before how important it is to keep an eye on your credit report, so it’s really handy that Mint does this for you.

It will check on a quarterly basis if there have been any changes to your credit score.

Empower

Retirement Planner

This is a great tool to allow you to see different scenarios for retirement and see if you are on track with them.

401(k) Fee Analyzer

This will help you to see which funds in your retirement plan are costing you the most, and allow you to make adjustments.

Asset Allocation Target

This will help to show you if you need to make any adjustments in your equity categories.

How do Empower and Mint Make Money?

They are both free platforms, but they have to make their money somewhere!

Mint makes money by using adverts on their site and getting commissions from the financial products that they recommend.

Empower doesn’t make any money from its free financial app. Instead, their free financial app is a tool used to funnel customers to their premium investment management service.

Customers must have $100,000 in investment assets in order to qualify.

They charge 0.89% of assets under management under $1,000,000, with fees scaling down to 0.79% for money between $1 – $3 million, 0.69% for the next $2 million, 0.59% for the next $5 million, and 0.49%  for money over $10,000,000.

The Empower vs. Mint Showdown

We can have a look at the different parts of each platform in more detail now, to see how they stack up against each other.

Budgeting

Empower budgeting is essentially where you are able to see all of your finances at a glance, whereas Mint is more of a budgeting tool to help you manage your money.

Winner = Mint

Fees

Both Mint and Empower are free to use. With Empower, you have the option of signing up for their paid version, which is a robo-advisor for clients who have more than $200k in assets.

If you are trying to be a bit frugal, it may be worth sticking with Mint’s totally free service to begin with.

Winner = Mint

Bill Alerts

This is probably an area that both Mint and Empower need to work on, but it’s probably because they want you to frequently log into the sites.

Mint does let you set up bill payment reminders, which is useful.

Empower can also remind you when your bills are due, but only for the accounts that you have linked.

Winner = Mint

Synchronization

This is an important thing to consider when you are choosing between money management systems because you want to see everything in one place and have it be accurate.

There have been reports that Mint is a bit slow, or doesn’t register transactions, so this is something to look out for.

Empower seems to do better in this regard, however.

Winner = Empower

Mobile App Access

There is both a Empower app and Mint app, which is great for when you are out but still want to see an overview of your finances.

Winner = Tie they both have awesome apps

User Experience (dashboard and ease of use)

I don’t know about you, but it’s really important to me to use something that is really easy to navigate and looks nice!

It’s worth taking a look at both and seeing which is more appealing to you, but we really like Empower.

The reason that it sways our vote here is because there are no ads or distractions.

Winner = Empower

Investment Analysis

Mint allows you to link your investment accounts and get a good overview of how they are doing.

Empower is much more investment-focused, and have the tools on the site to break it all down for you.

They also offer a free investment checkup which will analyze the allocations and costs of all of your investments. This is well worth doing as something that you can get for free!

Winner = Empower

Retirement Planning

If you are looking at retirement planning, Mint can give you a good look based on the investments and accounts that you have linked.

In terms of actual planning and forming a strategy, Empower would win here.

The retirement planner on the Empower site will look at the age that you want to retire, and how you are on track to get there.

It will do this by looking at all of your information, including your current net worth and your current retirement contributions.

Winner = Empower

Safety and Security

Both Empower and Mint work in quite the same way when it comes to security – although Empower doesn’t have the multi-factor authentication that Mint has. They do both offer fingerprint log-in though, via Apple devices that allow this.

Some security features that they both have include:

• You are not able to access any of your money within your account. You are able to see it all, but not touch any of the money. This means that even if someone hacks into your account, they won’t be able to get to your money.
• Your full name and account details are not displayed within the apps
• They use to of the range data encryption technology to protect your data

Winner = Mint 

Customer Service

Empower offers 24/7 help through their Help or the Contact button on the site.

They are known for excellent customer service and will typically respond within 24 hours.

Mint offers a Chat option, which is more email-based.

Winner = Empower

Who’s the Winner? Empower Vs. Mint

If you are looking for the best money management tool, these are 2 awesome companies we knew you needed to know about among the many budgeting tools out there. It really does depend on what your financial goals are, and what you want to get out of these apps.

If you are looking for something to help you in regards to budgeting, Mint is probably the best one for that. Their budgeting spreadsheet and overall budgeting capabilities are the most helpful.

If you are looking for one that will help you with more of the investment and retirement side, then Empower would be the one for you.

Your personal goals will help you to choose – but there’s no reason why you couldn’t use both of them at the same time! 

Top Personal Finance Software

Empower

Get clarity on your money, with tech you can trust. See all your accounts in one place, including your investments. And go deeper with our planning and analytics tools.

Get FREE Tools Now