Our whole family budget fits on one page
No apps, no spreadsheets with twenty tabs. One page we look at together once a month.
A one-page budget in a notebook
I’ve tried budgeting apps. I’ve tried big spreadsheets. They all lasted about three weeks. What finally stuck is a single page in a notebook.
The four boxes
The page is split into four boxes:
- Fixed. Housing, utilities, insurance, phone plans, school fees.
- Everyday. Groceries, transport, eating out.
- Kids. Tuition, enrichment, pocket money, school things.
- Saving. What goes aside before anything else.
Each box gets one number for the month. That’s the whole budget.
Fill in the Saving box first, on payday. Whatever is left is what you can spend.
The monthly check-in
On the first Sunday of the month, my husband and I sit down for twenty minutes with tea. We compare each box to what we actually spent and adjust one thing, never more.
What changed
We argue less about money. Not because we have more of it, but because we both know where it goes.