Tried the "spreadsheet method" for budgeting and actually saved $230 in my first month

I was always told that tracking every penny by hand was the only real way to control spending, but after three failed attempts at using an app, I sat down with a simple Excel sheet I made myself and it worked better than any advice I got from those finance blogs.

2 comments

2 Comments

angela_carter1mo ago

Actually, tracking every penny by hand isn't the only way that works. You made your own spreadsheet, that's still tracking by hand essentially, just a smarter version of it.

robinson.jake1mo ago

Picked up a podcast recently where a financial planner said most people quit tracking within two weeks because they make it too complicated. They suggested using the 80/20 rule instead, focus on the big categories like rent and groceries and let the small stuff slide. That spreadsheet method sounds like a good middle ground between being detailed and not burning out (which is smart).