How to Make a Monthly Budget Work

Write down your total income for the month
Your total income should be after taxes pay for both you and your spouse, if you’re married. Your income should include every dollar coming in —full-time jobs, part-time jobs, freelance, unemployment, or  any other ongoing sources of income.

List all monthly expenses
Think about your monthly bills (mortgage, electricity, water, etc.) and means of survival as your main priority bills. Total your other costs separately, like fuel, take-out (avg. monthly), Netflix and other streaming accounts and subscriptions. Every dollar you spend monthly should be accounted for.

Subtract expenses from income to start a budget
Once you understand your income to expenses, it’s easy to identify how much you should be saving a month. Set up a saving and spending budget for yourself once all expenses are listed out. Tracking your expenses may help you understand where you can cut extra costs. Perhaps you realize you have a bunch of subscription accounts you don’t use.

Track your expenses throughout the month
Once you start the budget, you'll still need to stay on top of your expenses. Keep an excel file or some form of a document you can use monthly to ensure you aren’t overspending your budget.

We hope these tips serve you and get you on the way to starting your own monthly budget.