Computer Program

We have gone from basic Excel spreadsheets, to Quickbooks, then Mvelopes (online), and finally we have found something that is a little more comprehensive than the Excel spreadsheet but isn't nearly as complex or time-consuming as QB or MV.

It's called YNAB & it stands for "You Need A Budget" - http://www.youneedabudget.com/. There are 2 different types of programs you can get & the best part is that it's a ONE TIME cost - not an annual fee like MV or other programs. There's a free trial for 60 days as well.

Basically this guy used an Excel spreadsheet in college & it developed into something he would give out to his friends & it's turned into something very useful for my husband & I. You can input your receipts & such yourself, or if you pay for the linked-online version, then it will download from your bank accounts. You can put in whatever categories you want, etc.

But the best part is how it has helped us get away from living paycheck to paycheck & we are now a month ahead on all of our bills, as well as building an emergency fund & a few other financial goals. Ir's been a fairly painless process & I love it. I highly recommend something like this for anyone interested in living on a budget!

we do this on excel you dont have to buy any other programs and is supper easy to use. we set up a table with bills, amount due, date due, interst rate, amount paid. it was deffintly an eye opener to my hubby when he saw how much we were spending and not gettng out of debt. good luck

Hi K.,
My hubby is my tech specialist and I asked him what he suggested. He said that Quickbooks is definitely too much as it is a professional type software. We use it for our business and we use Quicken for personal. He just set up my recently divorced best friend on Quicken and she loves it. She is very tech limited and doesn't have a difficult time making it work.
Sincerely,
L.

Did you check out quicken? It's the home version and comes in several versions, including one for a home based business. I think they have at least one that will do what you need. I use QB Premier for business and it's great, but you're right, it's way too much for household stuff! Good luck!

Hi. I actually do this under Excel. I have columns for name, date due, total amount due, payment due, date paid and how much I paid and then there is a column for the new balance. I use easy formulas for this. At the bottom of the page I have a total of how much the total account is and how much I paid totally for the month and the total amount due. Each month, I copy this and move to next month.

If this would work for you and you are not sure how to set this up, I would be happy to help you... I would email you an example of mine.

Why not make yourself an Excel spreadsheet?
You could break down by month, type of bill and dollar amount. Copy and paste to a new sheet for each month. If you don't know how to use excel, you probably know someone who does who can make the first one for you and show you how to use it. Good Luck!