What I spend in a month. Before you can have any idea of what to do with your finances you first have to know what you spend your money on. Trying to budget without knowing what you spend is like trying to cook without knowing what is in your kitchen.
Some people only like to look at one month at a time but for a more realistic view I included two months. No matter how closely you watch and monitor your finances things are going to change month to month and that’s ok. Life happens. Birthdays, travel, unexpected repairs can all throw off your budget a little. With that being said this is what I spend my money on:
| Categories | Expenses |
| Apartment | -427.72 |
| Dining | -87.22 |
| Entertainment | -128.1 |
| Gas | -126.59 |
| Groceries | -807.38 |
| Insurance | -407.55 |
| Misc | -34.29 |
| Pet | -375 |
| Rent | -3185.71 |
| Spending | -270.08 |
| Toiletries | -9.36 |
| Travel | -368.31 |
| Utilities | -224.75 |
| Vehicle | -291.64 |
| Grand Total | -6743.7 |
From 10/1/2021-11/30/2021 I spent a grand total of $6,743.70 on stuff. The Rent and utilities section includes both my and my girlfriends rent as she pays me back for it. Excluding half of each of these sections that works out to
$5038.47
Roughly $2,500 a month.
In reality I spent $2736.95 in October and $2301.53 in November. About a $435 difference month to month. As you can see some expenses I had 0 one month and a couple hundred dollar expenses the next.
| Category | October | November |
| Apartment | -427.72 | |
| Dining | -22.71 | -64.51 |
| Entertainment | -124.1 | -4 |
| Gas | -75.62 | -50.97 |
| Groceries | -246.93 | -560.45 |
| Insurance | -407.55 | |
| Misc | -34.29 | |
| Pet | -375 | |
| Rent | -797.29 | -795.57 |
| Spending | 0 | -270.08 |
| Toiletries | -6.18 | -3.18 |
| Travel | -338.31 | -30 |
| Utilities | -61.55 | -50.82 |
| Vehicle | -227.24 | -64.4 |
| Total | -2736.95 | -2301.53 |
While this is interesting it doesn’t tell the whole story. The next important piece of information you need to know is which of these expenses were necessary and which were more discretionary. Some people might break this down differently, but I draw the line between what did I have to spend and what could I have put off if I wanted to.
| Category | October | November |
| Dining | -14.92 | |
| Entertainment | -4 | -4 |
| Gas | -75.62 | -50.97 |
| Groceries | -246.93 | -560.45 |
| Insurance | -407.55 | |
| Pet | -375 | |
| Rent | -797.29 | -795.57 |
| Spending | -32.86 | |
| Toiletries | -6.18 | -3.18 |
| Utilities | -61.55 | -50.82 |
| Vehicle | -227.24 | -64.4 |
| Total | -1808.73 | -1969.80 |
So what? On its own a budget doesn’t tell you a lot. What it does tell you is where your money is going compared to where you think your money is going. Knowing this you can decide whether or not you want to continue spending money on certain things. While some items are unavoidable it can show you if you’re spending too much on one category or another. But it can also give you freedom to spend more in the areas that bring you joy and less in the sections you don’t care about.
How to make your own?
Finding out how much you spend doesn’t have to be complicated. Starting from scratch all of the information gathered for this took less than an hour to put together. Below is my process for determining how much you spend but it doesn’t have to be your way.
- Go to your bank account and credit card statements and record all of your income and expenses.
(Most online banking platforms have a way to export the information into excel to make it easier)
- Lump your expenses into categories
(Run down the list of expenses and just put a label on it. It doesn’t have to be perfect; I put all grocery store trips in the grocery category even if I bought shampoo with my groceries. Things I can’t remember I either guess and get close, or put it in the MISC or spending category. My two catch alls.)
- Filter by category and see how much you spend in each section
(Keep track of this, as I mentioned above, one month could be really low and one month could be really high, knowing what you spend on average over a couple month period is most important)
- Be willing to change
(Add categories, delete categories, call things whatever you want. Make it as simple or as complicated as you want. Even lumping expenses in to necessities and non-necessities is a great first step. Don’t be afraid to get started)
Let me know what you think! What tips or techniques have you used to keep track of your finances that others might find useful?
GT