Post by jesscantri on Dec 26, 2014 13:17:12 GMT -5
I'm sure this question comes up a lot this time of year, but I'm looking for input on the best method for budgeting. My husband is convinced that there is some magic software to help us budget. I already use the money tracker in USAA, but I believe that just using a spreadsheet to see how much we spend each month would be just as effective. Right now we really just need to see where we are overspending and/or where our money is going. I've tried using Mint but had issues synching all of my accounts. Thanks!
I highly recommend You Need A Budget. There are a few others on this board that use YNAB so maybe they will chime in, too. My H and I both love it. Once you buy the software, you can use the free app on your phones. The app is fantastic for keeping track of your spending and monthly budget in real time. We've been using YNAB for 2+ years now and we have saved so much money using the program. You can do a 30 day free trial to learn the software and the 4 YNAB "rules". Every few months they will run a 50% off promo, but even at full price it is totally worth it.
Post by jesscantri on Dec 26, 2014 13:50:56 GMT -5
Thanks for the recommendation!! I think I've seen it mentioned before but forgot about it. We will check it out since it seems like something that would work better for us.
I highly recommend You Need A Budget. There are a few others on this board that use YNAB so maybe they will chime in, too. My H and I both love it. Once you buy the software, you can use the free app on your phones. The app is fantastic for keeping track of your spending and monthly budget in real time. We've been using YNAB for 2+ years now and we have saved so much money using the program. You can do a 30 day free trial to learn the software and the 4 YNAB "rules". Every few months they will run a 50% off promo, but even at full price it is totally worth it.
We bought this on the Black Friday sale and are getting started this weekend! I am excited to regain control of our money.
Love YNAB. My husband loves it too (and actually uses it, which is way better than anything else we have done!). Much more efficient and effective for us than Mint.
The Usaa tracker is worthless to me. Maybe if you ran everything through your debit card, but making "credit card" a spending category isn't tracking expenses.
I use a spreadsheet that I log my itemized expenses and it categorizes and transfers it to my budget worksheet.
The Usaa tracker is worthless to me. Maybe if you ran everything through your debit card, but making "credit card" a spending category isn't tracking expenses.
I use a spreadsheet that I log my itemized expenses and it categorizes and transfers it to my budget worksheet.
I hate they did that now! It wasn't a category before, and I use my cc for everything. I still track all of those purchases on there, but they now count twice since it is counting my payments as a debt. I just ignore the "debt" portion since it is pretty pointless. Usaa does do real time though since you can check where you are in each category under "track my money" at any point in the month.
Another vote for YNAB. We've been using it for almost a year. While we haven't managed to have a month's "buffer", the fact that it is super hands on has helped us a lot.
Another vote for Ynab. It takes time, but we've been using it for a year and we stopped the racking up credit card/paying it off with savings cycle. We haven't built up a buffer yet, but we have been able to save for other things. Well worth it.
Post by delawarejen on Dec 28, 2014 12:56:19 GMT -5
jesscantri - unfortunately, you just missed the big sale of the year (50% off) over Black Friday weekend. It occasionally goes on sale through Steam.
You can try it for free for 34 days, and you don't have to remember to cancel (you don't give them payment info unless you decide to buy). There are free classes and tutorials as well, I recommend those highly. Full price is $60. You can get $6 off with a referral code from someone if you decide to buy.
It's not magic. It's virtual envelopes in a budget format with spending registers by account and some report capabilities. What it does very well is that it is centered on budgeting, using the money you actually have on hand. Much of the finance software out there isn't designed from that perspective, and it shows when you try to use it for that purpose. They also have great customer service and support. They're really customer focused.