12 Tips to Make Budgeting Less Painful (2024)

Budgeting.

Many people have come to fear the word.

When you think of budgeting, missing out on nights out, eating rice and beans, or couponing might come to mind.

Or you may think of receipts, cash envelopes, and endless budgeting meetings with your partner.

Is there a way to make budgeting less painful? Or, better yet, even painless?

Saving money doesn’t have to make you miserable. With adequate commitment and planning, it is possible to 1) Keep It Simple

A budget doesn’t have to be, and shouldn’t be complex. The best way to budget is to keep it as simple as possible.

There are many ways you can simplify your budget, including points listed in this post. You might consider how you can simplify or minimize your expenses, choose a simple budgeting system, and have a simple plan for how you will hold yourself accountable.

Keep in mind, it may be tempting to get very detailed. You might think a more detailed budget is the only way to succeed. But in actuality, if you start with a complicated budget and system, you aren’t likely to stick with it.

2) Find a Tracking System That Works for You

No matter what type of budget you choose, every system will require you to keep track of your spending. That may look different to everyone. Some people prefer to use digital tool like Personal Capital. Some individuals like to keep track of their receipts and write down all of their spending.

We love simple spreadsheets at Young Adult Money, so we created a free automated budgeting spreadsheet for you. This spreadsheet already includes all of the formulas, so you only have to enter in your spending and income (or pull it in automatically through Tiller), which makes it very easy.

You can find out more about the budget spreadsheet here or download it below.

3) Decide if You Prefer Cash or Credit

Everyone handles their money differently. Some personal finance experts, like Dave Ramsey, insist that you must use a cash only budget in order to be successful. However, credit cards can be an incredibly useful tool when used correctly and responsibly. Not only can you earn points or cash back with most credit cards, but proper use of a credit card can help build your credit score.

Choosing between a cash budget or a credit budget is a personal decision. Some people like to physically see their money, so they might choose a cash budget while some people like the protection and tracking a credit card offers.

4) Cut Out Unnecessary Bills

What’s one easy way to save money and simplify your budget? Cut out unnecessary bills entirely.

Cancel the gym membership you rarely use, or the magazine subscriptions you no longer read. If you rarely watch television then cut cable. Taking the time to cancel these expenses now will not only save you significant money, but it will save you the hassle of having to pay yet another bill.

5) Communicate About Your Spending With Your Significant Other

A budget does a couple no good if they aren’t on the same page. If you are in a relationship with someone – whether you are married, living together, or just dating – you need to be on the same page with your spending habits. You won’t be able to progress financially if your significant other isn’t supportive.

The first step to getting your significant other on board with your budget is to communicate with him or her. This can be a scary step, especially if you are in a relatively new relationship. But it will be impossible to reach your financial goals if your significant other has no idea what those goals are.

6) Update Your Budget Daily

It can be overwhelming to update a budget if you wait for weeks or a month to do it. By reviewing your budget daily, you will take a lot of the dread out of the routine. It doesn’t even take 5 minutes to review your spending from the day before, but it can save you hours at the end of the month.

If you’d prefer to only check your spreadsheet once a month, I recommend using Tiller. Having all your spend data in one place, automatically, is a huge win.

7) Remind Yourself of Your End Goal

A budget has a purpose. It’s to help you reach you financial goals. Without budgeting, you may never pay off debt or save for the things you want. So, when budgeting gets challenging, what do you do? You need to remind yourself of your end goal.

Maybe these are long-term goals, such as buying a house in your dream city or retiring early. Or, perhaps, these are more immediate goals, such as how to afford to buy Christmas gifts this year or saving for an emergency fund. No matter the goal, it’s important to remind yourself of why you are budgeting and why it’s important to make the small sacrifices that may be required by your budget.

8) Set Hard Caps

Many expenses, such as utility bills, are variable so no two months look the same. While it may be impossible to predict your expenses for the month perfectly, some expenses need a hard cap. Expenses such as eating out, shopping, or cab rides are expenses we can control. These aren’t necessary for daily life, so they may be considered a luxury. If you aren’t careful to keep track of these expenses, they can destroy your budget and over time, they can even destroy your finances.

You can still do these things while on a budget. But you need to ensure that you are sticking to exactly what you allocated for these expenses in order to make any progress on your finances.

9) Group Similar Bills Together

It can be overwhelming to try to track where every cent is going. It can be very time consuming to sort through receipt after receipt to categorize each individual expense.

One thing I like to do to counter this is to group similar bills together on my budget. For example, I group car insurance, gas, and car maintenance costs together in one category. I add my water, electric, and internet bills together under a utility category. If I want to be more specific, I can. But for anyone who is new to budgeting, this method can ease you into creating good patterns.

10) Budget In Fun

Realistically, most people don’t go from spending their money without a second thought to sticking to a strict budget overnight. Everyone has hobbies and activities that they like to do for fun, so they should make sure to budget for them.

Even if you are trying to cut out most spending, you aren’t likely to stick to a budget if a budget is depriving you of everything you enjoy. You might not be able to do your hobbies as frequently, but you can and should still make room in your budget for them.

11) Think of a Budget as a Tool

Budgeting will always be painful if you view it as a nuisance or as restrictive. Sometimes, we need to remind ourselves that budgeting is the fuel to get us to reach our financial goals. It gets you to where you need to be. This change in mindset can help you to appreciate your budget and even start viewing budgeting as something that allows you to be able to afford the things you want rather than restricting you.

12) Commit

Commitment is key to reap the benefits of budgeting. Without commitment, a budget will fail.

How do you get yourself to commit to your budget? You might considering sharing your budget with someone close to you for accountability. You might incentivize it for yourself by budgeting in a small reward every month or so. Or, you write down your financial goals and go over them daily. These are just a few things you can do to keep committed to your budget and your finances.

Related:

• Finally! An Automated Budget Spreadsheet in Excel

What methods do you use to make budgeting less painful? If you don’t currently have a budget, how do you think you can start?