This tutorial is about how to budget using Google Sheets. We will do our best to help you understand this guide. I hope you liked this blog How to Budget Using Google Sheets, If your answer is yes, then do share it after reading it.
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Budgeting, like meditating and flossing regularly, was one of those “responsibility I’ve been ignoring” for me until recently. Of course, I knew I needed to budget, but the process felt so tedious and restrictive that it was easy to put off. That is, until I found the Google Sheets budget template that made me budget.
Like many others, I rely on Google for email, photo storage, and everything else. Even though the monthly budget template is a free preset available for anyone with a Google Account, I never even considered using Google to manage my money until a few months ago. Finding it couldn’t be easier. Simply go to Google Sheets, hover over the + icon at the bottom of the page and select “Choose Template.” The “Monthly Budget” template can be found in the “Personal” category.
Step 1 – Open a Google Sheets
Go to your Google Drive account. In the left sidebar, click “New” and “Google Sheets.”
Step 2: Create income and expense categories
Categories are the backbone of the budget. There is no “right” number of categories. However, you want enough categories to cover all of your income and expenses without creating unnecessary complexity. If you find that exclusivity helps you have better control over your finances, you may want to add subcategories to track certain expenses more closely. This is especially helpful if you’re trying to cut spending in a specific area of your finances.
Step 3: Decide which budget period to use
You may want to create a daily, weekly, biweekly, monthly or yearly budget. The duration you use may depend on:
- Payment Frequency
- How closely do you want to monitor your finances
- How long do you want to spend updating your budget spreadsheet?
You can also use multiple budget periods at once. In fact, most budgeting apps and software track income and expenses by the month. Then they extend the budget by one year. Whatever the budget period, you’ll want to create three columns:
- A column for your budgeted income and expenses
- One column for actual income and expenses
- A column showing the difference between the two, so you can see a full picture of your progress
Step 4: Use simple formulas to reduce your time commitment.
Adding cells manually is time consuming, but Google Sheets makes it easy with formulas.
You can calculate the difference between your budget and actual income and expenses by subtracting the cell containing the “Actual” amount from the cell containing the “Budget” amount. You can vertically sum up all of your income and expense categories using the SUM formula.
Step 5: Enter your budget number.
Budgeting is nothing more than setting financial goals. Your income limits your allowable expenses. However, within the parameters of your income, you can decide how to spend your money. Your historical financial data is a great starting point for creating your budget. Check bank records for the past few months to see where your money is really going.
Step 6 – Update your budget.
As your chosen budget period progresses, be sure to regularly update your budget spreadsheet with all of your actual transactions. This way you can track your progress. You may need to adjust your budget to account for emergency expenses or unplanned income. Budgeting is about being aware of the money coming and going in your life.
Don’t worry if your budget and actual income and expenses are different. The more you use your budget, the more accurate it will be. Creating a budget from scratch doesn’t have to be difficult. You don’t need complicated spreadsheets with advanced formulas to have complete financial control. Creating a budget from scratch doesn’t have to be difficult. You don’t need complicated spreadsheets with advanced formulas to have complete financial control. However, if you are comfortable with spreadsheets, you may want to add additional features to make your budget spreadsheet more informative and visually appealing.
conditional format
Conditional formatting is a great way to visually compare budgeted versus actual expenses.
- Right-click on the cell you want to format and select “Conditional Formatting”.
- Set the condition.
- Choose what happens if the condition is met.
Now, instead of viewing your budget numbers individually, you can easily see which categories are over or under budget.
Tables and graphs
You can also add charts and graphs to show trends in your spending.
- In the menu bar, select “Insert” and “Chart”.
- A sidebar will appear on the right side of your screen. It allows you to customize:
- data in your chart
- Table or graph type.
- Various features of a chart or graph.
Final Words: How to Budget Using Google Sheets
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