Knowing how to budget is an essential skill; a budget means you can set your own guidelines for spending and saving your money.
A budget isn’t fixed in stone; there’s no punishment for overspending in one category and underspending in another. But, the more you manage to stick to your plan, the more able you’ll be to pay for the things you want and things you need.
Important to remember!
Fixed expenses include things like buying a weekly bus ticket for £8 or topping your phone up the same amount each week. Fixed expenses are unlikely to change so list these regular expenses exactly as they will be paid or you expect them to be paid.
Variable expenses – you need to make an estimate of what these expenses might be. These expenses are irregular and are not based on stuff you do or buy all the time. An example of a variable expense would be a cinema ticket, a lunchtime snack, or even new shoes for school.
Even though variable expenses may not be the same each month, it’s a good idea to provide a certain amount for them on a regular basis. Then, if they don’t spend that money in a certain month, it can be set aside. The money you set aside will add up and can be used later when another variable expense comes along.
We’ve prepared a Budget Template for you to work from in Microsoft Excel. This example will help you create a budget for the Autumn and Winter school terms; that way you can plan your spend in advance.
Click to download
But why not have a go at creating your own budget? Follow our example and you’ll soon be a budgeting boffin…
September 27th, 2010 at 1:31 pm
[...] Creating a Budget – Learn how to budget properly using our Excel spreadsheet template. [...]