You need a budget (YNAB) advice thread

debt_free_hope

Thank you I think my problem is it is the app yet I downloaded it on my tablet.Can I go straight to the web .

hiddenshadow

It depends on which app you mean.

If you mean YNAB Classic, you need the desktop app to go with it. http://classic.youneedabudget.com/

If you mean new YNAB, you need the web app to set things up. https://app.youneedabudget.com/

armchairexpert

January2015 wrote: »

I recently signed up for the 34 day trial of the new online YNAB. I was anticipating running the online version alongside the classic version (which I love and have been using for the last two years). Within a week I was sold on the new online version and have stopped updating the classic version.

January, what made you fall in love? I'm really tempted by it, but I worry that it's just that impulse to upgrade to the newest shiny thing!

January2015

armchairexpert wrote: »

January, what made you fall in love? I'm really tempted by it, but I worry that it's just that impulse to upgrade to the newest shiny thing!

I understand what you mean about it being an impulse to upgrade to the newest shiny thing :rotfl:

I love the create a goal option. I've always had 'goals' for car insurance, maintenance and repairs, etc. etc. By that I mean I budgeted an amount each month in preparation for those bills when they came in. I like that in the new version, instead of just allocating an amount each month I can choose the following options for goals:

• target category balance
• target category balance by date
• monthly funding goal

YNAB reminds me each month if I've met my category goal for each category.


It's very sad, but I love seeing the age of my money - shown in lovely big characters at the top right of the screen. I love knowing that I am still living on money from over a month ago.

I love that if I overspend in any category I can just click on another category and tell it to move money to where I've overspent. This wasn't an option in the old YNAB. I had to manually adjust budget allocations or use the option to subtract from next month's available budget or red arrow to subtract from next month's category balance. I did manage this in old YNAB, but the way it's handled in new YNAB just makes more sense to my brain.


I like that I can enter notes about a category - this is not the memo option for each transaction, but a note about a category. Many probably don't even use this, but I do. I put information about contact numbers, policy numbers, dates of insurance policies etc. in there. So when I click on vehicle insurance I can see at a glance relevant information without having to either search the hard drive or the paper filing system. I find this so useful. I don't put anything on there that would compromise my security like account numbers or passwords because although it's secure it is on the web and I worry about things like that. Edit: I know I could put notes against a category on old YNAB, but I had to click on the note icon - it wasn't there in front of me - which it is in nYNAB - and it just works better for me in the new YNAB. I definitely make much more use of this facility than I ever did before.

It took me a while to get used to seeing only one month at a time on the screen - I was used to the spreadsheet look of classic YNAB.


There are other things but I've probably covered what has most convinced me to buy a subscription when I had already paid a one-off fee for classic YNAB. All I can say is sign up for the 34 days trial and you will know quite quickly if it's worth you moving to nYNAB or not.


Hope this is of some help :beer:

fakeplastictwee

I signed up to new YNAB a couple of weeks ago and I've already 'found' a lot of money that I hadn't realised I was frittering away. I'm self employed and money comes in in dribs and drabs, so I'm hoping to get to the point where I'm not living month to month and can 'age' my money.

I already have April's rent and bills put aside and a surplus in my 'spending' account, (towards future big things like car insurance). Before YNAB I'd see that as spare cash and spend it on rubbish. Eventually I'd like to have a few months expenses put aside in case I have the odd quiet month with work, which has happened to me in the last year and caused a huge tax related panic.

hiddenshadow

Sounds like a great plan, FPT.

armchairexpert

Thanks so much, January, that's really helpful! I actually signed up for a trial a few months back and then didn't do anything about it, so unless I use a different email address I think I can't trial again. Shall investigate.

hiddenshadow

You should be able to use a different e-mail to sign up for a new trial. (I have done in the past, anyway.)

January2015

armchairexpert wrote: »

Thanks so much, January, that's really helpful! I actually signed up for a trial a few months back and then didn't do anything about it, so unless I use a different email address I think I can't trial again. Shall investigate.

I would email the YNAB team and ask if you can trial again - explain that for personal reasons you were unable to use it within the original trial period. The thing is, if you trial it with the same email address you purchased classic YNAB with then you get a 10% discount on the subscription....not a massive amount in the scheme of things but we all know every penny counts).

missmental123

I've had YNAB for about a week. I've added my credit cards & loan but they're in my budget ! Is there anyway I can not include them in the budget ?
Thanks . I have emailed them but I don't understand their reply .