How do you keep track of your spending

whall3y

It's MoneyWiz for me, prior to that I used YNAB.



MoneyWiz has some really good bank integration to save the manual transfer of data, though the integration with investment accounts such a hl.co.uk is a bit ropey so I do that manually.


Mark

planteria

we buy almost everything on Amex/Barclaycard and so the statements represent a record.

we only really buy what we need: we buy the brands we want, rather than the lowest price, eat really well at home and at the best places in town when we eat out, and clothe the kids with all they need. we don't really budget on the basis that we need it all anyway, and are just sensible.

a good portion of our collective monthly income is invested, along with some repaying 0% credit card balances.

admittedly straying off subject, but i tend to work such long hours that i don't have time to spend enough to need to reign in my spending;).

boliston

evenasus wrote: »

Another vote for Quicken, which I've used for years.
I don't know how I'd manage without it.

isn't quicken 'single entry' accounting rather than traditional 'double entry' accounting with a debit and credit for each transaction?

i'm not sure how 'single entry' accounting would work as when you create a transaction there will always be two entries - if you buy a pint of beer it will create a 'debit' entry as an expense such as 'food and drink' and it will create a 'credit' entry on your bank (or cash) account as it will reduce the value of net funds you hold

Alexland

OldMusicGuy wrote: »

Here's an example; in the "not tracking expenditure days" I never paid attention to the price of petrol, I just filled up when necessary. Since retiring (and keeping a detailed budget) I found we were spending more on petrol than I had budgeted. That's due in large part to the fact I found out that filling up my classic car on 97 octane at the motorway services costs nearly 20p per litre more than using a local garage! I never knew that!!

I am not suggesting people stop paying attention to the prices they are paying just that it can be done very effectively at the point the transaction occurs (with some forward planning to optimise discounts, etc) rather than looking backwards and trying to categorize data. Once a transaction has occurred it's ancient history and I would rather use my limited 'brain cycles' to think forward.

Alex

OldMusicGuy

Alexland wrote: »

I am not suggesting people stop paying attention to the prices they are paying just that it can be done very effectively at the point the transaction occurs (with some forward planning to optimise discounts, etc) rather than looking backwards and trying to categorize data. Once a transaction has occurred it's ancient history and I would rather use my limited 'brain cycles' to think forward.

If that works for you, great. I've found that looking at history helps me identify the areas to focus on. By maintaining the history in a spreadsheet you can then use that to forecast more accurately and track if you are effective in changing spending patterns. It also allows you to identify trend you might miss if you only think transactionally, especially where total expenditure can be skewed by one offs. For example, we've had unexpected vets bills (for our animals, not us) and some other things I hadn't planned for. That might mask the fact that expenditure in other areas is creeping up because you just say "oh that was the month with the big vet's bill". So I can track the trends by category, see if any individual transactions are throwing things out and that all helps me feel much more in control of spending.

But like I said, it may be something to do with a long career in accounting and finance systems.....:rotfl:

cloud_dog

This made me chuckle....Recently returned from hols in Rome. A (huge) water melon in Rome 39 cents, a (small) water melon in Tesco £2.39.

Computer_Beginner

I just check my bank statements.
Didn't realise I was in the minority!

pauljoecoe

Zero_Sum wrote: »

MS Money..

I still think that is my all time favourite. Haven't used it for over 10 years but it was simple and did the job. Doesn't exist anymore doe it?

pauljoecoe

Computer_Beginner wrote: »

I just check my bank statements.
Didn't realise I was in the minority!

How do you know how much you spent of holidays (for example) in 2017?

do you care!!??

TheShape

pauljoecoe wrote: »

How do you know how much you spent of holidays (for example) in 2017?

do you care!!??

All I could say about how much I spent on holidays in 2017 (or any other year) is that I spent what I needed to spend to go where I wanted to go.