How do you keep track of small monthly expenses?

CashEater

I’ve recently started paying more attention to the smaller things I spend money on each month.

It’s quite surprising how quickly they add up. A coffee here, a takeaway there, a subscription that I forgot about or a few things bought online because they looked like a good deal!

None of them seem particularly expensive on their own, but together they can make a noticeable difference by the end of the month!

I’m trying not to cut out everything I enjoy. Instead, I’m looking at the things I pay for regularly and asking myself whether I actually use them.

Do people here keep a proper budget for this sort of thing, or do you just check your bank account and keep an eye on what’s going out?

Also interested to know what expense surprised you the most when you first started tracking your spending!

subjecttocontract

Im fortunate that I don't need to budget but I do like to be fully in control of my spending. For small items I often pay by cash. I never pay by phone or contractless, only by pin and always ask for a paper receipt. I keep a log of my spending and check it against my monthly card bills.

RobM99

I opened a cash-only (basic) account. I pay in £x a month, this is my "slush fund", money that is not bills, food and mundane stuff, so if (not that I would) I want to spend it on a horse bet, coffee out, anything frivolous I can because (a) I can affford it and (b) I don't have to justify it!

That keeps the necessary from the extras.

MyRealNameToo

The Mrs likes her Starling account because it shows her spending by category as she is also bad at tracking whats she spends and is always confused by how much shes spent in a month and yet "only bought" a Tshirt and a pair of trainers - she forgets the 20 coffees, the 2 taxis, the 3 notebooks, the sticker pack that were really cute etc as they were individually cheap but quickly stack.

itsthelittlethings

I have an allowance per day. I record it "in" and "out" on a budget spreadsheet. It rolls over from day to day if unspent. Discretionary spending like this has been my absolute downfall but this method is really working for me. It really helps me conceptualise how much I have to spend and motivates me not to overspend.

oldernonethewiser

I write down whatever I spend each day, whether that is via phone, cash or card.

Easy enough.

Eco_Miser

All spending goes on a spreadsheet. I keep receipts where available, at least until the spreadsheet is filled in.

Gonk1967

I use HomeBank to track all my spending, you can set up categories and budgets.

boingy

I use a credit card for most of my "incidental" spending. It means I get an itemised list of the "small stuff" each month and my main current account statements stay nice and neat with just a handful of transactions each month.

We also have a joint credit card for joint expenses, mostly food. It makes it easy to go "ooh, that was a heavy month" and then just rein it in a bit for the next month or two.

It's a system we've used for decades and it works for us. I couldn't be doing with putting every tiny thing into a spreadsheet but respect to those of you who do so!

Rich1976

we use a credit card that all the spending goes on such as food, petrol, prescriptions, dentists, haircuts and spending money. I use to keep a spreadsheet which logged everything but recently decided I have no further requirement to do that so just check the credit card app every day or every few days to make sure everything looks ok.

The bank account is monitored too as that is just used for direct debits or the occasional cash withdrawal.

The biggest surprise is coffees . A few months back it was £150 just for one month between both of us.

Shocking really but some people go to the pub every week or have takeaways several times a month. We also put away a healthy amount into savings each month so whilst it is a waste, we enjoy it and don’t have any debts.

moneytorques

I use the Spond app to track my monthly expenses. I use the free version, its handy except for not having trading212 account transactions available due to not being open banking.