How to make a monthly budget in a spreadsheet

Start with the template

1. Open TS Sheets.
2. In Templates… choose Monthly budget.
3. Replace the items and amounts with yours.
4. Save with Save .xlsx. Your work is also auto-saved in the browser.

The structure

Key formulas

• Total income: =SUMIF(A4:A11,"Income",D4:D11)
• Total expenses: =SUMIF(A4:A11,"Expenses",D4:D11)
• Savings: total income minus total expenses.

The 50/30/20 rule

A common guideline is to spend about 50% of income on needs (rent, food, utilities), 30% on wants and 20% on savings or debt repayment. Use it as a starting point and adjust it to your situation.

Tips that make it work

• Log expenses weekly, not at month end.
• Include yearly costs divided by 12 (insurance, property tax, subscriptions).
• Use one sheet per month in the same workbook to compare.
• Highlight negative differences in red with cell formatting.