Monthly budget planner
Money in on the left page, money out on the right, a statement underneath. Fill in what you plan, then what you actually paid as the month goes on.
Money in
CreditsMoney out
DebitsStatement for November 2026
- Money in
- $3,650.00
- Planned out
- $3,055.00
- Left to assign
- $595.00
- Spent so far
- $2,151.95
- Planned savings rate
- 13.7%
| Group | Planned | Of income | Actual | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $1,150.00 | 31.5% | $1,150.00 | on plan |
| Utilities | $195.00 | 5.3% | $179.60 | $15.40 under |
| Food | $570.00 | 15.6% | $482.35 | $87.65 under |
| Transport | $160.00 | 4.4% | — | — |
| Health & insurance | $140.00 | 3.8% | $140.00 | on plan |
| Debt payments | $200.00 | 5.5% | $200.00 | on plan |
| Savings | $500.00 | 13.7% | — | — |
| Personal | $90.00 | 2.5% | — | — |
| Giving | $50.00 | 1.4% | — | — |
| Total out | $3,055.00 | 83.7% | $2,151.95 |
Changes are saved in this browser as you type.
Educational use only — not financial advice
How to plan a month
On the left page, list every amount you expect to receive this month after tax: pay, side work, benefits, support payments. On the right page, list what that money is for. Give each line a group, a planned figure and, as bills are paid, the actual amount. Leave "actual" empty until you know it.
The statement totals the plan by group, shows each group as a share of income and works out what is left to assign: income minus planned spending. A positive figure is money without a job yet; a figure in brackets means the plan spends more than comes in. Once actual figures are in, the difference column shows each group over or under its plan.
Bills that do not arrive monthly fit too: divide a yearly bill by 12 (a $600 insurance premium becomes $50 a month) and plan that amount every month. Savings can be a line of its own in the Savings group; the statement then shows your planned savings rate.
The layout follows the worksheet the Federal Trade Commission publishes at consumer.gov: write down what comes in and what goes out this month, then use it to plan the next. Download a CSV to open the budget in any spreadsheet, or print the ledger for a paper copy.
Sources
- Federal Trade Commission, Make a Budget worksheet at consumer.gov.
- Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Consumer tips for managing spending (PDF): tracking spending for a week or a month to see how much goes to each category.
Questions
Where is my budget saved?
In this browser's local storage, under the key cedarledger-budget, on this device only. Nothing is uploaded. "Clear all" removes it, as does clearing this site's data in your browser. To move a budget to another device, download the CSV.
Can I plan next month without losing this one?
The planner holds one month at a time. Download this month's CSV first, then change the month name and the figures; the file keeps a record you can open in any spreadsheet.
What do the brackets around a figure mean?
A negative amount. Bookkeepers write deficits in brackets, often in red ink, so (120.00) means 120 below zero. Here it most often appears when the plan spends more than the month's income.