More photogenic than a spreadsheet
My number one tip for managing your money?
Keep a spending diary.
If money is super tight, or you’re just not sure where you cash disappears – write it all down.
Every quick coffee, sandwich, magazine, tiny treat, pester present or donation. Big bills, small purchases – bung it down.
Seriously, a spending diary can change your life when it comes to money management.
Now I’ve kept a spending diary at different times – on my year out, as a student, then over the last few years, when we’ve been living on less after moving to the country.
Previous post: 10 tips for keeping a spending diary
In theory, a spending diary should only take a few minutes a day. Daily updates keep it manageable and there’s less chance of forgetting small cash purchases.
But then real life intervenes.
In practice, some weeks I’ll update very frequently. Some weeks I’m rushed off my feet, get behind and end up spending ages ploughing through piles of receipts and bank statements. Personally, I use an Excel spreadsheet, because I love Excel (sad but true). It makes it easy to add and delete lines and tot up totals. It’s not perfect, because I always mean to categorise expenses and never get round to it.
But I still find it worthwhile, and here are 12 reasons why I find my spending diary so useful:
Table of Contents
Shows where I’m spending
If you’ve ever wondered where all the money from the cash machine went, or why your bank balance isn’t bigger at the end of the month – a spending diary will help. It shines a light on the black hole of forgotten spending. You can see how all the small purchases add up. Knowledge is power, people.
Inspires changes
There’s nothing like adding another sandwich meal deal to remind me I need to make more packed lunches! Once I see my spending in black and white, it forces me think about how to spend less.
Stops some spending
Just knowing I’ll need to record something on my spending diary can make me hesitate at the till. Do I really need a magazine? Do I want to confess my chocolate habit to Excel? Reminds me of the Nigella quote about why she lost weight after she broke her leg – she didn’t mind asking people to get her a big slice of cake, but was embarrassed to ask them to fetch a second or third piece.
Encourages me to cut down after high-spend months
I’ve got my spending diary set up so I can see total spending each month. It’s easy to see if spending suddenly spiked – so I can resolve to cut back a bit the next month. June was a prime example of a month when seeing a higher total encouraged me to spend less.
Previous post on cutting our credit card bill
Keeps track of our interest earnings
I have a whole load of current accounts, trying to earn extra interest on our emergency savings (See more on where to stash your emergency cash).
Filling in my spending diary reminds me to transfer interest payments to our main current account. My TSB current account for example only pays interest if I use online banking every so often, so it’s worth doing. Adding a lower interest payment, if a rate has been cut, will also prompt me to look for a better account or consider investing instead.
Encourages me to switch suppliers
I also note down monthly payments for household bills, so it’s easier to see if say the phone bill is higher than normal or a company has chosen to whack up our direct debit. I can then investigate why, and check comparison sites for better deals elsewhere.
Prompts me to cancel subscriptions
I check bank and credit card statements against my spending diary. This helps pick up extra purchases I forgot to record at the time, like internet shopping without a paper receipt. It also means I spot subscriptions, and query if we genuinely need or want them. We recently zapped Apple Music and WeightWatchers subscriptions, because they just weren’t worth the money to us.
Reminds me to chase invoices
Ah, the joys of freelancing, chasing payment for work done.
I have an income page, where I add a line every time I send out an invoice. When the money actually appears in my account, I add the payment in the income column, and the date paid. Seeing blank spaces in the income column reminds me to chase companies who haven’t paid up. I also refer to my spending diary when filling in my tax return, tracking down allowable expenses to set against my income.
Helps organise household admin
Past spending diaries are a mine of information. Is it time for the boiler to be serviced? When did the chimney sweep last come? How much did the gas safety certificate cost last year? What should I budget for a car service? How much higher is the insurance renewal quote than last year? My spending diary helps me track when and how much I should allow for less frequent tasks and once-a-year expenses. It’s super easy to search my spreadsheets, so I can check what needs doing when and negotiate on the cost.
Makes up for senior moments
If you’re feeling forgetful, a spending diary can help plug the gaps. I can look back to see yes, I did buy a birthday present and look I even paid for the stamps to post it. My spending diary can solve arguments about when we saw Star Wars, or which child spent their pocket money.
Tracks voucher savings
Believe it or not, I make a note where we spend less – a column that captures for example the 10% off code, free delivery or value of the tickets bought with vouchers. In itself, each saving might not be worth much. But tracking the small savings means I can see the big difference they make together.
Shocks me out of spending on auto-pilot
Why bother with a spending diary, when there are apps that will do it all for me, and categorise my spending? Precisely because apps make it too easy. Looking at big totals for categories like groceries, travel and eating out lets me gloss over the individual purchases, and that’s the level that needs to change. Sometimes apps put stuff in the wrong categories, making it easier for me to think – “no, surely that total isn’t so high, I’m sure it’s fine really”.
In contrast, writing it all down makes me think about each time I’ve spent something. So I’ll keep plugging away with my spreadsheets while it helps us make the most of our money!
Now – over to you. What do you think of spending diaries? Do you keep one? Useful tool or waste of time? Do say in the comments, I’d love to hear!
Pin for later:
Yes I’ve always kept spending diaries because it is so easy to loose track of small amounts but they all add up to large amounts. I can see exactly where I can save money. As you say it makes you think twice before you spend when it is written down in black and white.
Author
Glad you’ve found spending diaries useful too. Small purchases can seem insignificant, but they can have a powerful impact!
I lost my job and there was no way to get income for my family, things was so tough and I couldn’t get anything for my children, not until a met a recommendation on a page writing how Mr Bernie Doran helped a lady in getting a huge amount of profit every 6 working days on trading with his management on the cryptocurrency Market, to be honest I was skeptical at first but I took the risk to take a loan of $500, and I contacted him unbelievable and I was so happy I received a profit of $5,500 with an investment of $500 within 7 days of trading , the most joy is that I can now take care of my family, i am just sharing my testimony on here. I don’t know how to appreciate your good work Mr. Bernie Doran, God will continue to bless you for being a life saver I have no way to appreciate you than to tell people about your good services. He can also help you recover your lost funds, For a perfect investment and good return on investment contact him on Gmail : Berniedoransignals@gmail.com or his whatsApp + 1 ( 424 ) 285 – 0682
tell him i referred you
Highly Recommended!
Very insightful, i will also say this here. Investment is one of the best ways to achieve financial freedom. For a beginner there are so many challenges you face. It’s hard to know how to get started. Trading on the Cryptocurrency market has really been a life changer for me. I almost gave up on crypto at some point not until saw a recommendation on Elon musk successfully success story and I got a proficient trader/broker Mr Bernie Doran , he gave me all the information required to succeed in trading. I made more profit than I could ever imagine. I’m not here to converse much but to share my testimony; I have made total returns of 3.6BTC from an investment of just 0.6BTC. Thanks to Mr Bernie I’m really grateful,I have been able to make a great returns trading with his signals and strategies .I urge anyone interested in INVESTMENT to take bold step in investing in the Cryptocurrency Market, you can reach him on WhatsApp : +1(424) 285-0682 or his Gmail : BERNIEDORANSIGNALS(@)GMAIL(.)COM, bitcoin is taking over the world, tell him I referred you
You’re not old enough for senior moments Faith! Love this bit!
Author
Ha! My kids reckon I grew up with dinosaurs.
Great post! I need to start doing this, I have way too many senior moments, which is worrying at 33!
Author
Thanks Grainne! I do think spending diaries can really help, so hope you give it a whirl. Would love to hear how you get on.
Great stuff. I also think that when you write what you spend – similar to how it is wise to pay in currency rather than just swiping the card – you get this feeling about the money incoming and outgoing. Makes you a bit more responsible in the long-term.
An guess what – I even got a fancy Christmas-themed diary last day to help me for the 2019 spendings… Excted!
I just want to say Thank You to everyone who supported me through the years. My name is Manuel Franco, New Berlin, Wisconsin. My story of how I won the Powerball lottery of $768.4M is a bit of a tale. I have been playing Powerball tickets for 6 years now since I turned 18. I bought my first ticket on my 18 birthday. I was feeling very lucky that day because I had contacted Dr. Odunga Michael to help me with the winning Powerball numbers. I really had that great great feeling that I looked at the camera wanting to wink at it. I only did a tiny part of it and trusted him. He gave me the numbers after I played a couple other tickets along with it for $10. I checked my ticket after the winnings came online and saw the numbers were correct including the Power play. I screamed for about 10 minutes because it felt like a dream. I had won $768.4M. You can check my winning testimony with the lottery officials just with my name search. Thank you Dr Odunga. Well, his email is odungaspelltemple@gmail.com and you can also call or Whats-app him at +2348167159012 so you guys can contact him
Real spell casters are hard to find but I am happy to thank Lord Krish for helping me win the lottery successfully after trying so many spell casters and I found my happiness in Lord Krish. I was given the lottery numbers by him which made me the third highest lottery winner in history and this is all thanks to you sir. Winning the lottery is something everyone would like to feel especially with a trustworthy spell caster. I, Yanira Alvarez, won the Powerball lottery in Los Angeles and I really thank Lord Krish because after I contacted him, he told me to only provide the spiritual items for him to do it for me and I didn’t hesitate to give him what he required so I could win it. I have tried so many spell casters who seemed real but only Lord Krish numbers gave me the winnings. I won the Powerball Jackpot of $1.08 billion and I am here today to share my experience to those willing to win the lottery as well. Take this opportunity to contact Lord Krish Spiritual with his email: lordkrishshrine@gmail.com and also share your experience with others.
VISIT GEO COORDINATES RECOVERY HACKER TO GET YOUR MONEY, STOLEN FUNDS, OR BTC RETURNED?
My purpose out here today is to share this article to the world about how GEO COORDINATES RECOVERY HACKER helped me in getting my lost funds back. Losing your life savings to scammers it’s not a good feeling, I lost everything, even sold some properties, I didn’t even know where to start from, I invested $72,000, which i was promised to get my first 15% profit in weeks, when it’s time to get my profits, I got to know the company was bogus, they kept asking me to invest more and i ran out of patience then requested to have my money back, they refused to answer nor refund my funds. I had contacted a few crypto recovery agents but they were all unprofessional not, until a friend of mine introduced me to this hacker called GEO COORDINATES RECOVERY HACKER. It gladdens my heart to be out here to share with you my incredible experience working with the recovery hacker called GEO COORDINATES RECOVERY HACKER. I must confess that it was the best decision that I made because my stolen Bitcoin was successfully returned to me. So for those who are victims, don’t let those unfortunate scammers get away with your hard-earned money. You can rely on your expertise. They have previously handled many successful cases. In order to get your stolen assets recovered Kindly contact them via
Email: (geovcoordinateshacker@protonme)
Email: (geovcoordinateshacker@gmail.com)
WhatsApp ( +1 (512) 550 1646)
Website; https://geovcoordinateshac.wixsite.com/geo-coordinates-hack
Hello everyone here, i am happy to inform you that Mighty yuri is a trusted platform where lost usdt and cryptocurrency can be recovered back, they assited me to get back $95,000.00 lost USDt i invested to a scam company which claimed they could help me trade and give me back my interest, they robbed me off my money, but all thanks to Mighty Yuri i am happy and glad now that i have my USDT i lost to them back. Mighty Yuri has the tool to help you invest your crypto, and they can also help you recover any money you lost to cryptocurrency scam, you can contact the Mighty Yuri
via
WhatsApp: +1,619,50,06,894
Email: mightyyuri(@)consultant.com
web: https://mightyyuri9.wixsite.com/mighty-hacker-yuri
Howdy! I’m at work surfing around your blog from my new iphone 4! Just wanted to say I love reading through your blog and look forward to all your posts! Carry on the superb work!
Rattling excellent information can be found on blog. “You have to learn that if you start making sure you feel good, everything will be okay.” by Ruben Studdard.
Thank you for sharing with us, I believe this website really stands out : D.
Some truly nice and utilitarian info on this internet site, too I think the style contains superb features.
I carry on listening to the reports talk about receiving free online grant applications so I have been looking around for the finest site to get one. Could you tell me please, where could i find some?
Hi there! I know this is somewhat off topic but I was wondering if you knew where I could get a captcha plugin for my comment form? I’m using the same blog platform as yours and I’m having difficulty finding one? Thanks a lot!
I am no longer certain the place you’re getting your information, however good topic. I must spend a while learning more or working out more. Thank you for wonderful info I used to be in search of this info for my mission.
Great line up. We will be linking to this great article on our site. Keep up the good writing.
I’m still learning from you, while I’m improving myself. I definitely liked reading everything that is posted on your website.Keep the posts coming. I enjoyed it!
Magnificent web site. Plenty of useful info here. I’m sending it to some buddies ans also sharing in delicious. And certainly, thank you for your sweat!
Sweet blog! I found it while surfing around on Yahoo News. Do you have any suggestions on how to get listed in Yahoo News? I’ve been trying for a while but I never seem to get there! Cheers
I like what you guys are up too. Such clever work and reporting! Keep up the excellent works guys I’ve incorporated you guys to my blogroll. I think it will improve the value of my website :).
Great weblog here! Additionally your web site lots up very fast! What host are you using? Can I get your associate link on your host? I desire my site loaded up as quickly as yours lol
I was very pleased to find this web-site.I wanted to thanks for your time for this wonderful read!! I definitely enjoying every little bit of it and I have you bookmarked to check out new stuff you blog post.
I genuinely enjoy studying on this website , it has excellent content. “We find comfort among those who agree with us–growth among those who don’t.” by Frank A. Clark.