Budget apps want subscriptions. Google Sheets is free, syncs everywhere, and a basic budget takes fifteen minutes to build yourself.
Updated August 08, 2026, after a fresh review, with updated visuals and links.
Once it's set up, updating it costs you two minutes a week and the mystery of where the money went disappears.
Short version: Create the three columns that matter first, then list your categories. Details below.
Step by step
- Create the three columns that matter. Open sheets.new for a blank spreadsheet. Put Category, Planned and Actual in cells A1, B1, C1, and bold them.
- List your categories. Down column A: Rent, Food, Transport, Subscriptions, Fun, Savings, and a Misc row. Keep it under 10 categories or you'll abandon it by week two.
- Start broad, split later if you need detail
- Include a Savings row even if it's small
- Fill the Planned column. How much you expect to spend per category this month. Guesses are fine; the budget corrects itself as weeks pass.
- Make Actual total itself with SUM. In cell C12 (below your last category) type =SUM(C2:C11). Do the same for B in B12. Now totals update automatically as you type numbers.
- See the difference instantly. In D1 write Left, and in D2 type =B2-C2. Drag the little square down column D to copy the formula for every row. Negative numbers show where life overran the plan.
- Update weekly, not daily. Pick one day, open the sheet, type what you spent per category. Ten honest minutes every Sunday beats perfect intentions.
Small tweaks, big difference
- Color the Left column with conditional formatting: red under zero is a glanceable alarm.
- Duplicate the sheet tab each month instead of rebuilding: right click the tab, Duplicate, rename with the month.
- Share the sheet with your partner with edit rights so both log spending in the same place.
Before you ask
Excel instead of Google Sheets?
Identical steps, same formulas. Sheets just shares and autosaves better for couples.
What if I go over in a category?
That's data, not failure. Move budget from another row next month and keep going.
Keep reading
- How to Use VLOOKUP in Excel, Explained With a Real Example
- What Are Passkeys and How to Start Using Them Today
- How to Back Up Your Phone Photos Automatically (Before It's Too Late)
Six steps, one formula, ten minutes a week: the simplest budget that survives contact with real life.
