Free Printable Envelope Budgeting System (2024)

FAQs

How to make a budget envelope system? ›

The concept is simple: Take a few envelopes, write a specific expense category on each one — like groceries, rent or student loans — and then put the money you plan to spend on those things into the envelopes. Traditionally, people have used the envelope system on a monthly basis, using actual cash and envelopes.

It really was made famous (and a lot more popular) by finance guru and radio talk show host Dave Ramsey. All you need to get started are some ordinary envelopes, either store bought or homemade. Oh, you also need to mix in some financial discipline. You'll definitely need that.

NorthOne lets you set up unlimited digital envelopes for your business. For home budgets, you may wish to try services like Mvelopes or Goodbudget. Separate your funds into digital envelopes: Now, separate your funds into digital envelopes—whether that's through NorthOne or separate bank account categories.

Bringing Simple Envelope-Style Budgeting to Your Phone

RealBudget is designed to bring you the simplest form of money management in the most straightforward way possible. Create monthly budget envelopes, enter transactions, and track how you spend your money each month.

Do not subtract other amounts that may be withheld or automatically deducted, like health insurance or retirement contributions. Those will become part of your budget. The 50-30-20 rule recommends putting 50% of your money toward needs, 30% toward wants, and 20% toward savings.

Disadvantages of Using the Cash Envelope System

You have to get cash out of your bank account. You have to juggle cash. You have to spend only what you have.

Determine your spending method.

GoodBudget, Mint and Simplifi are examples of apps that support the envelope system. Some people prefer to pay everything with a credit card in order to earn the rewards and build credit.

It works like this: Gather 100 envelopes and number them from 1 to 100. Each day, fill up one envelope with the amount of cash corresponding to the number on the envelope. You can fill up the envelopes in order or pick them at random. After you've filled up all the envelopes, you'll have a total savings of $5,050.

Expenses for housing, utilities, insurance, and debt repayment are typically not included in envelope budgeting because they represent the fixed part of your budget—expenses that are non-negotiable and don't change much from month to month. You probably pay these bills electronically or by check.

What is a simple envelope budget? ›

In this technique, the idea is to break down your monthly living expenses, savings, and debt repayments into categories and set aside the appropriate amount for each bucket — one envelope for the rent, another for the car payment, one for each credit card payment, one for savings goals, etc.

Instead of having money set aside for each category in your head, or even scribbled on a paper somewhere, take one envelope for each expense category and mark it clearly. Now, put the exact amount of cash for this month in the envelope for each category. Do this with every expense category, and voila!

Use Goodbudget.

Goodbudget helps you to stick to your budget limits without the hassle of keeping actual cash in physical envelopes. It's available on the Web, iPhone, and Android. Save for big expenses, share household expenses, and budget on the go.

You can use Goodbudget free of charge with the free plan. However, the free plan has limited features. If you want more capabilities, a paid plan is available. It costs $8 per month or $70 annually to subscribe to the paid version of Goodbudget.

The method involves dividing your take-home pay into spending categories (e.g., rent, utilities, et cetera), labeling an envelope for each category, and putting the cash you plan to spend into the envelopes.

It works like this: Gather 100 envelopes and number them from 1 to 100. Each day, fill up one envelope with the amount of cash corresponding to the number on the envelope. You can fill up the envelopes in order or pick them at random. After you've filled up all the envelopes, you'll have a total savings of $5,050.