Budget apps vs. spreadsheet

[PineCat]

For those who are doing manual budgeting or using spreadsheets, I'm curious what your reasons for sticking with a manual system are. I've been manually budgeting for a while now, I keep the receipts from the day in an 'inbox' and periodically enter these into a spreadsheet to track my spending vs. budget.

I've looked into some of the apps out there that link accounts, not sure if I want to switch and break my habit of being hands-on with the receipts and bills.

[Anonymous]

I use Fudget. Simple budget tracker, manually enter in my transaction data and it keeps a running ledger. 

I do not want any services that have to link to my financial accounts. I tried Mint previously and really didn’t like the lack of custom budget tools. With Fudget I have a running tab for my groceries that’s separate from my monthly budgets and I have tentative budgets created all the way through July right now. 

I started using it last year and the only annoyance was having to manually add things when I charged something on a card — so I paid for pro which includes a calculator on each item. 

[Anonymous]

I find manual methods don't keep me accountable enough and I end up backsliding. I've been using YNAB (You Need a Budget) for a few months now, and it's been much more effective at keeping me on track. It's really just a digital version of the envelope method, but the concepts of giving every dollar a job and rolling with the punches (impulse buys and unplanned emergencies require reprioritization) gives it value for me. (It's also no-nonsense on debt-creation.) And being able to check any of my category balances on my phone keeps me from the tendency to check my account balance as a whole and making bad decisions on the go.

It works with linked and unlinked accounts, but no reason someone couldn't make it work with a plain spreadsheet.

[calyx]

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@Anonymous wrote:

I find manual methods don't keep me accountable enough and I end up backsliding. I've been using YNAB (You Need a Budget) for a few months now, and it's been much more effective at keeping me on track. It's really just a digital version of the envelope method, but the concepts of giving every dollar a job and rolling with the punches (impulse buys and unplanned emergencies require reprioritization) gives it value for me. (It's also no-nonsense on debt-creation.) And being able to check any of my category balances on my phone keeps me from the tendency to check my account balance as a whole and making bad decisions on the go.

It works with linked and unlinked accounts, but no reason someone couldn't make it work with a plain spreadsheet.

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I also use YNAB, and the main reasons I prefer it over spreadsheets (which is what I used to use) is the ease of use of the app at point of sale and the integration of the app and website.   I also like how easy and flexible the website/app is (I only use my phone for entering transaction and to check accounts/budget balances - I don't use it for disbursing my money into budget categories or reconciling).

You can set it up to link with your financial institutions or just do everything manually.   I have a mix of both (depending on the account).  
It does have a heck of a learning curve for some people, though.

[Revelate]

My time is too valuable to deal with a spreadsheet or any sort of manual tracking anymore.

YNAB is excellent, I am not hardcore budgeting right now and as such Personal Capital is working well for me... on the flip side I don’t have much time to make extravagant purchases: my life is both absurdly busy and comically boring.

[LakeLife]

I love using a spreadsheet and will continue to do so.  It's become customized to what I want over the years and is easy to use.  My finances aren't complex by any means.  I have a mortgage, car loan, utilities, and I limit my monthly miscellaneous spending by keeping track of my credit card usage cutting myself off when I reach certain limits.  It's simple and time tested for me.  

[Blackswizz750]

I prefer spreadsheets because it's easier for me. Software has come and gone and irks ro change platforms. In the future, I may try YNAB(think it's all online now) and it costs.

[xaximus]

I've been using spreadsheets for awhile now. I have one that's customized and has all my bills, expenses and whatnot in it. I generally update it for credit cards and their rewards (i.e. 5% categories, etc.) It's worked pretty well for me and I have a pretty good idea of what my budget is for groceries and other misc. spending. 

[Anonymous]

I use a mix.

For credit card due dates and other bills (rent/student loans) I use a spreadsheet.  Then I know exactly how much I need to have in my checking account for any pay period to cover the autopays.  Anything over that amount I can put towards savings, investing, etc.

The tool I find best for "budgeting" are the trend lines after categorizing expenses in a linked account app.  I can see month to month where money is going and adjust my spending as needed.  Most are static expenses, food and entertainment are the only ones I can really change without changing my living arrangements.

[PineCat]

With the linked apps: do any of them allow you to split transactions from purchases at places like Costco or Walmart? Often times these need to be split up into multiple categories.