Monthly Expense Calculator and Tracker - Personal Budgeting

Two Options to Help You Track Your Spending

1. Download an Excel Monthly Tracking Worksheet and track your spending in Microsoft Excel, or
2. Open our simple Monthly Expense Tracker (PDF) and follow the steps below:

Easy Instructions

1. Click here to open a copy of our Monthly Expense Tracker.
2. The expense categories listed below and on page 1 of the Expense Tracker will help you determine which expenses to record where.
3. For each week, record dates you are tracking. For example, a 7 day tracking period would be May 30th to June 5th. The next week would start on June 6th.
4. Record cash balances on hand or in your bank account and list any income you expect to receive during each week.
5. List the dates down the left side and record actual money spent each day. Use the blank columns to create your own categories. Maybe you want to track coffees, magazines or fuel separately.
6. Weekly savings amounts also need to be recorded on pages 14–15 of the Expense Tracker. Keep track of seasonal expenses on these pages, not on your weekly pages.
7. Total all columns and subtract actual expenses from actual income. If there is a surplus, this means you should have money in your wallet or bank account. This becomes the cash balance for the next week.

Click here to view a completed sample tracker.

Expense Categories

Housing: rent, mortgage, strata fees, property taxes, house insurance

Utilities: phone/cell, cable/internet, gas, hydro, security

Household: storage locker, decor, gardening, misc. items

Groceries: food, baby needs, household supplies, toiletries

Living: personal care, bank fees, dry cleaning, pet costs

Transportation: fuel, auto insurance, transit, parking, taxi

Health Care: medical premiums, life insurance, medication, eye care, dental, wellness costs

Personal: tobacco, alcohol, books/CDs, donations, subscriptions

Eating Out: meals, snacks, take-out, coffee/water

Entertainment recreation: sports equipment/fees, movies/tickets, hobbies, lottery/gaming, memberships (fitness, etc.)

Child: daycare, lessons/activities, allowance, school supplies/fees, babysitting

Debt Payments: loans, credit cards, leases, support payments, government debts

Savings: emergency fund, RRSPs, RESPs, for seasonal expenses (e.g. car repairs, travel/vacations, clothing, gifts, assisting family/friends)

To download the expense sheets and complete information, click here.