The Simple Budget Layout That Replaced 10 Years of Over-Budgeting (+ Free Tool)

Does that sound familiar? When you close out your budget at the end of the month, you shift money from category A to category B. After 10 years of doing this and almost over-budgeting, I hit a wall. Our budgeting system became almost unmanageable for Marc and me.

I immediately thought: well, I guess we’d just go with only one budget category. OK, maybe two or three. But to be honest, I knew we needed something in between first. So we did it: we deliberately chose to do less. And it changed everything.

Fair warning: our current simple budget layout still has 10 categories — which may not sound simple. But compared to where we started, with way over 30 categories, it was.

In this guide, I’ll walk you through the simple budget layout we’ve used as a family — as a transition budget — the mistakes I made along the way, and the lessons that took me years to learn.

Whether you’re a budgeting beginner or desperately need an overhaul like me, this is exactly where that journey starts — and where I wish I had started too.

What Is a Simple Budget Layout?

A simple budget layout is an easy approach to organizing your income, expenses, and savings in one place.

It works like a budget template for beginners that focuses on the essentials: knowing how much money comes in, where it goes, and how much you can save each month.

Think of it as a clear picture of your finances without overwhelming you with too many details.

Why Use a Simple Budget Layout?

When I started budgeting over a decade ago, I remember abandoning our budgets every other month because everything was too complicated. The tracking was just too much, the monthly budget categories were too many, and our budget routine as a couple always led to endless discussions.

In fact, learning how to budget together was one of our biggest challenges. If you need help with that too, I wrote an entire guide on how to master budgeting as a couple.

“Screw it,” I thought many times.

A simple budget layout removes that barrier by making it super easy to track your overall spending. The easier your budget is to maintain, the more likely you are to keep going.

Our Simple Budget Layout

Here’s the layout we’ve been working with recently — and why I’m now ready to change it, again.

Changing Our Simple Budget Layout

We currently have 10 budget categories, which used to have many subcategories — until I finally eliminated them.

But I’m already building a much simpler approach (one that takes less time and mental energy to maintain). Stay tuned, because I’ll be sharing our new super simple budget layout once we’ve tested it in real life and know it actually works.

The 10 budget categories are:

• Mortgage
• Housing / Utilities
• Groceries
• Transportation
• Child-Related Expenses
• Insurance & Healthcare
• Fun Money incl. Going-Out and Traveling
• Miscellaneous / Quality of Life
• Sinking Funds
• Buffer Money (for unexpected costs)

If you want to see where we started — with full subcategories and a “Giving” category — check out our line-by-line budget. What you’ll find in this post is what we kept after stripping it back.

Why I Currently Include Savings in My Budget Categories

To give you a transparent look at our finances today, each budget category of this simple budget layout includes both our monthly spending and our savings contributions.

In other words, the categories contain money we’re spending today as well as money we’re setting aside for future expenses in that category. The only exception is a handful of very long-term savings goals, which I keep in a separate category called Sinking Funds.

I preferred to treat that money as already spent because those expenses are inevitable — we’re simply paying for them in advance.

However, we won’t keep this system. As we simplify our budget, we will handle savings differently.

Why I’m Removing Savings From My Future Budget Categories

I only realized this because it wasn’t manageable to include spending as well as savings in one and the same budget category.

Here’s a real example: let’s say my remaining balance in groceries is 200 and we’re right at the end of the month. Within that 200 sits both a bulk fund for food purchases and the money for this month’s groceries — so I actually have no idea how much is left to spend.

That was a hugely valuable realization that came after simplifying our budget down to only 10 categories.

I thought I needed to go with the common budget categories — but actually I don’t. Because I don’t spend money the typical way. I like to save money upfront for bigger purchases I know will come — in every budget category. And right beside that sits our regular monthly spending money. Big aha moment.

How to Create a Simple Budget Layout in 10 Steps

Step 1: Decide on a simple budget layout template

We provide a free Simple Budget Calculator that you can save, share, and bookmark for later. It includes editable monthly budget categories, tracking sheets on paper, and many more features.

Step 2: Figure out your household’s total monthly income

Enter your income into your simple budget layout template, excluding any irregular payments if possible. Ideally, use those extra payments to accelerate your financial goals.

If your salary fluctuates, I recommend budgeting based on the lowest amount you typically receive. That way, any extra income becomes a bonus rather than something your budget depends on.

And if you’re paid seasonally, consider creating different budgets for different times of the year. For example, a summer budget and a winter budget may be more realistic than trying to make one budget fit every month.

Step 3: List all fixed expenses

Start with your fixed expenses. If you need help identifying your fixed expenses, including expenses that occur quarterly or annually, check out my Fixed and Variable Expenses Worksheet post.

Common fixed expenses include debt payments (such as a mortgage, student loans, or car payments), daycare or school fees, subscriptions and memberships, and housing costs such as utilities, internet, and insurance.

These expenses usually remain fairly stable from month to month. Don’t forget to review these expenses regularly, as they will likely increase over time.

Then move on to variable expenses.

Step 4: Estimate variable expenses

If you’re unsure which variable expenses to include, the same Fixed and Variable Expenses Worksheet post covers the most common categories such as groceries, gas, and entertainment (like going out), so you can add them to your simple budget layout template.

Step 5: Include your savings and sinking funds

Don’t forget to include your savings and sinking funds in your budget template for beginners. If you’re unfamiliar with this approach, I explain the concept in more detail in my Family Budget post.

Step 6: Track your expenses

I may sound like a broken record, but this is by far the most important—and most underrated—budgeting step: track your spending for at least 30 days.

Don’t rely on estimates. They will fool you. Research shows that most people underestimate their expenses, and I’m no exception. Every time I thought I knew where our money was going, the actual numbers told a different story.

Tracking is the foundation of every successful budget. Without it, you’re simply guessing.

Marc explained how to get started with YNAB, as this is the app we currently use for tracking our spending.

Step 7: Review your expenses

Review your expenses regularly within your simple budget layout, ideally first on your own and then with your partner so you can discuss any differences, concerns, or ideas for improvement.

Step 8: Set realistic savings goals

I believe living below your means is a superpower. It allows you to build a financial cushion and handle unexpected expenses without panicking. However, I also know from experience how easy it is to get carried away once you start feeling in control of your money.

I remember trying to cut our grocery budget in half—and while I managed to do it, we’re now right back where we started. Why? Because it wasn’t aligned with our values. That’s why I recommend focusing on one realistic savings goal at a time, and finding the right budgeting method for you.

Step 9: Choose a budgeting method that matches your lifestyle

I personally tried the Bare Bones Budget and the Values-Based Budget, among others — the latter is far more in line with our family vision of intentional spending. You can explore popular budgeting methods such as the 50/30/20 budget or the Pay Yourself First budget (free template at the end of this page). Before adopting any budgeting strategy, ask yourself whether it supports your goal of creating a simple budget layout.

Step 10: Review your progress

Review your progress each month to create a sustainable budget that can grow with your needs. Once you’ve built your budget, the real challenge is how to stick to a budget long-term. Here are my best practical budgeting tips (especially for couples) to help you do exactly that.

My Top 5 Real-Life Tips to Make Your Simple Budget Layout Work

My best real-life tips for success after over a decade of budgeting with Marc are these:

1. Simplify your budget right from the start. Choose between 3 and 10 monthly budget categories at most.
2. Choose your tracking method wisely. I didn’t pay enough attention to how simple our tracking tool was to use or whether it provided the information I needed (e.g., showing my average spending per month or week). Take time to educate yourself on what works best for you.
3. Decide on a super simple tracking app. I’ve come to the realization that YNAB may not be the best fit for our approach. I’ll let you know which one we choose instead.
4. Decide on a super simple and consistent review routine. I want to try doing it on a monthly basis.
5. Plan budget date nights, seriously. I’m going to be honest here: Marc and I have the best intentions but actually don’t make it a priority, which I really want to change by committing to a monthly budget date.

Try Our Free Simple Budget Layout Tool

Building your simple budget layout is one thing — but having the right tool to track and review it consistently is what makes it stick. Our free Simple Budget Calculator lets you customize your own categories, track your spending, and see exactly where your money goes each month.

Simple Budget Layout FAQs

If this post showed you anything, it’s that the best budget system isn’t the most complex one — it’s the one you’ll actually use. Start simple. Adjust as you go. Be sure to check out our Free Financial Ledger to track your net worth, savings rate, and investment portfolio growth all in one place.

Ready to find your own path to financial independence? Start with our “Financial Freedom Pathfinder” to compare different Semi-FI paths side by side — and find the one that fits your life.