How to make a 50 30 20 budget template.

Want to start allocating your money effectively? Learn how to make a 50/30/20 budget template to separate your earnings into needs, wants, and savings.

The 50 30 20 budget rule is one of the most popular budgeting guides available. It helps you allocate your money into three essential categories: needs, wants, and savings. Here's how to make your own 50 30 20 budget template to stay on track with your finances.

Sections of the 50 30 20 budget template.

There are three sections in a 50 30 20 budget template. They all correlate with the three major categories where you should put the money you earn monthly. The template also describes the percentage of your earnings you should put toward each category.

Here’s a quick rundown of the various categories of the 50 30 20 budget rule and how to use them:

Needs: 50%

Half of your earnings should go toward the things you need. These include essentials like mortgage, rent payments, food, utilities, transportation, and anything else your household needs to survive.

Wants: 30%

Life isn’t all about needs and savings. Sometimes you want to have fun right now, and the 50 30 20 budget accounts for that.

According to the 50 30 20 budget rule, 30% of your income should go toward your wants. These things you might not necessarily need, but they definitely make life more enjoyable. This category includes spending on hobbies, entertainment, eating out, and other non-essential purchases.

Savings: 20%

The last category in a 50 30 20 budget is for savings. At least 20% of your earnings should go into a rainy-day fund, which can help you build your savings account, repay outstanding debts, and grow your investment portfolio.

How to make a 50 30 20 budget spreadsheet.

The best way to create a sustainable budget for your household is to start with a template. You can easily download a free PDF budget template with prelabeled sections and categories, update the spending categories to fit your household, and fill in your estimated earning and spending.

However, if you prefer to build your own template, you can also start a 50 30 20 budget spreadsheet that outlines the three categories and the major expenses within each category.

Keeping your monthly income in mind, calculate the amount of money you can spend on each category according to the 50 30 20 budget rule. Write each number above the respective category.

Now that you have the basic budget template, keep track of your monthly purchases under each category. It’s best to keep up with your budget at least weekly, so you can be sure you don’t miss any expenses.

With a little persistence (and perhaps some self-restraint), you can more easily stick to the budget, maintain your family’s lifestyle, save for the future, and have a little fun in the process.

If you choose to download a premade template, it will already be in a PDF for easy sharing. But you can easily convert your PDF to Excel online if you prefer to work in a spreadsheet. You can even share your budget spreadsheet with your family to teach your kids how budget for themselves — an essential skill they’ll need in the future.

Additional resources.

Budgeting isn’t the easiest task in the world, but it’s definitely important. Looking for more resources to help you stay on top of your finances?

• Learn about cash flow budgets and how they can help you organize your finances.
• Discover how to create an annual operating budget.
• Find out what a zero-based budget is.

No matter what type of budget you choose to use, discover how Adobe Acrobat can help you create, manage, and organize your PDF documents online.

Content as a Service v2 - acrobat-hub - Tuesday, October 24, 2023 at 10:18