9+ Sample Family Budget Planners

What Is a Family Budget Planner?

It is a chart or list of the household budget of a family needs. It contains everything from the family’s toiletries to the itineraries. It also includes the bills such as electricity and water. It helps families to plan their monthly expenses with a limited budget and to avoid spending beyond that.

During the Coronavirus outbreak, many installed wifi in their homes as they need it for work and online schooling. This made some worry about substantial increases to their monthly bill. According to a June 2020 survey in Statista, 14 percent of adults in the United States have been worrying about being able to pay for their high-speed internet connection at home during the next several months of the coronavirus pandemic. However, there was also 39 percent of adults that were not worried about at all. If you are one of the 14 percent, then you must really need a budget planner to help you out.

What Should Be Included in the Family Budget Planner?

As said before, a budget planner is a plan that contains lists of things to buy and bills to pay. If you want to make one, then these things should be included in the planner. However, these are only a few examples that should be included and you can add some more if there are any. 

Groceries. This list is the most common that is included in the planner which enlists your needs in the house. This will also serve as a reminder of the products that are not available in your fridge, freezer, and your pantry. Non-food items that you also buy in grocery stores are also included in this grocery list. Bread, dairy, meats, fruits and vegetables, condiments, beverages, toiletries, and detergents are the best examples for this list. Aside from lists of products, you should include their prices and quantities to sum it all up. It will help you calculate your expenses.Housing. Housing expense is where you can find your total monthly payments that are real-estate-related or anything that is associated with their home. Here you can list down your rental fees, mortgage principal and interest, taxes, and such. This is very important to every family to include this on their monthly budget to remind them every month. This is to avoid too many debts which can cause a problem.Basic utilities. Here lie your expenses from using utilities such as electricity, water, telephone, internet, sewage, and gas. Including them in your budget planner is such a great help. However, these examples given are not the only things included here, you can add more if there’s any. Utility expenses are based on the amount used during a particular period of time. According to Statista, 3802 terawatt-hours of electricity consumption has been totaled in the United States in 2020. Electricity consumption can still be reduced if desired by planning to reduce frequent using electric-generated devices. Not only the electricity but the other utilities as well. In this way, you will be able to save more enough money.Transportation. This is where you can see your total monthly expenses that cover all costs that are associated with travel expenses such as taxi fare, fuel, parking fees, lodging, and meals. Airfares are also included if there are any. Calculate the estimated total for your transportation to help you determine how to plan your daily expenses according to your budget. Transportation is important to consider for everyone always needs it in their daily lives.Insurances and Emergency Funds. It is always better to prepare some funds for emergency cases. Insurance is which a company keeps your funds for a particular contingency. Car insurance, Home Insurance, Life Insurance, Disability Insurance, and Health Insurance are a few examples of types of insurance. Including this list will help you sum up all your monthly expenses.

These five things are only a few examples that you can include in your budget planner. If there is anything you can think of, you can always add them to your budget planner. You can also edit the order or edit the planner however you want at your will. It depends on your preferences.

How to Make a Family Budget Planner?

These below are steps to guide you on how to make a fine family budget planner. We also provide you some tips on how to budget wisely.

Step 1: Agree on Goals.

A family budget will not work if both partners or decision-makers are not cooperating nor on the same page. They must gather and discuss the things important and less important. Agree on things needed for the family and discard all things that are not essential. This way, it is more likely to save more money and focus on your goals. Simply list all down the things you plan and agreed to buy including your debts and your total income or budget. Also include the rest of your monthly payments such as the utilities and insurances. You should also consider the needs of your pets if any. Come up also with a pet planner if you want to. 

Step 2: Create Your Planner.

Here you can opt to make your planner in a digital way or in an old way. If you opt to do it in the old way, draw some grids on your paper and label each and write the other things down accordingly as you do it in an old-fashioned way. When creating in your computer, open your editing software application, then create a table. Adjust the margins and borders with your preferences. Label each section. Don’t forget to add the date or the month. Remember that each section has different sizes as they have different meanings. The groceries should have the biggest space as you can add more things among the others. You can also opt to create four columns if you go to the grocery every week or two if twice a month. 

Aside from making it from scratch, you can also opt to download and edit a printable ready-made template in any way you want. This is also good for those who are in a hurry who doesn’t have enough time to create one. This way is far more efficient and hassle-free. 

Step 3: Edit Your Planner and Print It.

As soon as you are done with making your planner, edit it. Organize or arrange your planner according to your preferences. Make sure that every section has enough space for you to add details to it. Add some colors if you like to. Decorating your planner will not only make it cute and cool but can also help you check your planner better. Make it as organized and simple as you can. Don’t forget also to include a cell for the sum and other details such as the date. 

Afterward, you can print it out in a suitable paper size. You can opt to add the lists that were discussed in the first step or do it handwritten after printing. Listing down the groceries should be done during the period of time as you will need to check if they are still sufficient in your stocks or not.

Step 4: Follow the Planner

Post the planner as soon as you are finished with it. Post it near your kitchen or maybe the door of your fridge. This way can help you notice your planner and be reminded of it more frequently. Follow your goals by following what’s in your planner. Stick to it and avoid overdrafts. Make sure to list down all the things you need to buy for the next month or your next grocery schedule. In addition, do not forget to bring the list when going to the grocery to avoid running back to the store just to buy one box of milk. You can also paste another paper on the grocery sections every week if you go grocery shopping every week or on your preference. Always remember to keep the receipts and write the prices in your notebook or copy them into your spreadsheet. 

Step 5: Repeat

After the month has passed, do the steps again. Discard the current planner and replace it with another one as you will need a new planner for the new month. At this time, you will know the prices of the products you bought from the previous month. Therefore, you are now aware of how to plan your groceries in a more cost-efficient way. 

Importance of Having a Family Budget Planner

Budgeting alone helps you secure that there is always enough money to pay for food, bills, and other expenses. It is also good for avoiding credit card debts and promotes saving. A family budget, on the other hand, focuses on managing your money for the family expenses. It is very essential for a family to consider because it can help you with spending your money wisely on things your family must have (needs). Moreover, It can also help you save money for the things your family members like to buy but can actually live without (wants) and set aside money for unforeseen expenses, especially for emergency cases. More importantly, it will gradually help you stop accidental overspending. 

Considering insurance is actually a pretty wise choice as it can ensure your protection for you and your family. It can protect you and your family from contingencies which is why insurance is important once you start a family.

Important Things to Remember

Your family depends on your financial support to enjoy a decent standard of living, which is why a budget plan is important to have when starting a family. Another thing to remember if you want to reduce your spendings on your groceries, a meal planner will surely come in handy. This will help you decide what products you should buy as it will show you your menu for the whole week. 

Having an investment will also surely helps you with your financial support. Invest in something that you know it can make enough money to support your family’s needs. Investments are only extra support for your finances, whereas your main source of income is from your stable job. This is good for in some cases of unforeseen emergencies occurs.

FAQs

What is the best family budget app?

According to Family Money Adventure, the best family budgeting apps can help you track your monthly income and expenses anywhere and any time. In addition, these are the best apps that you can use chosen by the Family Money Adventure— namely: Mint, Personal Capital, You Need A Budget (YNAB), Zeta, PocketGuard, Mvelopes, and Clarity Money/Marcus Insights. If you want more details about them, feel free to visit the site.

How do I do a family budget in Excel?

There are different ways to create a family budget in Excel. However, the easier and the faster one is to search and start from a template in which it will automatically sum up all of the costs you fill in the cells. It’s easy and doable. You just have to fill in the details such as the title, the costs, and the budget. On the other hand, starting from scratch is quite complicated and consumes more time.

How much money does a family of 4 need?

Most Americans believe that at least $58,000 on average per year a family of four would need to “get by” in their communities according to the survey on Gallup. That estimate indicates that 29% of Americans stated that these families need at least an amount of $50,000 or less. Moreover, 47% answered between $50,000 and $99,000, while the other 10% said they need $100,000 or more and the rest had no opinions.

How much does a family need to live comfortably?

According to Business Insider, the median necessary living wage is $67,690 in the entire United States with Mississippi has the lowest annual living wage and Hawaii as the highest. The state of Mississippi has an average of $58,321 of the annual living wage and $136,437 for Hawaii. New York and California are some of the other expensive states which have notoriously high costs of living and expensive housing markets.

What is the 50 20 30 budget rule?

This popular budgeting rule means it is dividing your after-tax income or budget into three parts. 50% for the necessities or needs such as your bills and groceries, 20% for your savings, and 30% for other discretionary expenses such as travel and entertainment. On the other hand, there is another budgeting rule known as the 70-20-10 rule. It means the person will only spend 70% of their earnings, 20% will go to savings, and the rest 10% will go to donations.

Once you are done with your planner, make sure to always review it. Consider checking our other downloadable templates. You might need it. We also made you a weekly meal planner, travel itinerary, and a weekly student planner. Feel free to visit our site more often. In addition to your family budget planner, if you are uncertain about some parts of your plan, it is always better to seek advice or double-check your calculation before you proceed. Don’t worry if you are having a hard time planning on your budget for the first time, you will somehow get used to it.