The Money Finder is a free budget calculator designed to help you create a spending plan for your household. It compares your income and expenses and gives you a better sense of how much available money you have to put towards your savings.
It takes just a few minutes to complete, but you’ll start to see how your income and expenses stack up, and how much you might have left over.
Try the Money Finder for yourself and then come back and continue with this guide.
How did you do? If you’re in the positive, congrats! You have money to set aside for savings.
But don’t worry if you’ve overspent. Here are just a few ways you can start to cut expenses:
- Pack a lunch one extra day a week
- Make a list when grocery shopping to avoid impulse purchases
- Use public transportation more often, get a bike, or carpool
- Shut off the lights when you leave a room
- Watch for coupons and specials at your grocery store and when dining out
- Accelerate your mortgage payments with extra payments to the principal