I keep track of my expenses using a spreadsheet. Every year I analyse my expenses and make goals for next year.
And today I’m sharing my spending with you:
| Rent | £5719.92 |
| Bills | £597 |
| Transport | £570.11 |
| Food | £889.15 |
| Haircare/toiletries | £167.41 |
| Electronics & mobile | £166.49 |
| Presents | £250.46 |
| Flights | £1098 |
| Alcohol | £152.59 |
| Non-alcoholic drinks | £90.49 |
| Hobbies/membership/going out | £182.60 |
| Eating Out/takeaways | £286.47 |
| Clothes | £674.36 |
| Holidays | £1448.64 |
| Jewellery/make-up | £4 |
| Other | £342.42 |
| Total: | £12640.11 |
So what do I do with this data? Well, a number of things.
1) I compare it to last year to see where I’ve increased my spending
2) I set goals for next year e.g. setting myself £600 on annual clothes spending
3) Workout how much I spend per month to help myself budget
4) Workout how much I spend per month on essentials so that I can check that my emergency fund has enough in it
This is something I’ve had time to do whilst being a student. It will be interesting not only to compare my spending as a student with my spending as a working professional but to see whether I can keep up with my tracking on a weekly basis.
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