Google Sheets is an excellent tool to keep track of your expenses. Not only can you manually create a budget spreadsheet from scratch, but the application also has some excellent premade templates that can make your job easier and faster. In addition, you can customize a template after selecting it so it aligns with your requirements perfectly.

Step 1: Select a template

  1. Launch your web browser and navigate to the Google Sheets sign-in page before logging in with your Google account.
  2. Once you've signed in, you will see a few template options, such as 'Annual Budget' and 'Monthly Budget'. To view more templates, click on 'Template Gallery'.
  1. Once you've decided which type of budget spreadsheet you want to create, click on the respective option. In this example, we will select the 'Monthly budget' template.
  1. Selecting a template will open it in your spreadsheet, allowing you to customize it. The template contains two sheets, a 'Summary' sheet and a 'Transactions' sheet. Click on the Transactions sheet to switch to it.

Step 2: Enter your transactions

  1. On the Transactions sheet, you can enter your transactions on the left and right for the expenses and incomes respectively. The sheet already contains headings like date, amount, and description so you can easily enter the details.
  1. You can set the category for each item you enter by clicking on the category dropdown menu and selecting the category.
  1. The data you enter in the Date column will automatically be formatted as the date and the data you enter in the Amount column will be formatted as the currency. However, if you want to change the currency symbol and use a different currency, click and drag to select the data in the Amount column.
  1. Then click on the 'Format' menu at the top.
  1. In the Format menu, go to 'Number' and then click on 'Custom currency'.
  1. Now select the currency you want to use, such as the US Dollar, and click on the 'Apply' button. Make sure to change the format for both the Expenses and Income sides.
Note: When you change certain parts of the template, you will see a notification warning you that they should not be changed accidentally. This will prevent you from making accidental changes you don't want. Click on OK if you want to proceed with the changes.

Step 3: Format the Summary sheet

  1. Once, you've entered your transactions in the Transactions sheet, switch to the Summary sheet by clicking on it.
  1. As the name indicates, this sheet shows a summary of your start and end balance as well as your monthly savings at the top. Scroll down and you will see an 'Expenses' section on the left and an 'Income' section on the right.
  1. The data you've entered in your 'Transactions' sheet will show up here. You can edit and customize it by clicking inside any cell and hitting the 'Delete' key.
  1. Update the information in the Summary sheet by editing the planned expenses. Google Sheets will automatically show you the balance by calculating the difference between your planned and actual expenses.
  1. As with the 'Transactions' sheet, you can change the currency formatting for currency amounts using the Format menu and selecting the Custom Currency option. Then select the US Dollar from the available options.
  1. Repeat the process for all the columns containing currency symbols for uniformity.

Things to know

  • One of the advantages of using a readymade template instead of creating a budget spreadsheet from scratch is that you don't need to manually enter the formulas for calculations. Simply enter the amounts in the columns and the application will automatically take care of the calculations.
  • Once your budget spreadsheet is ready, you can keep adding data to it and it will update the information on the summary sheet accordingly.
  • You can add, remove, or edit categories in the dropdown options on the Transactions sheet. To do so, simply click on the dropdown to open it and click on the pencil icon at the bottom to edit.
  • In a custom template, you can change most elements, including the colors and fonts by double-clicking on them. However, keeping your budget spreadsheet simple will help you get the best results.
  • If you find creating and managing a budget complicated, you can also create a simple spending tracker instead.
How to create a monthly spending tracker using Google Sheets
You can easily keep track of your monthly spends with this tracker in Google Sheets.
All Things HowPallav Pathak