Family budget. How to control income and expenses

To better control your income and expenses, the first step is to create a monthly family budget, recording all the income in a column regardless of where it comes from. In fact, there is often a tendency to associate income exclusively with the paycheck, without considering other sources of income.

Dopodiché, in un’altra colonna, dovrai registrare le spese fisse che di solito comprendono l'affitto o il mutuo, le bollette del telefono, di Internet e le quote periodiche delle utenze domestiche (come l’acqua, la luce e il gas). È vero che spesso l'importo delle utenze è variabile ma, anche se la cifra stabilita non è completamente esatta, è utile comunque per ottenere una stima dei costi. 
Una volta completati questi due passaggi, bisognerà calcolare la differenza tra le entrate e le uscite. Il risultato di questa operazione rappresenterà il risparmio mensile. Ad esempio, se versiamo € 2000 e spendiamo € 900, rimarranno € 1100 che potranno essere destinati al risparmio e alle eventuali spese impreviste. 

Ricorda che risparmiare è fondamentale per raggiungere gli obiettivi finanziari a livello personale e per coprire le necessità giornaliere. 

Una volta fatto il bilancio, bisognerà trovare il modo migliore per registrare le entrate e le uscite che ci permetteranno di sapere a fine mese se l'obiettivo di risparmio è stato raggiunto, e quali sono le spese variabili che si sono ripetute maggiormente. The most commonly used tools for keeping this log are the following:

• Smartphone applications: Nowadays, there are numerous platforms that help you record your income and expenses with a single click. In addition, most of these apps give you the ability to organize your income into categories, such as: food, transport, cinema, etc. Come l'App BBVA che ha al suo interno una sezione chiamata “Entrate e uscite” per controllare le spese.
• Excel spreadsheets: The Internet offers several Excel templates on which to record income and expenses. They are customizable and allow you to establish categories according to your needs. Furthermore, if the spreadsheets are located on a Cloud platform, you can record expenses from both your smartphone and computer.
• Notebooks: this is also an excellent alternative for keeping accounting records, especially for those who love paper. A small notebook can always be kept close at hand. It is best to use it exclusively for finances, without adding any other content.

Whichever method you choose, be sure to record all expenses, even the smallest ones. In order not to miss anything, record every incoming and outgoing movement as it is made. If this is not possible, we recommend that you keep your receipt or, if you paid with your card, access your account from the smartphone app.

In addition to keeping a record of your expenses in order to be in control of your finances, there are other ways to be able to save more without too many sacrifices. Here are a few examples:

• Organize your shopping list: making a list before going to the supermarket will prevent you from buying unnecessary products.
• Take advantage of discounts: It is worth checking out the best offers and special promotions, such as VAT-free days. In this case, you have to stick to buying only what is necessary and not what seems cheap.
• Think about whether the daily extras make you happy: some, for example, can't do without coffee in the middle of the morning because it makes them feel better, for others it's just a routine. Eliminating these expenses will allow you to invest in other activities.

In conclusion, if you want to find out how you can control your income and expenses, start by budgeting. Determine what your fixed and variable expenses are and define a saving's goal. Next, write down all the income and expenses of the month and eliminate the expenses you can do without, which do not affect your well-being.