The first step of budgeting is to become familiar with your spending patterns. Here is is a free printable expense tracker to help you.
If you get to the end of the week, or the end of the month and you have no idea where your money goes, then tracking your expenses day to day is a fundamental exercise in getting to know your spending habits.
projecting upcoming expenses and income, etc.
There is something about physically budgeting and tracking your expenses that is so satisfying. It also may make you more aware of your spending habits.
What about tracking change? This is up to you. You can either round up to the nearest dollar and then use the change freely or put towards a financial goal, or you can record the exact change on the expense tracker.
