Dave Ramsey budget forms – When you’re overwhelmed with debt, it’s hard to know where to turn or how to find resources that will help you the most.
Maybe you’ve heard Dave Ramsey talk about money on the radio, listened to his podcast, or even read one of his books. But how can you find all the right Dave Ramsey budget forms for getting started? There are so many great forms to choose from!
Below you’ll find a short list of free Dave Ramsey budget forms that will be the most helpful to you as you’re getting started. I tried to keep this list simple, with the basic budget forms you might need to get started. If you want more options, click here for my longer list with tons of pretty Dave Ramsey printables.
Be sure to read our debt free story: We’re Debt Free! Our Story Of How We Paid Off Our House
Now, without further ado… here are some of the most important forms to get you started.
UPDATE MAY 2019: I have a new post up with 21 more “inspired by” Dave Ramsey budgeting printables.
Dave Ramsey Budget Forms
Monthly Cash Flow Budget Form
Use this Monthly Cash Flow form to organize everything you need to pay and your debt minimum payments. Next to everything write the due date.
Spending Plan Budget Form
Then, use this Spending Plan form to create your budget. You need a column PER PAYDAY which will change every month. If you’re paid weekly or bi-weekly, some months will have more than four pay columns.
Like Dave says, you’ve got to tell your money what to do or it will leave. Be diligent about using these budgeting forms, and know where your money is going — every penny of it!
Variable Income Budget Form
If you get paid a variable income rather than a set amount each payday, it can be somewhat confusing to get started. Dave has this Irregular Incomeform to help you plan for each income source.
As you’re setting up your budget, you may findthat you need to call certain utilities, creditors, or other billing companies and request tochange billing cycles. Usually there’s no problem when you try to tweak your “due by” dates, within reason. Don’t be intimidated! Many companies are happy to help if they feel it will help them receive your payments in a timely manner.
Dave also has an area on his site that lists many of his available budget forms (on the Useful Forms page). It includes the monthly cash flow sheet, consumer equity sheet, lump sum payment planning, and more. They are all printable budget forms. Bookmark the page — it’s nice to keep it handy!
I also designed a beautiful Budget Binder Toolkit that has really helpful budgeting forms, plus all the printables are easy to use. It’s easy to print them, fill them out, and put them in a three pronged binder. Everything you need is there in one easy PDF file. There’s even a “spending journal” printable! You can learn more about the Budget Binder Toolkit here.
You can do this! One step at a time, my friend. Just keep putting one foot in front of the other, and you’ll get there. It’s worth it!
Before you go, take a minute and tell us about some Dave Ramsey Budget Forms that have been helpful to you. We’d love to know.
You might also like:
The Best Dave Ramsey YouTube Videos
13 Things Dave Ramsey Fans Wish You Knew
Our Dave Ramsey Meal Plan For A Beans + Rice Budget
The 7 Dave Ramsey Baby Steps To Financial Freedom
Go in grace today,
P.S. New to my web site? I like to write about ways to optimize your life, save money, and cook cheap meals at home! Here are a few moreways you can save money:
Cook at home more often.We used to waste so much money going out to eat! This is a constant struggle for us as a busy family. Try a program likeemeals (the link takes to you a free 14-day trial) to help you create simple, inexpensive meals at home if you struggle in this area like I do. You’ll save MORE money on your groceries each month than the small amount you pay for their service.
Earn Amazon gift cards.A simple way to earn a little extra money from home by using the Swagbucks site instead of Google for searching. You can also do surveys and a few other things to earn points, which you redeem to purchase gift cards from them.Swagbucksis what we used toearn Amazon gift cardsand pay for Christmas gifts one year. (Click here to read about how we did it.)
Create a budget.Mvelopes is the online budgeting program we personally use and LOVE. In fact, we purchased a lifetime membership several years ago when they offered it to us. It’s like a virtual cash envelope system, and it syncs with your bank accounts.Here’s my full Mvelopes review,or you canclick here for a free 30 day trial of Mvelopes.
The 50-30-20 rule recommends putting 50% of your money toward needs, 30% toward wants, and 20% toward savings. The savings category also includes money you will need to realize your future goals.
Put 60% of your income towards your needs (including debts), 20% towards your wants, and 20% towards your savings. Once you've been able to pay down your debt, consider revising your budget to put that extra 10% towards savings.
The 50/40/10 rule is a simple way to make a budget that doesn't require setting up specific budget categories. Instead, you spend 50% of your pay after taxes on needs, 40% on wants, and 10% on savings or paying off debt.
You've probably heard of the 50/30/20 rule or the 60% solution, but we use the zero-based budgeting method. This is when your income minus your expenses equals zero—aka you're giving every dollar you make a job to do so none of it gets accidentally spent! It's simple math that works no matter your household income.
The 40/40/20 rule comes in during the saving phase of his wealth creation formula. Cardone says that from your gross income, 40% should be set aside for taxes, 40% should be saved, and you should live off of the remaining 20%.
The rule requires that you divide after-tax income into two categories: savings and everything else. As long as 20% of your income is used to pay yourself first, you're free to spend the remaining 80% on needs and wants. That's it; no expense categories, no tracking your individual dollars.
The 70-20-10 budget formula divides your after-tax income into three buckets: 70% for living expenses, 20% for savings and debt, and 10% for additional savings and donations. By allocating your available income into these three distinct categories, you can better manage your money on a daily basis.
In the 60% solution method, you cover all your wants and needs with 60% of your budget. The other 40% is for saving. Then, that 40% gets divided up into three savings categories (10% for retirement, 10% for long-term savings, 10% for short-term savings) with 10% left for “fun.”
The 60/30/10 budgeting method says you should put 60% of your monthly income toward your needs, 30% towards your wants and 10% towards your savings. It's trending as an alternative to the longer-standing 50/30/20 method. Experts warn that putting just 10% of your income into savings may not be enough.
The 10% rule is a savings tip that suggests you set aside 10% of your gross monthly income for retirement or emergencies. If you still need to start a savings account, this is a great way to build up your savings. You should create a monthly budget before starting your savings journey.
It may not work for everyone. Depending on your income and expenses, the 50/30/20 rule may not be realistic for your individual financial situation. You may need to allocate a higher percentage to necessities or a lower percentage to wants in order to make ends meet. It doesn't account for irregular expenses.
The basic concept behind the 50/30/20 rule works for just about anyone. But depending on your income and debt load, you may need to adjust the exact breakdown of your expenses. For example, a low-income household may need to spend more than 50% of their after-tax pay on needs.
The debt snowball method is a debt-reduction strategy where you pay off debt in order of smallest balance to largest balance, gaining momentum as you knock out each balance. When the smallest debt is paid in full, you roll the minimum payment you were making on that debt into the next-smallest debt payment.
Some Experts Say the 50/30/20 Is Not a Good Rule at All. “This budget is restrictive and does not take into consideration your values, lifestyle and money goals. For example, 50% for needs is not enough for those in high-cost-of-living areas.
For a family of four (including two children under age 11) in 2023, your spending on groceries should be around $975 a month. You can also look at your recommended grocery spending based on a percentage of your income. Try and aim to spend no more than 15% of your take home pay on food and groceries.
The 20/10 rule of thumb is a budgeting technique that can be an effective way to keep your debt under control. It says your total debt shouldn't equal more than 20% of your annual income, and that your monthly debt payments shouldn't be more than 10% of your monthly income.
Introduction: My name is Arline Emard IV, I am a cheerful, gorgeous, colorful, joyous, excited, super, inquisitive person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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