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AdditionalAttorney t1_iuej1e7 wrote

I really love YNAB as a budgeting tool. It’s ~$100 a year, which is steep for an app. But it’s the only thing that got me into actively engaging w my budget. Like you I also feel like I live frugally and save well

YNAB has allowed me to supercharge that.

The thing that jumped out at me is no set aside monthly sinking funds for vacation and for gifts (Xmas, bdays, etc)

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selryn1701 t1_iufq754 wrote

I would also recommend YNAB. As a naturally thrifty person it's allowed me to see what I can actually spend freely while saving for my goals.

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DIY_Guy1520 OP t1_iuen0z4 wrote

I’ll have to check out YNAB. But good call with the vacation/gifts totally forgot about that.

Also at this point in our lives, a ton of friends/family are getting married so we’ve been shelling out money left and right for weddings lol.

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AdditionalAttorney t1_iuenzfz wrote

Yep that’s another category.

Some people call it “life events”. For things like, weddings, baby showers, graduations, funerals, etc

YNAB really has an AWESOME system of how to think abt this stuff. Bc it forces you to amortize over time so that you’re saving bit by bit for things you KNOW will happen, you just don’t know when.

It has a bit of a learning curve and the tool is a glorified spreadsheet however for me it took using it for everything to click. And now I keep paying the subscription bc I like the sync w my bank and app access.

I highly recommend it. It really helps you not dip into things that are a priority for you. And let’s you pretty seamlessly move money between categories.

Like say in a given month you spent your eating out budget but your wife hits an amazing milestone at work and you want to celebrate. Before YNAB I’d just go and say “it’s worth it a $100 dinner isn’t gonna break the bank”. With YNAB I can get specific and say “it’s worth it, a $100 dinner isn’t gonna break the bank, I’m going to move $100 from the category where I was saving for a new TV and delay buying the TV”.

When life gets complicated w kids and tons of transactions it’s really hard to see that granularity and make that call. Anyways, try it out, it’s really made me feel like I can spend more, save more, without actually making more. The sub is great too r/YNAB

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DIY_Guy1520 OP t1_iueocmm wrote

That’s exactly the type of thing I’m looking for! Thanks again

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