If you pay for a gym membership or streaming services, for example, those costs might stay the same month to month.
While they may not be necessary for basic needs, certain recurring subscriptions could also be included as fixed expenses in your budget. But these costs can fluctuate from month to month, depending on your usage and the rates your provider charges. Water, gas and electric bills technically fit under the umbrella of basic living expenses. Health, disability or life insurance premiums.Renter’s insurance or homeowner’s insurance.Some of the most common fixed expense samples include: Examples of Fixed Expensesįixed expenses can include essential expenses, such as those needed to maintain a basic standard of living each month.
If you budget by paycheck or schedule automatic bill payments, having bills due at roughly the same time can help with avoiding late payments and the fees that go along with them. Again, the advantage here is that planning out your budget may be easier to do with recurring bill payments. That can make using certain budgeting methods, such as zero-based budgeting or the 50/20/30 budget, easier.Īside from being roughly the same amount each month, fixed expenses may also be paid on or around the same date each month. Since these expenses are more or less constant, budgeting becomes more predictable. Having one or more fixed expenses in your budget is a good thing from a planning perspective. You can simply carry over those amounts from last month’s budget. When you sit down to make your monthly budget, you don’t have to guess how much you’ll pay toward fixed expenses. To learn more, schedule a one-on-one appointment with a Bears for Financial Success peer educator, or request a presentation for a student group.A fixed expense just means an expense in your budget that you can expect to stay the same, or close to it, over time. By actively seeking more affordable substitutes, you can ensure that you will meet the financial goals you have set for yourself. Certain categories, such as clothes, transportation, and food are relatively flexible expenses that can be modified to lower your spending. Reduce Your SpendingĪ good way to make sure you are meeting the requirements of your spending plan is by reducing your spending where possible. Understanding this difference and maintaining a good balance between the two will let you stay on top of your spending plan and effectively manage your finances. These expenses may include: housing, tuition, insurance, etc.įlexible expenses, on the other hand, cover other necessities such as food and transportation, but also include any additional expenses spent on things like entertainment. Flexible Expensesįixed expenses include those that will need to be included in your spending plan monthly and generally won’t change unless you move or change your plan. Please keep in mind that if you change the formulas in the spreadsheet, we cannot guarantee the accuracy of your results.
#Fixed versus flexible expenses worksheet download#
You can create your own or you can download our spending plan template. You can also use an Excel spreadsheet to create and track your spending plan.
#Fixed versus flexible expenses worksheet free#
There are many tools available to choose from, but here are some examples of free apps and websites: Mint, Good Budget, and Budgetpulse. There are various online tools designed to give you a simple way to create a spending plan, keep track of your spending, and help you stay on top of your finances. To make sure your current spending is aligned with your spending plan, it is important to track your spending plan over the course of the specified time frame. Subtract your total expenses from your total income to determine whether it will be necessary for you to find additional sources of income to cover any leftover expenses. This will allow you to better control your spending as you pay off your direct and indirect costs as a student at UC Berkeley. Now look at where your money will be spent. It is important to understand where your money will be coming from, so reviewing all of your sources of income will give you a better understanding of your budget. Deciding on a time frame will make it easier for you to calculate your funds and track your expenses accordingly, whether per semester or per month. However, most of the time your bills will be paid monthly. If you receive financial aid, you may receive most of your income per semester. Here are the steps you should follow to create your spending plan: Creating a spending plan ahead of time will allow you to effectively manage your finances and determine where to best spend your money.
A spending plan is a method for distributing your income among the mix of things you want and need.
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