Best Budgeting Spreadsheet Templates: Free and Premium Options for 2026
A budget is only as good as your ability to actually use it. Elaborate apps with 47 features often get abandoned. A simple spreadsheet you open every week? That works.
The problem is building a good spreadsheet from scratch takes hours. Here's what's worth using — both free and paid options.
What Makes a Good Budgeting Spreadsheet?
Before downloading the first template you find, think about what you actually need:
- Transaction tracking — Can you log income and expenses quickly?
- Category visibility — Can you see at a glance where your money is going?
- Monthly comparison — Can you track trends over time?
- Works the way you work — Google Sheets if you're always on mobile; Excel if you prefer desktop
Don't pay for features you won't use. A $0.99 spreadsheet that you open weekly beats a $15 one that intimidates you.
Free Budgeting Spreadsheet Templates
Google Budget Templates (Built-In)
Google Sheets has a basic monthly budget template built in. In Google Sheets, go to File → New → From template gallery and search "budget."
It's bare-bones — monthly income vs expenses with a few categories — but it's free and requires zero setup. Good starting point if you've never budgeted before.
Best for: Absolute beginners who want to start today.
Vertex42 Budget Templates
Vertex42 has been making Excel templates for 20+ years. Their free personal budget template is well-designed, includes monthly summaries, and works in both Excel and Google Sheets.
Best for: People comfortable with Excel who want a no-frills but solid option.
The Simple Budget Spreadsheet (Google Sheets)
A popular free template floating around the personal finance community. Does one thing well: shows income minus expenses for the month. No complicated formulas.
Search "simple budget Google Sheets template" — several bloggers have created their own versions and shared them for free.
Best for: Minimalists who want just the basics.
Premium Budgeting Templates (Worth Paying For)
Free templates are great for getting started, but they often lack the polish and features that make budgeting stick long-term. A one-time purchase of a well-designed template usually pays for itself in the first month of using it.
Personal Monthly Budget Tracker
Our Personal Monthly Budget Tracker ($6.99) is designed for people who want real insight into their spending without a steep learning curve.
What's included:
- Monthly income and expense tracking across 30+ customizable categories
- Savings rate calculator — see exactly what percentage you're saving each month
- Year-at-a-glance dashboard — monthly summaries in one view
- Transaction log — every purchase tracked, categories auto-sum
- Compatible with Excel, Google Sheets, and Apple Numbers
Most users recover the $6.99 in their first month by spotting a subscription they forgot about or realizing how much they're spending on takeout.
Meal Planner & Grocery Budget Tracker
Food is one of the biggest variable expenses for most households — and one of the easiest to reduce with planning.
Our Meal Planner & Grocery Budget ($5.99) combines weekly meal planning with grocery cost tracking so you can see whether your meal plan is actually saving money.
What's included:
- 4-week meal planning grid
- Grocery list builder (from your meal plan)
- Price tracking — see how your grocery costs change week to week
- Monthly food budget dashboard
The key insight: Most people don't realize how much food waste is costing them. This tracker makes it visible.
Habit Tracker for Financial Goals
Budgeting is really a habit. Our Habit Tracker ($4.99) isn't finance-specific, but it's been used by hundreds of people to build the consistent habits that lead to financial success:
- Checking your budget weekly
- No-spend days
- Saving a set amount each payday
- Meal prepping on Sundays to avoid expensive takeout
Daily grid view shows your consistency at a glance. Monthly completion percentages let you see if you're improving.
Freelancer Income & Expense Tracker
If you have any self-employment income — a side hustle, consulting, gig work — a personal budget spreadsheet won't cut it for tracking your business money.
Our Freelancer Income & Expense Tracker ($7.99) handles:
- Income tracking by client and project
- Business expense categorization (what's deductible?)
- Quarterly estimated tax calculation
- Profit & loss summary
A lot of freelancers overpay on taxes because they don't track deductible expenses properly. This template is designed to make that easy.
Choosing the Right Template for You
| If you… | Use… |
|---|---|
| Just starting out | Free Google Sheets template |
| Want solid personal budgeting | Personal Monthly Budget Tracker |
| Spend too much on groceries | Meal Planner & Grocery Budget |
| Building financial habits | Habit Tracker |
| Have freelance/self-employment income | Freelancer Income & Expense Tracker |
| Have a small business | Small Business Budget Tracker |
One Template vs Many
You don't need every template — you need the right one for where you are now.
If you're just starting to budget, start free. Use the Google Sheets template for one month. If you stick with it, upgrade to something more robust.
If you've tried budgeting before and it hasn't stuck, the problem is usually the tool or the system — not you. A better-designed spreadsheet with a clear layout often makes the difference between giving up and actually following through.
The goal isn't a perfect budget. It's a budget you'll actually open.
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