Track recurring expenses automatically

Tracking recurring expenses automatically is essential for personal budgeting and financial management. By automating this process, you can save time, avoid missing payments, and get a clear view of your financial habits. Here’s how you can go about it:

1. Use Financial Tracking Apps

Financial apps are designed to track your income, expenses, and bills. Many apps offer specific features for recurring expenses, such as:

• Mint: Mint automatically tracks your spending by linking to your bank accounts, credit cards, and other financial accounts. It identifies recurring expenses like subscriptions, utilities, and loan payments.

• YNAB (You Need a Budget): YNAB helps users plan for both fixed and variable recurring expenses by categorizing them and allowing you to set up automatic transfers.

• PocketGuard: This app tracks your spending and shows you how much you can afford to spend after accounting for bills, savings, and goals.

2. Bank Alerts for Recurring Charges

Many banks and credit card providers allow you to set up notifications for recurring transactions. You can receive alerts when your subscription fees or monthly bills are paid, which helps you stay on top of your finances.

• Set up bill pay alerts: Most banks offer services to help you track due dates for bills or subscriptions.

• Enable transaction alerts: Get notified whenever a recurring charge is processed on your accounts.

3. Subscription Management Tools

Subscription management tools help you keep track of all your subscriptions in one place. These apps scan your financial transactions to identify recurring payments for things like streaming services, magazines, and fitness memberships.

• Truebill (now Rocket Money): This app automatically identifies subscriptions in your bank account and gives you the option to cancel or manage them. It can also provide a breakdown of your recurring expenses and track when your next payment is due.

• Trim: Trim can connect to your bank account and find subscriptions or recurring charges that you may have forgotten about. It even offers negotiation services to help lower your bills.

4. Set Up Recurring Payment Reminders

If you don’t want to rely solely on apps, you can manually set up recurring payment reminders using:

• Google Calendar or Apple Calendar: These calendars allow you to set up recurring events for when your bills or subscriptions are due.

• Task management apps like Todoist or Microsoft To Do: You can create recurring tasks to remind you of monthly expenses.

5. Use Spreadsheets with Automated Functions

If you prefer a more hands-on approach, spreadsheets (Google Sheets or Excel) can be a powerful tool to track recurring expenses. You can automate the process using built-in functions or plugins to update the data regularly.

• Set up a template: Create columns for your expenses, the frequency of payments, and the due dates.

• Use formulas: You can create formulas to automatically add new recurring expenses and calculate the total costs for the month.

• Use Google Sheets Add-ons: Some third-party add-ons allow for automatic import of your bank transactions into Google Sheets.

6. Link Your Bank Account to Budgeting Software

Budgeting software like Personal Capital or Tiller allows you to link your bank accounts and track recurring expenses automatically. These tools aggregate your bank account data and can categorize your recurring payments like rent, subscriptions, loans, and utilities.

7. Automated Bill Pay Services

Some service providers, such as utilities, insurance companies, and loan servicers, offer automated bill payment services. By setting up these services through your provider’s app or website, you can ensure that recurring bills are paid automatically on the due date.

• Many service providers offer discounts or incentives for enrolling in autopay, ensuring you don’t miss a payment and helping you save a little money.

8. Review and Adjust Regularly

While automation can make it easy to track and pay your recurring expenses, it’s important to review them regularly. With changing circumstances, subscriptions and services you no longer use can creep into your financial plans.

• Quarterly or annual review: Schedule regular reviews of your recurring expenses to check if there’s anything you can cancel or reduce.

• Adjust your budget: If your expenses increase or you add new subscriptions, make sure to adjust your budget accordingly.

9. Track Recurring Income

For a complete picture of your finances, consider tracking your recurring income, such as salaries, passive income, or rental income. Many of the same tools mentioned above can track both income and expenses, helping you stay organized.

• Use the same apps for budgeting and savings goals to ensure that your income and expenses align and you can save effectively.

Conclusion

Automating the tracking of recurring expenses ensures that you have a clear understanding of your financial health without spending too much time on manual tracking. Whether you choose financial apps, subscription management tools, or banking alerts, the key is to find the solution that works best for your habits. Regular reviews and adjustments will also help you manage your finances more efficiently, giving you more time to focus on financial growth and other priorities.