1.4.2 My monthly budget

You can use this template to prepare a simple personal or household budget. If you have already completed the income and expenses worksheets in previous sections, enter that information here. If you haven't, take the time to calculate your total monthly income and your total monthly expenses.

Definitions

Fixed expenses are those that come up every month and are roughly the same each month, like rent or mortgage payments, utilities, loan repayments and child care.
Variable expenses are those that may vary from month to month, like food, entertainment, travel, and home maintenance and repair.
Irregular expenses are those that don't come up regularly or often, like car repairs or new appliances. To estimate irregular expenses, review your bills or expense records for the previous year, total the cost of irregular expenses in various categories, and divide by 12 to arrive at an average monthly cost.
Savings is an essential part of your budget. Financial experts recommend putting aside 10 percent or more of your net income each month to save for your goals and have funds in reserve in case you lose your job or face a major unplanned expense. Build up an emergency fund of three to six months' income. Then continue to save for your other goals.

Tip

To determine your income accurately, you may want to collect recent pay stubs and income tax statements.
To determine your expenses, start with an estimate. Revise it after you have been saving receipts and bills or recording your expenses for a few months.

My monthly budget

Enter your total monthly income and total monthly expenses. Then subtract your expenses from your income to see if you have a surplus or a deficit. You can also use the Budget Planner from the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada, a useful and complete interactive tool to create your household budget.

Income	Amount per month ($)
Employment income (after deductions)	Amount $ Invalid format.
Bonuses	Amount $ Invalid format.
Tips or commissions	Amount $ Invalid format.
Government payments such as Canada child benefit, Employment Insurance (EI), Canada Pension Plan (CPP) or Quebec Pension Plan (QPP)	Amount $ Invalid format.
Self-employment	Amount $ Invalid format.
Gifts	Amount $ Invalid format.
Grants or scholarships	Amount $ Invalid format.
Royalties	Amount $ Invalid format.
AmountOther	Amount $ Invalid format.
Total income	$0.00

Fixed expenses	Cost per month ($)
Rent or mortgage payment	Amount $ Invalid format.
Property taxes and/or condo fees	Amount $ Invalid format.
Home insurance	Amount $ Invalid format.
Utilities (electricity, water, heat)	Amount $ Invalid format.
Communications (telephone, Internet, cable)	Amount $ Invalid format.
Transit	Amount $ Invalid format.
Car loan payment	Amount $ Invalid format.
Other loan payments	Amount $ Invalid format.
Child care	Amount $ Invalid format.
Other insurance (life, disability, etc.)	Amount $ Invalid format.
Banking and credit card service fees	Amount $ Invalid format.
Savings	Amount $ Invalid format.
AmountOther fixed expenses	Amount $ Invalid format.
Total fixed expenses	$0.00

Variable expenses	Cost per month ($)
Groceries	Amount $ Invalid format.
Eating out	Amount $ Invalid format.
Household expenses (cleaning, maintenance, repairs, furniture)	Amount $ Invalid format.
Car repairs, gas, etc.	Amount $ Invalid format.
Computer equipment and office supplies	Amount $ Invalid format.
Pets	Amount $ Invalid format.
Health care (dental, medication, glasses/lenses)	Amount $ Invalid format.
Clothing and footwear	Amount $ Invalid format.
Personal care (toiletries, hair care, makeup, laundry)	Amount $ Invalid format.
Recreation (movies, games, videos, clubs, concerts, sports, etc.)	Amount $ Invalid format.
Travel	Amount $ Invalid format.
Gifts and charitable donations	Amount $ Invalid format.
Education (tuition, books, fees, etc.)	Amount $ Invalid format.
AmountOther variable expenses	Amount $ Invalid format.
Total variable expenses	$0.00

Total monthly income	$0.00
Total monthly expenses	$0.00
Difference between total monthly income and total monthly expenses	$0.00

Download the interactive PDF and add it to your Financial Toolkit [PDF - 213KB]

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Date modified:: 2019-03-01