[Visual of title: Options for people who don’t like to budget]

Keeping a detailed budget can be one of the best ways to help you save money and avoid overspending, but not everyone has the time—or the desire—to sit down with a spreadsheet on a regular basis. You may have even tried to keep a budget

[Visual of a super: BUDGET, EXPENSES, MORTGAGE $1200, ICE CREAM $20, COFFEE $40]

before but it didn’t work out –

[Visual of a super: CAR LOAN $250, MOVIES $35, CABLE BILL $60, ELECTRIC $110]

you’re not alone.

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Fortunately, there are some ways you can manage your money without a traditional spreadsheet. Now, the most important part of managing your money is making sure your needs are covered.

[Visual of a super: MAKE SURE YOUR NEEDS ARE COVERED]

This will require a bit of math, but it doesn’t need to be complicated.

[Visual of a super: MORTGAGE $1200, UTILITIES $110, CAR PAYMENT $150, INSURANCE $90 TOTAL $1550]

Start by figuring out all of your regular monthly expenses.

[Visual of a super: MONTHLY BILLS]

This will be your regular bills--like rent or mortgage payments,

[Visual of a super: MORTGAGE $1200]

all your utilities, insurance payments

[Visual of a super: UTILITIES $110, INSURANCE $90]

and any other loan or credit card payments you make each month.

[Visual of a super: CAR LOAN $150, TOTAL $1550]

Then, estimate your other necessary expenses

[Visual of a super: ESTIMATED NECESSARY EXPENSES]

like what you spend per month on groceries

[Visual of a super: GROCERIES $110,]

and transportation costs.

[Visual of a super: TRANSPORTATION COSTS $250, TOTAL $360]

Add all these costs up and you’ve got your baseline—

[Visual of a super: MONTHLY EXPENSES, TOTAL $1910]

what you need to cover every month. When it comes to paying your regular bills,

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setting up alerts on a calendar

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can help to remind you to pay them a few days before they’re due. Or to make it even easier, you can try automating some of your payments.

[Visual of a super: AUTOMATED PAYMENTS: UTILITIES, CABLE, CAR LOAN]

You can sign up for automatic bill pay with your utility companies,

[Visual of a super: MORTGAGE]

lenders, and in some cases even with your landlord. The amount you owe each month

[Visual of a super: BANK STATEMENT]

will be automatically withdrawn from your bank account—or charged to your credit card.

[Visual of a super: CARD STATEMENT]

Automating payments can save you time and effort every month

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and help make sure your bills are paid on time, just be sure you always have enough money available in your account

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to cover all of your automatic withdrawals. And if you use a credit card,

[Visual of a super: CREDIT CARD]

make sure you can pay the balance in full each month

[Visual of a super: CARD PAYMENT, BALANCE DUE, PAY IN FULL, PROCEED]

in order to avoid paying interest on those charges. If you change your mind and decide
that automatic payments aren’t for you,

[Visual of a super: AUTOMATED PAYMENTS]

you can always cancel your scheduled payments and go back to paying manually.

[Visual of a super: BILL PAY]

Automatic payments can also be a great way

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to help you systematically pay down debt

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if you set up extra payments toward your loans and they can help you grow your savings

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if you set up regular contributions to a savings account. This can be especially helpful, if
you’ve had trouble saving in the past.

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To help yourself prioritize saving,

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you can try thinking of saving as a bill you have to pay to yourself.

Even if it’s just a small amount, making automatic payments to yourself can help you build up an emergency fund or a retirement account.

[Visual of a stack of cash at the center of a decision tree: dinner out, movie tickets, new shoes, a guitar, a vacation.]

Once you’ve taken care of your regular bills and savings, you have a bit more flexibility with what’s left. But if you find yourself overspending from month to month,

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you might want to try tracking your spending.

[Visual of a super: TRACKING YOUR SPENDING]

One simple way of doing this is using the “envelope method.”

[Visual of a super: ENVELOPE METHOD]

While it might sound old-fashioned, putting a set amount of cash in envelopes each month for different purposes like groceries,

[Visual of a super: GROCERIES]

transportation, dining out,

[Visual of a super: TRANSPORTATION, EATING OUT]

and just general spending money

[Visual of a super: PURCHASES]

can help you set limits on what you spend. So then, if you find yourself spending more than you had available in any of your envelopes, you might need to make adjustments the following month. Another way you can keep track of your spending with little effort

[Visual of a super: CARD STATEMENT]

is to use a single debit or credit card

[Visual of a super: DEBIT CARD, CREDIT CARD]

that can track and categorize your expenses for you.

[Visual of a super: TRACK, CATEGORIZE]

By keeping all of your purchases on one card, you’ll only have one monthly statement that shows how much you’ve spent and where you spent it. So it can be easier to see where you might be overspending and how you might cut back.

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Plus many banks now have online tools that can categorize your spending for you, so you’ll be able to get an idea of what you spent on different things like entertainment, groceries or dining out. Many banks also offer account alerts

[Visual of a super: EMAIL, WARNING, LOW BALANCE]

that will let you know when you’ve reached certain spending limits. If using a single
card is too limiting,

[Visual of a super: DEBIT CARD, CREDIT CARD 1, CREDIT CARD 2]

money management software or apps

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can help you link all of your accounts

[Visual of a super: DEBIT CARD, CREDIT CARD 1, CREDIT CARD 2 SAVINGS]

and automatically track your spending and saving for you. Many of these have even more detailed tools to help you analyze your spending

[Visual of a super: DINING OUT]

and they also have alerts that can warn you

[Visual of a super: UNUSUAL SPENDING ON DINING OUT!]

if you might be overspending in one category. And finally, if you feel like setting limits on your spending is a challenge, consider making one of your goals a small reward to yourself.

[Visual of popcorn and movie tickets.]

Whether it’s a treat at the end of a long week or putting aside a little extra toward a large purchase you really want,

[Visual of a super: BICYCLE]

rewarding yourself might help you feel more motivated about managing your money—as long as it doesn’t push you into overspending. While a detailed budget can be a great motivational tool

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to help you cut costs and reach your savings goals,

[Visual of a super: DISCRETIONARY EXPENSES]

it’s not the only answer. As long as you pay attention to the basics…make sure your needs are covered;

[Visual of a super: MAKE SURE YOUR NEEDS ARE COVERED]

manage your debts and savings;

[Visual of a super: MANAGE YOUR DEBTS AND SAVINGS]

and avoid overspending,

[Visual of a super: AVOID OVERSPENDING]

[Visual of an older woman standing in a garden outside a beautiful home.]

you’ll be setting the groundwork for a more secure financial future.

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The material provided on this video is for informational use only and is not intended for financial or investment advice. Bank of America and/or its affiliates assume no liability for any loss or damages resulting from one’s reliance on the material provided. Please also note that such material is not updated regularly and that some of the information may not therefore be current. Consult with your own financial professional when making decisions regarding your financial or investment management. Ⓒ 2015 Bank of America Corporation.