How To Financially Plan Together With A Couples Budget Template

Budgeting for couples can mean a lot of different things, depending on a number of factors, including whether or not you're living together or sharing finances. But no matter if you are married, living together in a committed relationship or just starting out dating, getting on the same page about finances is important. A couple’s budget template can help you to actively discuss your finances and remove money as a source of stress or contention in your relationship.

What Does Financial Planning For Couples Look Like?

Couples don’t have to be married or even in a romantic relationship to open a joint bank account or build a joint spreadsheet that tracks each other’s expenses. Take advantage of both options to conveniently share costs and budget and plan for your blended financial future. No matter where you are in the journey of your relationship, actively talking about your finances is an important part of strengthening your relationship.

How To Create A Couples Budget Template In 5 Key Steps

While you may have a budget for your own individual finances, it can also be important to create and manage a budget as a couple.

1. Review Your Financial Goals Together

The first step is likely to review and align your financial goals as a couple and plan for the future. Depending on the status of your relationship or how long you've been together, you may both be coming into the relationship with totally different ideas about money and finances. Talking with your partner about money is a good first step to make sure you're both moving in the same direction.

2. Use A Shared Budgeting Template

You can easily stay on the same page with your budget when you use a shared budgeting template. The Rocket Money℠ app allows users to plug in their monthly expenses and set up a manageable budget for free.

Using a shared budget template is one of the best ways to budget as a couple. It provides easy access to each other’s expenses and income and helps couples quickly spot what they may need to tweak to reach their mutual financial goals.

3. List All Your Combined Income

Next, you'll want to list all your combined sources of income along with how often you get paid. Here are a few possible forms of income to consider:

• Regular salary
• Tips
• Bonuses
• Side hustle income
• Royalties

If you are on a salary or have regular hours at your job, identifying your income is fairly straightforward. If you rely on tips or otherwise have irregular income, it can make things more complicated. In that case, just do your best to estimate your income. You can also consider looking at how much you've earned over the past few months to get an educated estimate.

4. Break Down All Joint Expenses

Next, it's time to break down and list all the joint living expenses you share as a couple. It can be helpful to divide your expenses into two different categories — needs and wants:

Needs

Needs are absolute necessities that you can't live without. While we often think of these as physical needs, there may be emotional, mental or psychological needs. Here are a few budget items commonly thought of as needs:

• Utilities
• Food
• Insurance and deductibles
• Transportation costs
• Loan payments
• Clothing

Wants

Wants are "nice to have" but probably not essential to your absolute survival. Here are some examples of common “wants” in a budget, including but not limited to:

• Going out (restaurants, movies, etc.)
• New clothes or accessories
• A wedding
• Entertainment
• Gym memberships

5. Save And Invest The Difference

Once you've identified your monthly income and expenses, it's time to analyze them. If your expenses are higher than your income, then you'll want to look through your budget and find ways to cut expenses or increase your income. Hopefully, though, your income exceeds your expenses. In that case, make a plan to save and invest the difference, either by creating an emergency fund, saving for retirement or investing wisely in other assets.

Additional Tips For Successful Budgeting For Couples

Budgeting has a higher chance of success when you decide on a strategy to manage money that feels achievable for everyone. Whether you open a joint account or keep separate accounts and split the bills, transparent budgeting can help you grow as a couple and financial partners. Here are three more tips for how to successfully budget as a couple:

Tackle Debt Faster

If you have debt already, consider paying it off. Paying off debt faster can be a great tip when budgeting as a couple. If one or both of you brought debt into the relationship, it can also be a good idea to have a frank conversation about whether the person who incurred the debt will be solely responsible for paying it off, or whether that's something that will be handled together as a couple.

Avoid Overspending

Avoiding overspending can be another great tip when budgeting as a couple. One of the most important things to do when setting up a budget is make sure that your income is regularly higher than your expenses. Learning how to save money can help you live within your means and put you on the path to a strong financial future.

Meet Regularly

A budget shouldn't be a one-time-only thing. Meeting and talking regularly about your budget can be a great tip for a couple committed to successfully budgeting together. You're not likely to craft the perfect budget on your first try. Instead, do your best and then commit to meet regularly and tweak it as needed.

Why Budgeting As A Couple Is Important In A Relationship

Budgeting as a couple is an important part of a relationship. Here are three reasons why it can be beneficial to learn how to budget as a couple:

• You plan for long-term goals: If you're in a committed, long-term and stable relationship, it's important to keep your eyes on your future. This includes planning for financial goals like saving for a down payment on a house, retirement, saving for college and other long-term expenses.
• You become more accountable: Part of successfully budgeting is regularly reviewing your budget, income and expenses. Discussing finances in a loving and thoughtful manner can help you both become more accountable to each other. This can have benefits even above and beyond your finances.
• You challenge yourself to grow in new ways: Establishing and sticking to a budget can be hard. By continuing to work on it, you challenge yourself and your partner to both grow in new ways.

The Bottom Line: Strengthen Your Financial Compatibility With A Couples Budget Template

No matter where you are on your relationship journey, it's important to talk about and discuss finances with your partner. Even if you have an individual budget, budgeting as a couple is also quite important. Open and honest conversation about money can help you determine your income and expenses each month. And for an easy way to track your expenses, download the Rocket Money^SM mobile app today.