I’m often asked how I keep track of my Everyday Money.  My personal thinking style rebels against the structure of a budget and tracking pennies – and the time it takes.  So I use a tool called 22Seven.  Although independently run, it’s backed by one of the largest financial services organisation, so I believe in the rigour of its security.

In summary, it pulls in all of John and my transactional accounts and allows me to categorise the transactions.  Once that’s done it remembers those categories – so repeat buys the next month such as Woolies and Exclusive Books are automatically categorised.  So for about 5 minutes a month, I can see exactly what I’ve spent by budget category.

What’s even more, we get a family view without me needing full access to John’s accounts.  When you’re partnering on your finances, it’s crucial to see the whole picture.

How does that help?  Well, less hassle means I’m more likely to track my budget, and I can visually see in graphs and click through tables where my money is going – making me more conscious of my spending.