A monthly budget
Income, essentials, other spending and a savings line. Enter your own currency and totals.
Budget template · CSV ↓LESS GUESSWORK. MORE CLARITY.
A clearer picture.
A smaller first step.
Make sense of your money with free tools, honest examples and a plan you can revisit. Start with one useful calculation.
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01 / TRY YOUR OWN NUMBERS
What could your plan look like?
This changes the unit shown, not the amounts. It does not convert currencies or use exchange rates. Enter all amounts in the same currency.
Compound interest, with an inflation check
Model: a constant nominal annual rate divided by 12, monthly compounding and end-of-month contributions. Today's purchasing power = future balance / (1 + inflation)years. Rates and inflation are assumptions, not forecasts. Taxes, fees, losses and changing rates are not modelled.
A FIRE target: the scale of a goal
FIRE means financial independence / retire early. Target = monthly spending × 12 / the assumed annual withdrawal fraction. All amounts are in today's money. The example 4% is not a guaranteed safe rate in any country. Market returns, their sequence, inflation, taxes, lifespan and changing costs can exhaust savings. This tool does not calculate a retirement date or success probability.
The long-term cost of a habit
Cost × purchases per year × years. Prices stay constant in this model; inflation and hypothetical investment returns are excluded. A small pleasure is not automatically wasteful. Use this to choose, not to feel guilty.
02 / A 52-WEEK SAVINGS CHALLENGE
One mark a week.
A habit of your own.
Save 1 unit in week one, 2 in week two and 52 in the final week: 1,378 units in total. Choose what one unit means in your own currency. The final four weeks require 202 units — check that this is affordable.
Mark a week after saving its amount. You can pick weeks in any order, pause, or use a smaller fixed contribution instead. This is a personal checklist, not a bank connection. We do not move money or verify your balance.
Marks are saved only in this browser. They do not sync between devices.
03 / HONEST EXAMPLES
Check the arithmetic.
Then make the choice.
A portfolio gained 20%. Or did it?
A fictional example: starting value 1,000, contributions 150, withdrawals 0 and ending value 1,200. The cash result is 50, not 200: ending value − starting value − contributions + withdrawals.
This does not calculate a percentage return: the timing of cash flows matters. Treat fees, tax and distributions consistently, without subtracting the same cost twice.
Can a big debt disappear in one year?
Fictional example: take-home pay 3,000 per month, living costs 2,000 and debt of 15,000. At 1,000 available per month, one year covers 12,000 before interest. Paying the principal alone needs 15 months, not 12.
Start with a realistic budget and the actual loan terms. Local borrower protections, taxes and lender options vary by country. Contact your lender if payments become difficult.
Does saving automatically preserve purchasing power?
No. An assumed 8% one-year return and 10% inflation produce a real change of 1.08 / 1.10 − 1 ≈ −1.82%, before fees and tax. With 5% inflation, the same nominal return is about +2.86% in real terms.
These are made-up rates, not current offers. A cash reserve can also serve a liquidity need; return is not its only purpose.
Should you cut every small pleasure?
A useful budget should leave room for basic needs, health and a sustainable life. Identify one low-value expense and one realistic income experiment. Review both the money and the effort after a month.
04 / PAUSE BEFORE YOU PAY
Protect the money
you already have.
Promises of unusually high returns with little risk, pressure to act immediately and claims that “everyone is buying” are reasons to slow down and verify.
- Identify who will receive the money and how the investment is supposed to earn a return.
- Independently check the relevant regulator in your country. A website badge or social media profile is not proof.
- Do not share passwords or verification codes with someone who contacts you.
- If you suspect a fraudulent payment, promptly contact your bank through its official channel and follow local reporting procedures.
Warning signs do not by themselves prove that a specific business is fraudulent. This site does not maintain a live blacklist or investigate individual businesses.
Primary reference: U.S. SEC Investor.gov — investment fraud warning signs. Registration checks and legal protections are country-specific.
Reference checked on 12 November 2026. Educational content, not personalised investment advice.
05 / TAKE A TEMPLATE WITH YOU
Free files.
No email gate.
A portfolio record
Separate deposits from cash gains. A manual record, with no automatic formulas or percentage return calculation.
Portfolio template · CSV ↓Your 52-week plan
Download the checklist above with your current marks. CSV files open in Excel and other spreadsheet apps.
Go to my checklist →ABOUT / YOUR DATA
Simple tools.
Clear limits.
Money, thoughtfully is the English edition of «Деньги по уму», an educational project by Firdovsi Kuliev. Contact: kuliev76@mail.ru.
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These tools do not provide personalised financial advice, investment recommendations or guaranteed results. The site does not accept payments or offer a paid course at this time.