(I keep a special envelope for all my Christmas receipts). You don’t want to blow your gift budget all on stocking stuffers and then have nothing to wrap up for under the tree.Īs you start spending, keep track of it to ensure you stay within your budget. For example, if you have $500 to spend and your list of expenses totals $1,000, you will need to prioritize and cut some things off your list. Once you have a list of expenses, allocate your budget to each item on the list. Check out our free & cheap Christmas bucket list activities to help you save money without being a Grinch this season! Be sure to include everything, no matter how small. …and any other expenses you typically have during this time of year. Holiday giving – donations, giving tree, etc.Christmas meals (typically Christmas morning breakfast and dinner).Make a list of all the expenses you expect to have during the holiday season. Step Three: List all your holiday expenses Once you have a total budget in mind, you can move on to the next step. Consider your income, expenses, and any other financial obligations you have. The first step is determining how much money you can afford to spend on Christmas gifts and other expenses. I have never used a credit card to pay for a Christmas purchase since I started doing this = no holiday debt! You can read all about my Christmas savings process right here. I budget my spending by the week, so every week, I set aside $25 from my spending money to stuff into a cash envelope. Saving ahead of the holidays is my biggest (not-so) secret weapon. Just be sure to use a pencil & eraser, as you will probably change your mind a few times on how much you’ll want to spend on things. If none of the above free printables are what you need, you can easily make your own. If you like the free mini-planner, there’s also an upgraded version with a ton more holiday planning printables (treat baking, plan, to-do list by week, shopping list, holiday meal planner, etc.).ĥ steps to creating your own Christmas budget plan If you want a debt-free (and stress-free) holiday season, grab this holiday budget planner now (from me)! You get a budget goal planner, a Christmas gift list planner, and a holiday budget planner by category (i.e., decorations, stocking stuffers, baking, holiday meals, etc.). Holiday mini budget planner from Money for the Mamas You just need to pick the one that suits your needs the best.ġ. Many budget-minded people have already created a Christmas budget planner and want to give it to you (usually for free)! So we’ve rounded up some great free Christmas budget printables. But I can tell you there’s no need to recreate the wheel (unless you want to). Sure, you can make your own Christmas budget worksheet with a pen and paper. This is my biggest tip to save beforehand (but we’ll go more into this below). It helps get you thinking about setting aside money each month leading up to the holiday season so you don’t need to pull out the credit card. Encourages saving: Finally, using a printable Christmas budget can encourage people to save money for the holidays.(I tend to overspend when I do that too, because I latch on to anything that I think he might like and don’t care as much about the cost). I don’t know about you, but I hate scrambling at the last minute to figure out a good gift for my husband. It also helps to avoid impulse buying and focus on what is on the plan, as it encourages you to start thinking about gifts early. It provides a framework to set financial goals and work towards them. Helps to plan ahead: A printable Christmas budget can help you plan ahead for the holiday season.A printable Christmas budget can help reduce stress by clearly understanding what can be spent and what cannot. Reduces stress: The holiday season can be a stressful time, especially when it comes to money.It helps to prioritize expenses so the money is spent on what matters most. With a budget in place, you can track your expenses and make sure you don’t overspend during the holidays. Keeps spending in check: One of the primary reasons to use a printable Christmas budget is to keep spending in check. Here are a few reasons why using a printable Christmas budget is a good idea: Here’s a hint: to “make it work,” you need to plan for it to work by creating and using a holiday budget planner. When that January credit card bill arrives, you can’t believe you’re in the same spot as last year. People intend to “scale back,” but they can’t seem to make it work. As no one wants to go into debt for Christmas, but sadly that happens all too often. Printable Christmas budgets are an excellent tool to help you plan and manage your holiday expenses.
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