So I don’t want to advertise an expensive product but the only thing that helped me finally save money and stop worrying about unexpected costs was You Need A Budget (YNAB). The concept is you put every single cent into categories like groceries, subscriptions, rent, put some aside for car insurance, saving for a new TV, and so on. And you also add every current, future and recurring transaction and connect it to the categories. Once you have this running for a few months it becomes second nature and you will not only be saving lots of money but also be ready for everything.
It has a learning curve but it’s worth it. There is a free alternative called Actual Budget, but you have to host it yourself and the UI is not great.
So I don’t want to advertise an expensive product but the only thing that helped me finally save money and stop worrying about unexpected costs was You Need A Budget (YNAB). The concept is you put every single cent into categories like groceries, subscriptions, rent, put some aside for car insurance, saving for a new TV, and so on. And you also add every current, future and recurring transaction and connect it to the categories. Once you have this running for a few months it becomes second nature and you will not only be saving lots of money but also be ready for everything.
It has a learning curve but it’s worth it. There is a free alternative called Actual Budget, but you have to host it yourself and the UI is not great.