Annual Budget Spreadsheet

We wanted to start by saying a big thank you for your purchase and supporting us as a small business. We have created this help desk and instruction guide to hopefully make your setup as quickly and easy as possible. In this guide we will take you through the setup of your spreadsheet, answer the most frequently asked question and share tips and tricks for using Google Sheets so you can make the most out of your spreadsheet. So without further ado, let’s have a better look at your spreadsheet!

The Annual Budget Spreadsheet

The annual budget spreadsheet was designed for you, by you. After a year of selling budget spreadsheets we listened to everything our customers asked us to design the ultimate annual budget spreadsheet. This spreadsheet is one of the first spreadsheets of our new line and has everything to make you budgeting journey not only easier, but hopefully also a bit more fun. Some of the newest features include:

  • Changing colours in the whole spreadsheet in seconds

  • Changing currency within seconds

  • Bonus worksheet that helps you to focus on spending less and saving more

Disclaimer

As mentioned in the Etsy listing description:

  • Google Sheets: This add-on can only be used on Google Sheets, it is not compatible with Excel. You will need a Google account (which is free) to access this spreadsheet. 

  • Copyright: this design and this spreadsheet is copyrighted by Haye Creatives (formerly known as BoMiMo Designs). Your purchase of this product is for personal use only and commercial/public use of any kind is strictly prohibited. It is prohibited to resell, share, reproduce this product or distribute this product, either in part or in full, with or without modifications.

  • Product: neither this product nor Haye Creatives are affiliated with Google Sheets.

  • Disclaimer: This spreadsheet is for informational use only. Haye Creatives cannot give any financial, tax or legal advice. Please do your own research and if needed contact a licensed financial advisor before making any financial decisions. Under no circumstances can or will Haye Creatives be held responsible for any costs, loss, damage or injuries (may it be direct or including without limitation indirect loss or damage) that result from the use of this spreadsheet.

  • Refunds: as this is an instant digital download all sales are final. We don’t accept returns, exchanges or order cancellations due to the nature of digital purchases.

The 17 Tabs

This spreadsheet includes a total of 17 tabs, all can be accessed at the bottom of your screen. You can toggle between tabs by clicking on them. Before we start with setting up your spreadsheet let’s quickly look at each tab and the function of each tab:

2 START TABS | Set up your spreadsheet within seconds. Change your categories and set your currency. Making changes here will change them everywhere. We have also added a second Start tab where you will be able to plan your bills, debt payments and any other monthly payments!

LOG TAB | Log all your separate transactions, including your income, savings, debt payments, bill payments and expenses. They will automatically be added to the right tab for you. This tab includes easy to use dropdown menus to make logging transactions quicker and easier.

12 MONTH TABS | The monthly budget tabs are where you can set your budget and see how much you have spent in total. It takes the totals of everything you have logged in the log tab. It will show you exactly how much you have spent and left to spent!

YEAR TAB | This spreadsheet includes a detailed year tab that shows a breakdown of your income and spendings on a month to month basis. You don’t have to change anything in the year tab, everything gets updated for you!

BILL CALENDAR | Stay on top of your bill and debt payments with our easy to use calendar!

BONUS WORKSHEET | This spreadsheet also includes a bonus worksheet that will help you focus on spending less and saving more. See exactly how much you spend on things that are important, and things that are not so you can see easily where you could save more money!

Now that you are a bit more familiar with the spreadsheet let’s look deeper into how to set it up and each of the detailed functions of every single tab!

Instructions

Before we start with the instructions of how to set up your spreadsheet and how the spreadsheet works it might be good to know that various sections/tabs of this spreadsheet have been protected. When trying to edit a protected field, row or column a warning will pop up. We have done this to avoid accidental formula changes that would alter the functions of the spreadsheet so you can use this spreadsheet worry free. If you have experience using Google Sheets you can click “Okay” so you can go ahead and make the changes. If you are new to Google Sheets or unfamiliar with the formulas we use we highly recommend not editing any of the protected fields so you can be sure that your spreadsheet will keep functioning as intended. Now without further ado, let’s start with setting up your spreadsheet!

The Start Tab

The start tab was created to help you setup your spreadsheet within minutes. Changing things here will change them everywhere in the spreadsheet. It is important to use the start tab as the rest of the spreadsheet has been designed to draw its information from here! But don’t worry, setting up the start tab is quite easy and we will take you through it step by step! In the next couple of minutes we are going to change the currency and change the categories.

If you have trouble opening your spreadsheet (for example because it shows in view only mode) jump to our troubleshooting section here where we will help you to resolve your issue before continuing with the setup of your spreadsheet.

STEP 1: CHANGE CURRENCY & YEAR

The spreadsheet is standard set to $, however, it can easily be changed to any currency of your choice. To set your currency simply click on the $ sign and replace it with your currency sign or abbreviation. When changing it here it will immediately be changed everywhere else in the spreadsheet.

STEP 2: CHANGE YOUR CATEGORIES

Now that you have set your currency we are going to set your categories. This spreadsheet allows you to track:

  • 30 income categories

  • 40 savings (or sinking funds) categories

  • 38 bill categories

  • 40 expense categories

  • 40 debts

Changing the categories here will change them everywhere in the spreadsheet! To customise a category simply click on the category, for example “income #1”, and replace it with a category of your own. If you would not like to use a category you can simply delete it by clicking on the category and clicking the backspace button on your keyboard! You can always use this space later. Please note that it is not possible to add more categories, this spreadsheet has been build and setup based on the exact amount of categories above.

Payments taB

Now that you have set up your start tab, before you do anything else we are going to have a better look at the second start and setup tab. This tab was added in October 2022 so you can now track not only bills and debts in your calendar tab but also monthly subscriptions and any irregular bills. This tab also allows you to easily edit the same bill and debt payment to every single month budget without having to copy and paste it every single time! To make the most of this tab take the following steps for the set up:

STEP 1: ADD THE PLANNED AMOUNT FOR YOUR BILLS

When you open the tab you will see that your bills and due dates have been pre-filled for you, now all you have to add for the bills is the planned amount you expect the bill to be every month. When you add the planned amount it will automatically add it to every single month, and also to every single month budget. We know that certain bills are not always the same so while it will pre-fill it in this tab for you you can adjust the planned amounts per month. We have left the fields with the amounts below the month unprotected, updating it here will also update it in your budget. Please know though that when you type over the amount the formula will be overwritten and it won’t pre-fill anymore!

STEP 2: ADD THE PLANNED AMOUNT FOR YOUR DEBTS

You can repeat the step above for your debts! You can use your debt snowball to add the planned amounts so you can see in advance what you expect to pay for each of the debts. Just like the monthly bills typing in the planned amount will pre-fill everything, but you have the option to type in the amounts manually.

STEP 3: ADD YOUR SUBSCRIPTIONS

Keep on scrolling to add your subscriptions! You can add up to 25 subscriptions and the total will automatically be added to the planned section of each month (at the bottom of the bills section). For each subscription add the following information:

  • The name

  • The due date - when the due date is added here it will be added to your monthly calendar!

  • The planned amount - just like the debt and bills it will automatically pre-fill all the amounts for you and just like in step 1 and 2 the fields have been left unprotected so you can delete or alter any of the subscriptions amounts!

STEP 4: ADD YOUR IRREGULAR BILLS

Upon popular request of our customers we have now made it possible to plan ahead for irregular bills such as quarterly or annual bills! You can add up to 40 bills in total and just like the subscriptions the total for that month will automatically be added at the bottom of the bills section for the correct month. As this is an irregular bill section it won’t automatically pre-fill so for each row add take the following steps:

  • Add your bill name

  • Add the planned amount to the month that the bill will have to be paid

  • The box next to the amount will now automatically be coloured purple, in this purple box add the day of that month the bill is due. If no due date is added the bill will not be added to the calendar. The bills will only show up on the calendar for the month that they are due.

The Log Tab

The log tab is where you will log all your separate transactions. These transactions include when you receive income but also when you pay for a bill, shop for groceries or put money aside for savings. You can log all your individual transactions here as they will automatically be added to the right tab and the right section for you. For the transaction to add up in the right place make sure to add:

  • The date - Simply double click to pick a date from the date picker.

  • The amount - Add the amount for that transaction.

  • The main category - Pick from income, savings, bills, expenses or debt.

  • The subcategory - Pick a subcategory from the dropdown list to make sure it ends up in the right spot on your budget and other dashboards!

And that is it! The log tab is pretty easy to use as the dropdown list with subcategories automatically updates for you. The dropdown list is based on step 2 of the start tab, so if you are missing any subcategories be sure to add them here! Now that your spreadsheet has been set up and you know how to log a transaction let’s head over to the reason you probably purchased this spreadsheet: the monthly budget tabs!

The Monthly Budget Tabs

Your spreadsheet includes 12 monthly budget tabs. The budget tabs will total all the transactions you log in the log tab for you! In addition you can also use the budget tab to add how much you plan to earn or spent for every single category. To do this simply enter the amount in the empty fields under “planned”.

In the overview section you will be able to see how much there is left to budget from your “planned” income as well as how much there is left to spent. On the top you will also find a variety of graphs including your planned vs. actual spending, a breakdown of your spending and expenses and a graph that shows you exactly how much there is left to spent. The graphs will update and start showing once you start logging transactions in the log tab.

The Year Tab

The year tab is where you can find a breakdown of all your income and expenses. This tab is fully automated, you do not have to change or add anything here. It takes all the transactions you log in the log tab and the budgets you add in the month tabs.

You can use this tab to see how you are doing on a month to month basis and see how for the year you compared on your planned vs actual earnings. This is the tab to use if you are trying to figure out where to save more and where to spend less.

The page has several graphs built into it, these will all update once you start logging transactions!

The Calendar Tab

The calendar tab was designed to help you stay on top of your bills and debt payments and make sure you never miss a payment again! All information for this tab will load automatically for you as long as you have entered the categories (bill and debt names) as well as the due dates in the start tab.

Each day can show up to 5 payments that are due at most. If the payments due are not showing up in your calendar head back to the start II tab. In the start tab make sure you enter only the day number, such as “1” for the first of the month. The spreadsheet automatically takes the day number and translates it into a date for you to make sure it appears in every single month you select. If a full date or letters are added the spreadsheet won’t be able to read the data.

Bonus Worksheet

This spreadsheet includes a bonus worksheet that will help you to see where you can spent less, and possibly save more! Basically for every single bill and expense category you will have the option to rank how it is important to you, and you only.

The overview on the top will then total all your transactions you have logged in the log tab to help you see where you could possibly save money. While you might not want to cut expenses on the things that are important to you, you might want to save on things that don’t matter as much to you.

The overview takes all transactions logged in your log tab, this way you can see in total how much you have spent on the things that matter, and the things that don’t! This way you can focus on spending less and hopefully save more!

And that is it, everything you need to know about the tabs and functions of this spreadsheet. If you have any questions be sure to reach out to us on Etsy, we will always do our best to get back to you within 24 hours! Before you go and enjoy your purchase be sure to scroll down to read not only our tips for using Google Sheets and this spreadsheet, but also the most frequently asked questions!

Tips From Us & The Community

Now that you are a bit more familiar with the spreadsheet and the function of the spreadsheet, let's go over some tips, from us, as well as from customers who have purchased our spreadsheets! Some of these tips have already been mentioned before, but just in case you skipped the setup guide here are some of our favourite tips for this spreadsheet:

Clearing Checkboxes

Our spreadsheets include checkboxes that can be used to, for example, cross of bills or debts paid. If you are creating a new budget or starting a new month you can easily “empty” all boxes at once without having to click them individually. To clear all boxes at once simply select all boxes (click the top and bottom box while holding shift, or click and drag over the fields you want to select) and hit the spacebar on your keyboard. This will select or unselect all your checkboxes at once. It might be good to know that sometimes you will have to hit the space bar twice to get the desired results!

Contact Us on Etsy

If at any point in time you are experiencing issues with your spreadsheet, or for example, deleted formulas that alter the function of the spreadsheet be sure to contact us on Etsy. If your issue is specifically related to your spreadsheet be sure to include a link to the spreadsheet so we can assist you straight away:

  • Click on the “Share” button in the top right corner

  • In the bottom click on “anyone with a link” and most important “editor”

  • Click copy link and send it to us in the Etsy chat, as well with a description of what issue you are experiencing

After we have had a look at your spreadsheet, and possibly restored the sections that are not functioning, you can change it back to restricted so we won’t have further access. We will always do our best to get back to you within 24 hours.

Make Your Spreadsheet Available Offline

While you will need an internet browser to edit your spreadsheet, Google Sheets has made it possible for you to edit and access your spreadsheet offline. You can find more information regarding using and editing your spreadsheet online on the Google Docs Help Platform here.

Access Your Spreadsheet on Your Phone or Tablet

While we recommend opening the spreadsheet for the first time on your computer or laptop, there are no restrictions on which devices you can open or edit your spreadsheet. If you would like to access your spreadsheet on your tablet or phone we highly recommend downloading the Google Sheets app (available for Android and Apple devices) to make accessing the spreadsheets easier.

Access Your Spreadsheet From Multiple Accounts

If you would like to access the spreadsheet with multiple Google Accounts, for example because you would like to share your budget with your partner. Take the following steps:

  • In the top right corner of the spreadsheet you will see a big green “Share” button, click it.

  • In the bar that says “add people or groups” type in the email address of the person you would like to share the spreadsheet with

  • Pick what kind of access you would like to give the person you would like to add:

    • Viewer: the person can see the data in the spreadsheet but not make any changes

    • Editor: The person can view the spreadsheet and make changes

    • Owner: the person can view, edit, and has the option to now remove you from the spreadsheet

  • Click on the send button

Change The Colours Of The Spreadsheet

We have set up the spreadsheet in such a way that you can change the colours of your spreadsheet within seconds. It allows you to change the base colours used to colour the spreadsheet as well as the background colour. To change the colours follow these steps:

  • Click on the paint bucket in the tool bar.

  • In the top right corner of the menu that opens click on the pencil icon.

  • You now will be able to change the theme colours. Changing them here will change them everywhere!

FAQ & Troubleshooting

  • All our spreadsheets are created for and on Google Sheets. As Google Sheets is an online programme we cannot include a direct file that takes you to the spreadsheet, but instead you will need a link. For that reason the file included with your purchase is a PDF. The PDF will contain a link to your spreadsheet as well as a link to the instructions of the spreadsheet.

  • When you click on the link in the PDF a page will open in your internet browser. In the top right corner you will see a button that says “Use Template”. After you click this button a personal copy of this spreadsheet, only accessible by you, should open within seconds.

    Unfortunately, Google Sheets can be a bit glitchy from time to time. If it does not open, or if it opens in a view only mode try the following:

    • View only mode: in the top toolbar, click “File” → “Make a copy”. This will create a copy of the spreadsheet that will provide you with full access. If that does not work try the troubleshooting options down below.

    • Open the spreadsheet from a computer or laptop: We have noticed that when trying to open the spreadsheet for the first time from a phone, tablet or similar devices that it does not always open. For that reason we recommend opening the spreadsheet from a computer or laptop for the first time.

    • Make sure there is enough space on your Google Drive: If your Google Drive is full, or near full, it will not allow you to enter the spreadsheets (it will show view only instead). You can check if you have enough space available by going to drive.google.com, in the left hand side menu you will be able to see how much storage you have left in your Google Drive.

    • Try a different browser: If you still have trouble accessing the spreadsheet make sure to check if your browser is up to date. If your browser is up to date and it is still not working then try a different browser.

    • Make sure you are logged into Google Sheets: The spreadsheet will not open if you are not logged in to your Google Sheets account or if you are trying to open the template in an incognito window. If your spreadsheet is not opening try the following:

      • Close all tabs and windows in which you tried to open the spreadsheet

      • Head to sheets.google.com

      • Log in with the Google account on which you would like to access the spreadsheet

      • Head to the PDF, click on the link and click “Use Template”. The spreadsheet should now open.

    If after you have tried all options above you are still experiencing issues be sure to reach out to us on Etsy so we can assist you further.

  • It could happen that you made the purchase only to realize that you would like to access the spreadsheet with a different email address. Not to worry, our spreadsheets are not tied to the email address of your Etsy account. After you have made your purchase you can open it with any Google account, even if you already accessed it with a different Google Account.

    To access it with the right Google Account:

    • Head to sheets.google.com

    • Log in with the Google Account that you would like to use to access the spreadsheet

    • Head to the PDF, click the link and click “Use Template”

    • Your spreadsheet will now be linked to the right Google Account

  • All our spreadsheets available in our store are specifically designed for Google Sheets and will not function properly on Excel. While Google Sheets and Excel are similar programmes, they have large differences in their formulas and how formulas are set up. When a spreadsheet is exported to an Excel format the formulas won’t translate with it properly and the spreadsheet will not function as designed. For that reason we highly recommend not to export your spreadsheet and to only use the spreadsheet in Google Sheets.

  • We protect all the formulas in our spreadsheets with warnings so you can use the spreadsheet worry free. However, it can still be that you made a change that altered the function of the spreadsheet. Luckily Google allows you to go back to a previous version, even if you closed your browser tab. To go back to a version of your spreadsheet that worked simply click (in the top toolbar) “File” and then “Version History”. You can have a look at the different days and switch back to a version of the spreadsheet that worked as intended.

  • The formulas that show the “actual” data in your budget page match the name of the subcategory to the name you select in the log tab. When a subcategories name is empty and data is showing up this means that a transaction was logged without a subcategory (basically it matches the empty subcategory name in the log tab to the empty subcategory name on the budget tab). Adding a subcategory to your transaction will fix this issue!

  • Our spreadsheet are set up for the exact amount of subcategories included, which means that it is not possible to add more subcategories.

  • Our budgets are all zero based and at this moment do not include the option to track account balances. So one of our customers included a great tip in her review that she thought you might like as well! If you have money left over from last month that you ended up not spending or saving, include this as a separate income stream! For example, include an income option named “Last Month” and on the 1st of the month you add whatever was leftover from last month to include that money into your next month's budget!

    Annual budget users: if you use one of our annual budgets and would like to include this option be sure to send us a message so we can exclude this category from your income totals in the year overviews. If not excluded your income totals will not be accurate.

  • At this moment we don't accept any requests for customising spreadsheets, however, you are of course free to edit and make modifications to the spreadsheet yourself!

    We have added warnings to the spreadsheets that will prevent you from making changes to any formulas that would alter the function of the spreadsheet. However, the spreadsheet is not locked and you will be able to make any changes as you see fit!

Change Log

The current spreadsheet version is: 8-220323 UPDATE

We always aim to improve our spreadsheet so we regularly make updates to include new functions or improve the already existing functions of the spreadsheet. For that reason we recommend checking out the change log for any updates so you can enjoy the newly updated version of the spreadsheet if available.

As of 26th of January 2023 you can find your spreadsheet version on the start tab (below the title in row 4). If you cannot find a spreadsheet version or your spreadsheet has a different spreadsheet version then the current version above then you can access the most up to date version by simply clicking on the link in the PDF included with your purchase.

You can find a full change log of all updates made to the spreadsheet below.

UPDATES INCLUDED IN THE 8-220323 UPDATE

  • The spreadsheet was redesigned to include up to 30 income subcategories, 38 bills, and 40 savings, expense and debt subcategories. Previously could add up to 15 income and 25 savings, bills, expense and debt subcategories.

  • The calendar tab was redesigned. You can now see which bills have been paid on the calendar. The payments planner tab was redesigned to make it easier to add biweekly and weekly bills.

  • The worksheet was completely redesigned to create a more organised overview.

  • The budget tab now has the option to switch graphs (drop-down) so you can now see how much there is left to budget and how much there is left to spend. In addition you can now start on any day of the month.

  • A net worth tracker was added.

UPDATES INCLUDED IN THE 8-260123 UPDATE:

  • The number format has been changed to include decimal separators (1,000 instead of 1000).

  • The formulas in the budget tab have been updated to now take not only the subcategory name but also the category name into account.

UPDATES MADE PRE VERSION 8-260123

  • 18.12.2022 - The spreadsheet (all colours but rainbow) was updated due to a the irregular bills planned section not updating on the month tabs.

  • 06.12.2022 - The left to spent graph was updated on the budget tabs as it read the wrong data.

  • 8.11.2022 - The year tab was updated as the “Planned” amounts on the top showed the wrong amounts.

  • 6.11.2022 - The budget tab was updated to include a rollover function. Under the “Budget vs. Actual” you now have the option to select a checkbox to include any money leftover from previous budgets, this amount will now “Rollover” into your latest budget and be included in your “Left to spend”. Leaving it unchecked will mean this amount will not be included.

  • 09.10.2022 - The START II tab was adjusted to include checkboxes and the option to change due dates on the START II tab. In addition a new calendar tab was added that now shows the amounts due on the calendar, and also has the option to add pay dates to the calendar.

  • 07.10.2022 - The spreadsheet was updated to accommodate tracking subscriptions and irregular bills (such as annual or quarterly bills). All monthly pages, the calendar and start tab were updated, a new page to set up this added feature was added.

  • 28.09.2022 - The bill calendar was updated to now include an option to start the week on either Sunday or Monday.

  • 29.09.2022 - 5 More subcategories have been added to the spreadsheet which means you can now track up to 15 income subcategories (previously 10) and 25 bill, expense, savings and debt subcategories (previously 20).

  • 27.09.2022 - Updates were made to the year tab (income month by month, January section) due to an error in the formula.