With all of this ynab talk, I'm going to talk to dh and hopefully jump on board.
What do you like about it?
Has it helped you save money?
Can we use it if we don't have a joint checking account?
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@Ash: I LOVE EVERYTHING! lol... I like that everything is right in front of me. The main budget screen is "dashboard" in style and I get to see all our accounts at once.
We have saved a ton of money but more than that we have been able to use our money more efficiently. We never realized that we could be paying off our debt faster or saving more until we really started tracking it in YNAB
We have a joint account but I have seen lots of people on the forums discuss how they work with separate accounts.
*Definitely take the online classes when you get started. They are sooooo helpful
Happy to help if you have other questions
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We started the free trial in February and have loved it! We subscribed as soon as our trial ran out.
The thing I like the most is that it doesn't link directly with your bank/cc accounts, so we felt the security was better than other programs. It did take a little time to load our balances and set up our categories, but we like that you can customize it to your needs. We set up accounts in YNAB for our various bank accounts, credit cards, cash, etc. So yes, you can use it even if you don't have a joint checking. You would just add your accounts separately. I'm not sure if it has saved us money yet, but it's making us much more aware of our spending and we're both feeling more accountable. I love that with the app (no additional charge, once you have the program on your computer you get access to the app) you can enter your transactions as soon as you spend the money, so you don't have to spend lots of time reconciling/going through receipts all the time. Ok, now I'm rambling, but we LOVE it!
Oh - in March they announced that college students can use YNAB for FREE!! Even if you're only part-time... so if you're in school, I would definitely look into that!
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@mrswin:
Thank you! @beachbee: I'm done with school for now but my mom is a student...
I'm so excited for this! I checked my account earlier and realized I spend way too much at target!
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@Ash: Hahaha Target, it will get you every time
For me it was Starbucks
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how does one find the free collge edition, my husband takes classes and this could be a great tool for us
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@sunset840: http://www.youneedabudget.com/blog/2014/ynab-is-now-free-for-college-students/
How to Obtain Your Free Copy of YNAB:
1. Write to us at support@youneedabudget.com and include proof of registration at your college.
2. We’ll send you a special license key, good until the end of the calendar year.
3. At the end of the year, just shoot us another email if you’re still cranking away on your schoolwork, and we’ll send you a new license key that’s good for the entire next year.
*The free software is valid for a whole calendar year, not school year.
ETA:
What should I send as a proof of registration?You can send a scan or screenshot (PDF, jpg, gif, etc.) of a document issued by your college, with your name, the college name, and information that shows you’re currently enrolled. This may include a school ID card, a report card, a transcript, or a tuition bill or statement.
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It took us a long time to get completely on board - we used it as an expense tracker for a long time, but I really do love it.
I love how you can customize it - the categories and subcategories.
I love the app - so easy to use and keeps our budget up to date.
The design is nice. Doesn't feel clunky and is very intuitive to me.
The philosophy is really important and it give you attainable goals but we also have a "forecast" budget in an excel file just to give us the full picture. I know the change is thinking is hard for people (forecast vs. budget).
We have tons of accounts on it - separate checking, savings, and credit card accounts for each of us, a joint checking account, and four store credit cards and it works in YNAB, the less you have the simpler it is (we are paring down) but it doesn't effect how YNAB works. You can totally do separate accounts.
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thanks!!
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@sunset840: @TemperanceBrennan: oh
My goodness thank you! I had no idea, I am on free trial right now but I will have to get the student code. That is so generous of them to do that for students. -
@Ash: Yes, you should be able to use it with multiple accounts. It's software that you set up on your computer so it's really in depth. I like that it also comes with training (there are videos/classes, message boards, etc. so you can really get the most out of it) and customer service - you can email them any time with questions! I also like that I'm in control of it, but my DH and I both have the app, so he can just check the app to see what amount we have left in groceries for example.
It is definitely worth it in my opinion, we just haven't saved a ton yet, because of life!
It's not YNAB's fault!
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@Ash: i love everything, and yes you can use it even with separate accounts - they make it so easy to separate out and track your various accounts! it has changed the way we view budgeting (true budgeting vs just expense tracking). i read the blog religiously too, and it has taught me so much about how to be smarter about our money and budget.
you already got some excellent responses above... but to answer your question, these are just a few of the many reasons i love ynab (i copied/pasted from my answer to another thread matador started):
1. it tracks roll overs, which is huge! for example, if i overspend in a certain category that month, i can choose to have it deduct from next month's budgeted amount. or if i underspend, whatever i didn't use will roll over into next month.
2. it syncs with an iphone/android app (the app is free) - so you can check how much is left in your budgeted category at any time! for example: i want to buy starbucks.. i do a quick check on my phone for how much is left in my "eating out" category. i see that there's only $5 left... do i really want to spend the remaining amount on starbucks or do i want to save it for something else? ynab allows you to think twice before making purchases.
3. it's fluid - it accounts for how life changes month by month. some months you'll need to eat out more because of birthdays, celebrations, etc. other months you can reign it in. say you usually budget $500 for eating out and $500 for groceries. if you think you'll eat out more that month just offset the ratio and consider budgeting $700 for eating out and $300 for groceries. food is still food - if you eat out more, it would make sense that your grocery budget would decrease, no? and if you overspend on BOTH, then take money from a different category that isn't being used as much that month (maybe shopping? entertainment? etc)
4. charts, graphs, reports - if you want a visual, it's all there in the program so you can better understand your spending habits.
5. manual input - i think this is a pro. it doesn't automatically sync your accounts like mint does, and that's a good thing because you're forced to input stuff yourself and it keeps you accountable. if you don't want to login to all your accounts and log every line item, you can download your statements and import it. still somewhat manual and better than auto-syncing.
6. love the ynab philosophy (the 4 rules): http://www.youneedabudget.com/method
7. ability to plan ahead and never worry about unexpected expenses again - this is stuff like annual bills. for example, our car insurance is $1400/year. i have a category for it and divide $1400 by 12... so i put $115/month to "save up" for it. since ynab tracks roll overs, the $115 will roll over month over month. by the time next year hits.. we will already have all $1400 sitting there ready to go.
it's the best budgeting tool i have ever used. sometimes people submit their real budgets on the blog, and then they break it apart to see how the budget can be improved. i've gotten lots of great tips from there.
It's not YNAB's fault!
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