travel budget excel spreadsheet

Travel Budget Worksheet

Are you planning a major trip? Will you be able to stay within your budget? Rather than just spending without a plan and then dealing with the debt for the next few years, use our travel budget template to list your travel expenses. It will help you estimate your total travel costs and see if you will be able to take your trip without going over budget.

License : Private Use (not for distribution or resale)

Authors: Jon Wittwer and Jim Wittwer

Description

This travel budget template makes it easy to enter your travel expenses for your next trip. The top section allows you to set a total budget, and as you enter your travel costs you can quickly see where the money is going, how much extra you'll have, or how much you'll need to add to your budget.

The worksheet is set up to let you enter a quantity and unit cost for each item. For example, for lodging you can enter the number of nights you will be staying and the cost per night. If you will be driving rather than flying, you can enter the total miles and the cost per mile. Remember to include both fuel and wear as part of the cost (see the link below for what the IRS uses as the standard mileage rate - $0.56/mile in 2014).

Additional Resources

• Be sure to check out our Travel Itinerary and Packing List templates.
• IRS Publication showing Standard Mileage Rates at irs.gov - You might consider using the standard mileage rate if you are estimating the cost of driving.
• Tips for Creating a Budget for Travel at wikihow.com - This article is actually a really good resource to help you remember what to consider when budgeting for a trip.

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How to Make a Travel Budget in 2023 [Free Template]

Amar Hussain

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Table of Contents

Can you afford to travel, the 2 approaches to travel budgets, travel budget template worksheet, travel budget considerations, websites to help research travel costs, the best apps for travel budgets and expense tracking, saving for your vacation, final thoughts.

We may be compensated when you click on product links, such as credit cards, from one or more of our advertising partners. Terms apply to the offers below. See our  Advertising Policy for more about our partners, how we make money, and our rating methodology. Opinions and recommendations are ours alone.

Creating a travel budget isn’t all about boring spreadsheets and searching for low budget bargains — a finely-crafted budget it is designed to maximize your total travel experience.

Let’s start out easy here. You may have dreams of globetrotting and living your best life in distant lands, but can you actually afford it?

The amount you have to spend on your trip will need to be proportionate to the place you are visiting. By that, we mean that some destinations can be done on the cheap, while others will be a bit more of an investment.

Where you want to stay, what you intend to do when you get there, and physically how far away you will be from home can all have a considerable bearing on how deep your pockets will need to be.

Before you book yourself silly, really break down the potential costs of your dream trip and tally it up with the amount of money you will realistically have to fund it.

Bottom Line: Sometimes, it may be better to put your plans on hold until you have saved up enough cash to really experience a place, rather than rushing to get there and missing out on some of the best bits.

Whether you are a plan-well-in-advance sort of traveler or more of a fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants kind of person, there are different ways to approach setting out your budget based on what works best for you.

Plan Your Adventure Well in Advance

The most traditional way to book a vacation is to think of somewhere you want to go, plan your vacation dates, and decide how long you want to stay. This kind of advanced planning is the usual go-to for most travelers, as it allows you to book time off of work or plan trips around school semesters, and gives you the opportunity to firm up plans before you leave.

Knowing when and where you are going also has another key advantage — it gives you plenty of time to save up all the cash you will need to really enjoy your time there. Booking in advance also means you get your choice of cheaper accommodation at better rates.

Book months in advance and you can research your planned itinerary and potential expenditure, and maybe even save enough extra for upgrades of luxuries to make your adventure truly special. This kind of planning is a great incentive for saving hard.

Travel Based on Your Bank Balance

If, on the other hand, you want to take your cash and get the hell out of dodge, you can work backward to identify the most amount of fun you can have for your money. If you are feeling lucky, and you know how much you are willing to spend, the world really is your oyster.

The awesome power of the internet has made impulse traveling even easier, as you can simply hit up any number of booking sites to find an exciting destination, as well as suitable flights, accommodation, and excursions in just a few clicks.

Another great way to make your budget go further is to think outside the box. Visiting popular destinations out of season, taking shorter vacation times, or even looking at places away from the main tourist trail can all make your money go further.

A trip to the legendary Yosemite National Park during April or May, for example, is a great way to experience some of the most iconic open spaces in America before the schools let out, or hit the beaches of Miami or the Florida Keys during September and October when tourists shy away from the increased risk of stormy weather.

You can also look at alternatives to the more traditional resort destinations to get more bang for your buck. Consider a trip to Reno instead of Las Vegas, hit the slopes in Winter Park instead of the sky-high prices in Vail, or take in the history of Williamsburg and avoid the price tags of New York or Los Angeles on your next city break.

To help you plan and keep track of your travel budget we have created a free, handy Microsoft Excel spreadsheet.

📋  Click to Download Our Travel Budget Template >  📋

When planning your travel budget, there are lots of different things to consider. Break down your budget into subsections to make it easier to plan and stick to:

Passport and Visas

One of the most essential elements of your travel plan will revolve around the legal and local requirements for travel to and from your destination. You must research any visa requirements and restrictions before you fly, and be sure to have all the documentation you need before you leave.

Most countries will have their own individual and very specific entry requirements, and there may be restrictions on how much local currency you can bring with you, as well as how long you can stay.

As a very rough guide, some examples of the requirements for U.S. citizens could include:

• Travel to Europe — If you are traveling to or through any of the main 26 European countries, you must know the requirements of the Schengen Agreement, which eliminates borders and assumes that travelers will be able to enjoy up to 3-months of visa-free travel. This will change in January 2021 with the introduction of the ETIAS .
• Travel to Australia — You must have a valid U.S. passport and an Electronic Travel Authority (ETA) to enjoy up to 90 days of travel in Australia.
• Travel to Central America — You will not need a visa to visit most Central American countries, but you may need a tourist card for some destinations (~$10) to allow stays of up to 90 days visa-free.
• Travel To South Africa — You must have a valid U.S. passport, but do not need a visa for stays of 30 days or less.

Check out our guide to tourist visa information on over 100 countries.

Travel Insurance

There are many great reasons why you should always buy travel insurance coverage for your trips overseas, and only 1 reason not to. Trust us. If the worst should happen while you are away, you will wish you hadn’t tried to save money by skipping on the insurance, so make sure you always make space for travel insurance in your travel budget .

The best travel insurance policy does not necessarily have to be the most expensive one you find, but it probably won’t be the cheapest either. With this in mind, shop around and speak to a variety of providers before committing to any 1 product.

There will be different levels of coverage available to suit the requirements of every type of traveler, from lone backpackers to family vacations, but at the very least you should try to include:

• Emergency medical expenses
• Repatriation expenses
• Cancellation or curtailment coverage
• Lost baggage coverage
• Travel delay/missed departure coverage
• Journey disruption coverage
• Personal liability coverage
• Legal expenses coverage
• Electronics loss/theft and damage coverage

Depending on where you go, what you’ll be doing, and the nature of your trip, you may want to also consider dedicated financial protection that could include specific coverage for:

• Winter sports coverage
• Terrorism disruption coverage
• Cruise coverage
• Business coverage
• Sports equipment coverage

It is important to remember that the domestic health insurance that you use at home will not necessarily cover you if you get into medical trouble overseas . Don’t leave it to chance — invest wisely in your travel insurance and never skimp on the coverage just to save yourself a few bucks before you go.

You should also look into insurance coverage for your prized electrical items and personal belongings, too . While we would recommend leaving the diamonds at home, unless you are going somewhere exceptionally glamorous, many of us will take expensive electronics with us everywhere we go.

Find coverage that offers repairs or replacement for damaged, broken, lost, or stolen items before you go.

Hot Tip: There are some credit cards with travel insurance , so you might already have some coverage without knowing it!

Vaccinations

Some parts of the world pose more of a risk to our health than others. By ensuring that you have all the travel vaccinations you need before you go, you can reduce the risk of developing serious diseases that your immune system may not be used to.

You can pretty much be vaccinated against all of the world’s most common communicable diseases at your local doctor’s office, health care center, or health department, and there will be medical professionals who will be able to provide you with useful information for your trip.

You will need to do your own research before you travel and speak to healthcare providers about the risks. But, as a rough guide to keep in mind when planning your travel budget, here are some of the most common travel vaccinations and their approximate costs:

• Cholera — A single-dose oral vaccine costs around $45.
• Hepatitis A — A single-dose vaccine costs around $115.
• Japanese Encephalitis — 2 doses given 4 weeks apart costs around $290 per injection.
• Meningococcal Disease — This single-dose vaccine is recommended from pre-teenage years and costs around $135.
• Rabies — A series of 3 or 4 injections into the muscles over the course of 4 weeks costs around $3000 for the entire course.
• Typhoid Fever — A single oral dose for anyone over 6 years old costs around $60.
• Yellow Fever — This vaccine is not stocked everywhere, but if you can find a clinic that offers it, you will need a single shot costing as much as $350.
• Malaria — There is no single vaccine, but antimalarial tablets can be taken to reduce the risk of contracting the disease by 90%. These may need to be taken as far as 3 months in advance and can cost anything from $20 a pack up to $260 per pack.

Clothes, Gear, and Toiletries

What you need to take with you will depend very much on where you headed. Whether you choose to travel light or max out your luggage allowance is up to you, but there are plenty of ways to help keep costs down when it comes to packing for your next adventure.

Compile a Capsule Wardrobe

Travel guides always bang on about the legendary “capsule wardrobe” — but it literally is a real thing. By taking 7 or 8 items of clothing with you that can be worn in a variety of ways you can dress for days at a time without worrying about overfilling your luggage or maxing out your travel budget.

Choose 2 pants, skirts or jeans, 3 tops, 1 sweater, 1 dress or a smart shirt and a coat or jacket, and you should be pretty much good to go. Throw in beachwear, sports gear, or thermals as-needed and some socks and underwear to see yourself sorted for the duration of your stay.

Another way to keep costs down is to avoid buying new stuff for every vacation . Your favorite bikini, flip flops, party dress, or even hoodie should be shown off time and time again, so never feel the need to replace your vacation clothing unless you really need to.

Here are some destination-specific packing lists:

• Beach Vacation Packing List
• Cruise Vacation Packing List
• Disney Vacation Packing List

If you want to take your travel camera with you, your GoPro for awesome live video, your phone, tablet, laptop, headphones , or any other bits of kit — think carefully about whether or not you really need it.

Taking more expensive gear with you increases the risk of stuff getting lost, broken, or stolen, as well as weighing your luggage down and tying you to charging ports and electrical sockets.

Keeping Clean

Most people like to have their favorite toiletries with them, but save money and space in your luggage by not taking full-size products.

You needn’t even worry about wasting money on cute little travel size products either. Simply decant your full-size bottles and pots into smaller travel containers instead . This is super easy to do, meets with TSA regulations, and saves you a few dollars here and there.

Alternatively, buy what you need when you arrive. Most destinations and airports will have plenty of shops to choose from. One area where you shouldn’t cut costs, however, is sunscreen. Buy the best you can, ideally from a trusted brand, before you leave.

Finally, check if the airline you are using charges extra for checked baggage and if so, see if you can get away with just a carry-on case instead.

The amount you pay for your flights will vary widely depending on a wide number of variants, including:

• Your destination
• Who you choose to fly with
• Whether you fly direct
• Whether you fly return or one-way
• The day of the week and time of day that you fly, and even the time of year
• Where you fly from
• When you book

There are many different ways to fly around the skies, but here are some ways to bag cheaper flights :

• Use Points and Miles — If you aren’t accumulating points to fly, read this beginner’s guide to get started.
• Book as Early as You Can — Flights often significantly increase in price within 3 weeks of the departure date.
• Stay Flexible — Flights leaving on different days or at times of day can be cheaper than others.
• Don’t Dismiss Discount Airlines — Short journeys, internal flights, and even some international journeys can be way cheaper on discount, no-frills airlines.
• Sign Up and Shop Around — Sign up with airlines direct to be notified of discounts and flash sales, and be sure to check in on all airlines that fly to your preferred destination.
• Use Aggregation Sites — Sometimes this is a winner, sometimes it isn’t — but don’t be afraid to try. Sites like Kayak or Skyscanner can be good, but don’t just accept the first price they give you.
• Buy Connecting Flights — It can be cheaper to buy 2 separate connecting flights than a direct 1. Check your destination and see who stops where along the route.

Accommodation

Again, how much you spend on where you stay is entirely up to you. Keeping costs down can be harder in large cities or expensive beach resorts, but there are ways to rest your head without losing your mind over the cost of it all.

Whether you are going for an all-out 5-star luxury or a family-friendly motel room, there are always deals to be had. Book direct through the hotel, include weeknights or a Sunday night in your stay, and be flexible on location.

Hot Tip: A hotel just outside of town, for example, will offer more attractive nightly rates and free parking and will usually represent better value for money than a downtown hotel will.

Renting a private home or vacation apartment on a short term basis can be much more affordable than a hotel. You can also find some superb properties for rent, complete with everything you need to enjoy your stay.

Fully-equipped kitchens, parking, TVs, and even pools often come standard and depending on your destination, there are lots of great Airbnbs and other holiday rental websites available.

If you are heading to the coast, the backcountry, or just getting out into the great outdoors, camping can completely transform your experience. Many campsites come complete with showers and cooking facilities and even pools, sports facilities, and fitness centers. You can take your own tent or rent one.

Another great way to save money on accommodation is to look at hostels in the area. A far cry from old fashioned student accommodation, many modern hostels are clean, bright, and modern and offer a combination of dorm-style bedrooms and private double or family rooms with en-suite facilities.

Hot Tip: Hostels are a great way to stay right in the middle of some of the most expensive cities in the world.

Rent a Recreational Vehicle

Another great choice if you are heading out on the open road, RVs can save you a fortune as you literally take your accommodation with you. RV trips are fun, family-friendly, and provided you aren’t always in a gas station, a great way to save money on where you stay.

RVshare and Outdoorsy are 2 companies that rent out campers and RVs.

You can pretty much rent any kind of vehicle , anywhere in the world. Although if you are staying in a city, public transport is a much more useful and affordable proposition.

The same rules also apply to some intercontinental trips, as well. For example, it can be easier and cheaper to travel through Europe using trains and buses than worrying about having to take care of a car when you get there.

If you want to explore out of the way destinations, hard to reach beaches, or just like the idea of being free to come and go as you please, car hire is readily available in most corners of the world.

Before you commit to it, think about the rental fees, fuel costs, and other potential expenditures and compare the costs of using public transport in your chosen destination.

Car hire here in the U.S. will vary depending on the type of car you choose and how long you intend to hire it. Small city cars are the most cost-effective, and big SUVs, 4x4s and luxury cars can also be hired if you have deep pockets.

When it comes to car rental, keep your costs down by:

• Booking your vehicle in advance
• Looking outside the airport as you may get a better deal in town
• Choosing a practical vehicle to suit your needs, not your dream supercar
• Being aware of mileage limits and one-way fees
• Use a credit card with car rental insurance , so you can be ready to turn down unnecessary add-ons and cross-sells that you don’t need
• Making sure the vehicle is checked for damage before you take the keys
• Only hiring it for as long as you need it
• Keeping your eyes out for deals on particular types of car, and better prices for longer-term rentals

Local Transportation

Most tourist hotspots, big towns, cities, and even some iconic landmarks will offer a wide range of public transport options to get you around. There will be more choice and more frequent services in highly populated areas, while services may become more restricted further out in the countryside or suburbs.

If you are clever, you could save yourself a small fortune by grabbing good deals on public transport, leaving you with more cash to spend on the fun things in life.

Try these to tips for traveling around town on the cheap:

• Buy daily, weekly or even monthly travel passes in advance
• Bulk buy tickets online or via an app
• Take advantage of student passes or discounted fares for families, seniors, or children
• Avoid traveling during peak commuter times
• Services like Greyhound offer cheaper fares for mid-week journeys
• Sign up for early notification of flash sales and other promotional codes and discounts

Attractions and Activities

Wherever you are headed, there will no doubt be plenty of things to do and places to see when you get there. The key to not missing a single thing is researching everything before you leave.

Have a plan in place of all the activities you want to take part in and the attractions you want to see and integrate the potential entrance costs, additional fees, and other expenses into your initial budget.

With a bit of luck, you will be able to find plenty of local discounts, city passes, and money-saving ways to see all of the very best attractions at rock bottom prices.

Pick up a copy of the local listings magazine or newspaper and check out free events , as well as using the coupons and discount codes they supply for all kinds of attractions. You can also subscribe to online discount sites like Groupon to find discounted ticket prices.

Historical landmarks, museums , art galleries, theme parks , sporting events, concerts, and many more attractions often offer reduced entrance prices at off-peak times or group discounts to entice visitors in. Some even have a free entrance day once a month.

Big cities often have lots of free entertainment on offer, too. Check out the artsy districts of major cities for street entertainers and free shows. If you are heading to the beach, research costs such as sunbed rental, locker rental, and even the menus at local restaurants to gauge an idea of how much a day on the beach could potentially cost you.

If you want to try your hand at surfing, sailing, or other kinds of water sports, you may want to get back on the internet and find reduced price lessons or discounts for group bookings.

Walk-Around Money

While you may have budgeted every dollar down to the last cent, you should also keep a contingency plan for some pocket money . Days out in the town, lazy afternoons on the beach, or even a trip on a planned excursion can present you with lots of little unknown expenses.

Whether you need to buy an extra bottle of water, some sunscreen for your face, or entrance to additional attractions, keeping a little cash on you is a good way to be prepared.

Large amounts of cash should never be carried about your person while you are out exploring, but a couple of dollars stashed into your pocket or travel wallet and can be incredibly useful.

In order to keep your money safe, you should:

• Never flash wads of cash
• Keep your notes and loose change somewhere safe like your inside pocket or in a money belt
• Carry small denomination notes and coins
• Understand the local currency you are carrying, so you known how much to give over when paying

Walk-around money is simply a little buffer to keep you going, but set yourself a daily budget and stick to it.

Gifts and Souvenirs

These days, almost everyone travels at some point. This means that those unusual and unique products that we used to buy as souvenirs are no longer as sought after as they once were.

Nearly every tourist destination on earth will be able to sell you tacky bits and pieces for you to take home, but savvy travelers bypass these and look for more personalized and unique mementos to take home with them instead.

Bottom Line: A t-shirt here, a guide book there, and lots of little bits and pieces in between can soon add up. Spend wisely, and if you must buy gifts and souvenirs, choose ones that have a special meaning to you, that you can treasure forever.

To help make your research easier, some clever folks who have traveled before you have made websites that can help you to research and plan every single aspect of your next big adventure and what the costs involved may be.

Budget Your Trip

Budget Your Trip is a huge repository of travel costs that have been hand-gathered from thousands of travelers, and now provides an incredibly comprehensive guide to how much your trip will really cost you.

You can create and personalize your very own travel budget once you register with the website. You can also pick up tons of top travel tips and advice for both new and experienced travelers alike.

Nomad List offers a heap of resources and information for remote workers, digital nomads, and travelers, Nomad List is designed to help users navigate the world. Find information on thousands of destinations, places to work, neighborhoods to stay, and even make new friends before you go.

A great site for anyone who wants to work and travel for longer-term adventures, you can ask questions and arrange meet-ups to touch base with other like-minded wanderers.

This clever little website has 1 goal in mind — to let you know exactly how much money you really need to stay at your dream destination. Expatistan offers direct comparisons between different locations and the website is essentially a giant cost-of-living database that is updated and improved on a regular basis.

Using collaborative information garnered from expats from all over the world, this website really will give you the lowdown of where you can, and can’t, afford to be.

Keeping track of your expenses using your bank balance alone can be a real pain. A dedicated travel money app will help you to keep control of your finances, even when you can’t check the internet. Here are some of the best:

Trail Wallet

This easy to use expense tracker is a great way to keep an accurate record of your finances on the go. Designed to be incredibly intuitive and easy to use, you can make a note of all your expenses in a way that makes the best sense to you. Set up daily spending limits, view records of your recent outgoings, and upload images of receipts for multiple trips with custom start and end dates.

Perfect for use both at home and away, this clever little app will even let you input amounts in local currencies from over 200 countries , and you can update the app with the current exchange rate.

Trail Wallet can be used on both iPhone and iPad and is free for up to 25 items, or unlock unlimited amounts for continuous travel with the $4.99 upgrade.

Trabee Pocket

Trabee Pocket is available on both iOS and Android, and you can choose between the free version or additional services in the paid-for version. Even with the basic version, you can add the details of as many expenses as you like, covering various trips and destinations. You can choose your currency, and there are 8 basic categories to file your virtual expenses under.

You can add images of the physical receipt and produce an expense report and breakdown of expenditure using the data from each category . The upgrade costs around $2.49, and you can add multiple currencies and additional customized categories.

All in all, Trabee Pocket is sleek and an easy to use app that helps you to see how much you are spending and where you are spending it.

TripCoin is a concise and easy to use app that is available on iOS only. It is free to download , and there are no upgrade options at the present time. This smart app allows you to keep tabs on your spending at the touch of a button while making is super easy to add new entries when you need to.

Summary reports can quickly be compiled to let you see progress reports and spreadsheets, and you can even export the data to Excel, Numbers, Open Office, or Google to keep your inner accountant happy anywhere in the world.

Wally was designed to help anyone to manage their finances, anywhere in the world easily. It promises to offer a simple, seamless tool that works in an intuitive way, making it super easy to keep track of your money on the move.

The basic version allows you to add details of all of your regular incoming and outgoings as well as inputting your day to day expenditure, creating groups to manage joint accounts, and splitting payments with your friends when you need to.

It can be set to your local currency and lets you divide your outgoings into easy to find pre-set categories. Available on both iOs and Android, you can upgrade to the paid-for version for $24.99 a year to enjoy unlimited trips and categories.

This is a brilliant invention for anyone traveling with friends. Available on both iOS and Android, you can download it for free, but an in-app upgrade is available to Splitwise Pro. No more scrambling around with a pen and paper to split the bill, this app allows you and your buddies to keep track of your shared expenses and balances at the touch of a button.

You can add a bill, and choose how to split it, or send text or email requests to remind your friends and family that payments are now due. You can also categorize your expenses, calculate amounts in over 100 different currencies, and even sync all of your expenditures with the Cloud.

If you want to keep a more detailed record of your accounts, this little app will also export the data into easy to read CSV reports.

Before you worry about how to manage your finances while you are away, you will need to devise a plan that gives you the funds to get you there in the first place. Unless you have been blessed with a sudden windfall or a lottery win, you will need to save your cents to achieve your goals.

Set a Savings Timeline

If you receive a regular wage, or you are able to forecast your earnings accurately, you can start to set a timeline on how long it will take you to save up for your vacation . If you put aside just $100 a month, for example, you will be able to have $1200 to play with in just a year. This amount may not pay for a new life abroad, but it could you buy a week by the ocean.

Bottom Line: Think of where you want to go to, find out how much it will cost, and then set a monthly savings goal and stick to it. Some months you may have to sacrifice on your social life or shopping habits, but it will all be worth it in the end.

Multiple Savings Accounts

Once you know how much you need to save each month, be sure to physically remove that money from your day to day bank account. Set up at least 1 separate savings account and electronically move it , or set up an automated payment to leave your regular account on payday.

Visualization

Re-train your brain to save instead of spend, and you will be able to tally up every cent you save with something amazing . Your first $150 saved, for example, could mean that you have those tickets for that boat party in Miami in the bag, or that you are on your way to paying for a 4-star hotel instead of a mid-range one.

Whether you are dreaming of trekking up the Himalayas, backpacking around Asia, Interailing through Europe , or a long-awaited family vacation, seeing what your savings can afford will super motivate you to save more.

Wherever you are planning on traveling to, being in control of your finances will make your experience even more amazing. Worrying about getting into debt on your credit cards or not having the cash in your pocket to really explore the region will ruin your adventures.

Save hard, spend well, and look for ways to save money across every aspect of your trip. Plan your spending before you go and keep track of your expenditure while you travel. There are deals to be had on flights, accommodation, food, attractions, and almost every area of your next vacation. Plan in advance and enjoy knowing that you are having the best time for less.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where can i travel with a low budget.

There are plenty of excellent places to travel on a low budget. Here are some great options:

• South Africa

How much should I budget for a trip?

There are lots of factors that make up how much you should budget for a trip. Where you are going, the time of year, your travel style, what you want to do, and how long are you going for are just some of the considerations. It’s best to work out exactly what the trip would cost, cut out anything you can do without, and go from there.

How do I stick to a budget while traveling?

The best way to stick to a budget while traveling is to keep track of all your expenses so you know exactly where you are against your budget. The easiest way of doing this is to use a travel budget and expenses up like Trail Wallet, Trabee Pocket, or Tripcoin.

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About Amar Hussain

Amar is an avid traveler and tester of products. He has spent the last 13 years traveling all 7 continents and has put the products to the test on each of them. He has contributed to publications including Forbes, the Huffington Post, and more.

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The Travel Quandary

The Ultimate Trip Planner Template – Easy To Use Excel Format!

You’re about to embark on your next adventure – hooray! 

Travel planning comes naturally to some who thrive on the challenge to find the best deal on a tour, stay at the coolest hotel or dine at the hottest new restaurant. These travellers are always at the airport on time, check opening hours of attractions before leaving home and have packing down to a fine art form. On the other end of the scale, there are travellers who prefer to go with the flow, do things spontaneously and are happy to rock up to a new destination and “wing it”.

According to the World Tourism Organization (UNTWO), 1.4 billion people travelled internationally in 2018. And apparently, there are over 750 million users of Microsoft Excel worldwide. There’s a high chance that you’ll fall into both of these categories (we don’t know the exact number but it would make for a pretty neat Venn diagram). And if you also classify yourself as an “unprepared” and/or “unorganised” traveller, our trip planner template is designed to help YOU.

Microsoft Excel is not only used by accountants and finance people. Microsoft Excel has become the ultimate planning and analysis tool, recognised and used worldwide which is why we’ve chosen it to create our trip planner template. We hope you find it useful and welcome your feedback and recommendations!

FREE TRIP PLANNER TEMPLATE! MICROSOFT EXCEL & GOOGLE DOCS

Why use a spreadsheet to plan your trip.

• Identify gaps in your itinerary (closures, public holidays, mandatory reservations)
• Save money (better budget decisions, better choices on trip)
• To get you excited! You’re going on a holiday! Hooray!

Download your free trip planner template here

Note: For Google Docs template, download the .zip file and upload the spreadsheet to your Google Drive. Once uploaded, open with Google Sheets.

Using this spreadsheet

The Ultimate Trip Planner Template is built into a spreadsheet which is divided into six sections. We’ve built this trip planner to include 16 days of travel but you can adjust the length of the trip by adding or removing columns in the spreadsheet.

Once you’ve confirmed your travel plans, add them here. This is where you can record all your reservations – flight details, accommodation, car rental, equipment rental, tour reservations etc. Listing them on one tab means you can quickly jump in and find those important details when you need them.

2. Planning

Researching airlines, hotels, Airbnbs, car hire, tour operators and travel insurance policies can be exhausting. You’ll probably go through a phase where you’ll have so many tabs open on your browser, it’ll make you want to pull your hair out! If you also need to compare prices and dates with your travel companions, it can become downright overwhelming.

When you find a potential option you like, add it to the “Planning” tab. When your research is condensed into a neat summary, it will be a simple exercise of reviewing all possible suppliers, key dates and prices and then after a process of elimination, you will be left with the most suitable option.

A budget is by no means set in stone. Our budget tab is designed to help with your travel planning decisions. We feel that it is important to understand the costs of a holiday before making any hasty decisions. And we consider it even more important that you don’t spend beyond your means!

We don’t want to sound like party-poopers but the last thing you want is to get ripped off and/or find yourself stuck abroad without any money. By understanding where you plan to spend the bulk of your hard-earned money on your holiday, you can plan where you’ll allow yourself to splurge and other areas where you may need to tighten the purse strings.

For example, we give ourselves extra budget for food and coffee experiences as this is an aspect we love about travelling. We tend to book budget/basic accommodation on the road depending on the destination and available options, as all we need is a bed, access to a (preferably) hot shower in a secure room.

A good chunk of your budget will already be paid or known in advance before you’ve even left home (i.e. flights, some ground transport, accommodation, tours (if applicable) etc), so this should also help when allocating your budget to food, shopping and extras. There will also be times where you need to be strict and say “no” if your gut feeling and bank account tell you that you cannot afford a certain something. Be conservative but also be kind to yourself – you are treating yourself to a holiday after all and you’ll have to spend money to fully enjoy the experience!

4. Itinerary

We spend a lot of time planning our travel itineraries on a day by day basis and even breaking it down to each hour of each day. Some people call us crazy but when we are short on time and have an extensive list of things to see/do/eat/shop etc, we prefer to be organised.

Laying out our trip day by day also helps us to block out periods of time for travel or to take note of when restaurants and attractions are closed. Of course, plans can and will change. Rain may force you indoors (museums, galleries, shopping) or an unknown public holiday may disrupt your planned travel day.

We recommend using this tab to roughly outline your plans and drop in the activities and places you simply cannot miss. You can move activities to different days if your original plan doesn’t work out. If you want, record your daily expenses at the bottom and you can track how your actual spending goes against your budget.

5. Packing List

For those who begrudge packing, it tends to be the case that you will end up wearing 20% of your packed belongings during 80% of your trip. Or if you’ve left packing until the last minute and thrown items higgledy-piggledy into your suitcase, you’ll arrive at your accommodation to realise you’ve forgotten your favourite undies or packed the wrong shoes.

Packing lists work. Once you’ve considered the weather and climate at your destination, your baggage allowance plus the duration of your trip, you can plan what you need and limit unnecessary purchases on the other side.

We’ve compiled a pretty epic packing list covering practically every type of adventure and possibly everything that you may need. Feel free to adjust accordingly to your requirements.

6. Checklist

This is the final step before you walk out your front door to embark on a brand new adventure. Before you go, use this tab to ensure you’ve dotted all the i’s and crossed all the t’s. And then you’re off!

Bon voyage!

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Give us your feedback of the Trip Planner Template below!

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CONTINUE PLANNING YOUR TRAVELS

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28 thoughts on “the ultimate trip planner template – easy to use excel format”.

HOLY COW I cannot believe I found EVERYTHING I needed all in one for FREE. I feel like I have ROBBED someone! My partner and I never grew up in households where family vacations were had, so we have no idea what were doing. Thank you kindly to The Travel Quandary. If I can donate, share your page, volunteer, etc. let me know how I can repay <3

SO HELPFUL ! THANK YOU SO MUCH !

How you extend the dates! I am going for a month

This template is so great! Planning a trip to New Zealand and will be traveling around a lot – this is super helpful!

NICE!! MUCHAS GRACIAS VERY COOL!!! Alina

Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge and your files!

Thanks so much for the template. This is a very good start for a traveller like me. Easy to use!

Amazing template! Exactly what I needed. Thank you!

Thank you for the great tool! I was wondering if theres a way to enter an end date as well to the itenerary?

Hi there! I was wrapped to see that the template is created by some Aussies! and local ones as well. I’m from Melbourne! Template is a charm! Just what I’ve been looking for ages! Planning our Europe trip for 2023 that got cancelled in 2020! (We all know why!!) Will let you know how it goes and will definitely check out your website! Thanks,

Hi Rosanna, we’re so glad to hear that you’ve found this template useful! Very jealous that you’re planning an escapade to Europe. No doubt it will be amazing! Safe travels 🙂

Thankyou for your post on THE ULTIMATE TRIP PLANNER TEMPLATE on excel. It is very usefull. I have been using this template to plan my trips for a while now and it has saved me a lot of time. I highly recommend it to anyone who is looking for a travel planner.

Didn’t work. At least, not on my version of excel.

something about “delimited” something or another.

Hi Piotr, We’re sorry to hear this. What version of excel are you using? Are you on a Mac or PC? If you wish, we can email you an Excel copy of the template.

So so sooo helpful! I’m happy to find this great itinerary template! Thank you so much.

Thanks Tahira! We’re so glad that you found it helpful. Enjoy your travels! 🙂

Hi Tahira, we’re thrilled you found this template helpful. Enjoy your travels!

I needed this so much, easy and simply. Thank you for a great spreadsheet.

Thanks Nga! Happy travel planning!

Hi Nga, we’re so glad you loved this spreadsheet. Hope you had an amazing travel adventure!

Thank you , soooo much ! I appreciate you putting this together and sharing it

Hi Priscilla! So glad that you found this planning template useful! We hope you enjoy your trip!

I am so excited to find this. (Thank you, Pinterest!) I will be leaving in a month on an eight day train trip and this is exactly what I needed to get all my ducks in a row. Thank you so much!

HiTeresa! We’re so glad to hear this and so exciting for you. Enjoy your trip!

This is great! Found this as i was looking for a newer travel planner and this is very helpful and user friendly!

We’re so glad to hear this! Happy travel planning!

great tool. never used a planner before and it has most every item to consider… add a route sheet for those who driving to, during and back from their vacations…

Glad you like it and thanks for the feedback. We’ll look into adding a new tab for routes.

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Download Travel Budget Template In Excel

• Budget , Event Budget , Excel Planners , Excel Templates

Download the Travel Budget Excel Template to Plan for Your Next Adventure

If you’re looking for an efficient way to plan for your upcoming travels and manage your expenses, our Travel Budget Template in Excel Sheet is the perfect tool for you. This template is designed to help you keep track of your travel expenses, categorize them in broad categories, and present them in a graphical format. With this template, you can easily monitor your expenses and ensure that you stay within your budget.

Efficient Expense Management

The Travel Budget Template is an efficient way to manage your travel expenses. The template is easy to use and allows you to track your expenses in a user-friendly way. By categorizing your expenses into broad categories, you can quickly see where you are spending the most money and make adjustments to your budget if necessary. With this template, you can save time and avoid the hassle of manually tracking your expenses.

Graphical Presentation

The Travel Budget Template gives you a graphical presentation of your expenses, which makes it easier to visualize your spending. The template uses graphs and charts to display your expenses by category, so you can easily see where your money is going. The graphical presentation makes it easy to identify areas where you can cut back on spending or adjust your budget.

Categorize Your Expenses

The Travel Budget Template allows you to categorize your expenses into broad categories such as transportation, accommodation, food, and entertainment. This categorization makes it easy to see where you are spending the most money and identify areas where you can reduce your spending. By keeping your expenses organized and categorized, you can make better-informed decisions about your spending.

In conclusion, our Travel Budget Template in Excel Sheet is an essential tool for anyone planning a trip. It is easy to use, provides a graphical presentation of your expenses, and categorizes your expenses into broad categories. With this template, you can efficiently manage your expenses and stay within your budget. Download the template today and start planning your next adventure with confidence.

Download this Travel Budget template in Excel Format

Our easy to use editable Excel templates and save your significant amount of time and effort. Here’s how to download and use one of our templates:

Download this free Excel Template : Once you’ve browsed through our collection of templates and find the one that best fits your needs. Once you’ve found the template you want, click on the download button.

Replace sample data with your actual data: Once the template is downloaded, open it in Excel. You’ll see that it is already set up with sample data. To start analyzing your own data, simply replace the sample data with your actual data.

Customize the template: Our templates are completely editable, which means you can customize them to fit your specific needs. For example, you can change the formatting, add or remove columns, or create new charts and graphs.

Use the Excel template: Once you’ve fed in your data and customized the template, you’re ready to start using it for data analysis. Use the various tools and features of Excel to analyze and visualize your data, and make informed business decisions.

Save and share: Once you’ve finished working on the template, save it to your computer and share it with other members of your team or stakeholders as needed.

Click Download Button To Get Travel Budget Excel Template

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Travel Budget Template

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Travel Budget Templates in Google Sheets and Excel

Get the most out of your trip using our travel budget templates in google docs, sheets, word, and excel formats. plan all your expenses, including plane tickets, apartment or hotel booking, visas, car rental and others. choose from dozens of editable and printable designs in different colors.

Year Travel Budget for Family

Orange Business Travel Budget

Travel Budget

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Cute Travel Budget

Yellow Travel Budget

Travel Budget With Clouds

Minimal Travel Budget

Pastel Travel Budget

Sea Travel Budget

Simple Travelling Budget

Paris Trip Budget

Traveling is always fun and interesting. However, travel is always associated with various kinds of expenses, which are best foreseen in advance. If you want to always be sure that you have chosen the right budget for your trip, then we recommend using any travel budgeting template from TheGoodocs . Our amazing Google Sheets templates are always the best option to save time and money.

Just imagine that you won't need to understand spreadsheet functionalities and built-in instruments, but you'll still get a professional, well-structured, and well-designed budget plan. We have a traveling budget template for any personal or business need. It does not matter if you work in a travel agency or just going on vacation and want to calculate its cost in advance. You will definitely find the right option only with us.

How do you like our offer? We advise you to study the list of advantages because of which our clients and visitors prefer our platform!

Finance Microsoft Excel

11 minute read

How to Use Excel to Manage Your Travel Budget

Eliza Medley

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Crafting the perfect travel spreadsheet transforms trip planning into a seamless experience. It tailors your itinerary to match your travel whims while effortlessly adapting to changing plans. Let's discuss how to use Excel to manage a travel budget.

How to create the ultimate travel spreadsheet

Here is a simple guide to creating a travel spreadsheet.

Set up your Excel spreadsheet

Follow these steps to create a new spreadsheet:

• Open Excel. Launch Microsoft Excel on your computer. You can typically find it in the Microsoft Office suite or as a standalone application.
• Create a new spreadsheet. Once Excel is open, click on "File" in the top-left corner. Select "New" and then choose "Blank Workbook" to start with a fresh spreadsheet.
• Familiarize yourself with the interface. Take a moment to familiarize yourself with the Excel interface. You'll see a grid of cells arranged in rows and columns.
• Create sections for clarity. Label the first few rows for specific sections. For example, use the first row for titles like "Date," "Expense Category," "Description," "Amount," and "Balance."
• Format for readability. Adjust the column widths to accommodate your labels and make the spreadsheet visually appealing. Consider using bold fonts or shading for headers to distinguish different sections.
• Reserve space for totals. Dedicate a section at the bottom for total expenses, income, and the remaining budget. Excel will do the math for you later.

You've now set up the foundation for managing your travel budget in Excel.

Track expenses

Now that you've established the groundwork for your travel budget spreadsheet, it's time to delve into the crucial task of tracking your expenses efficiently.

• Create a column for expense categories. In the "Expense Category" column you created earlier, list the categories that align with your travel plans. For instance, if your trip involves flights, include a category for "Transportation".
• Customize categories to suit your trip. Tailor the categories based on your unique itinerary. If you plan to indulge in specific activities, create categories accordingly.
• Enter each expense. With your expense categories established, it's time to start logging individual expenses.
• Fill in the details for each expense. In the rows beneath your category labels, start entering the details of each expense. Include the date, a brief description, and the amount spent in their respective columns.
• Be detailed and accurate. The more detailed your entries, the better you can analyze your spending later. Instead of a generic "Food", specify if it was a restaurant meal or grocery.
• Utilize the SUM function for totals. Click on the cell where you want the total to appear (e.g., the cell beneath the "Amount" column for each category). Use the formula =SUM(range) to add up all the expenses within a specific category. Replace "range" with the cells containing your expense amounts.

By following these steps, you've successfully set up your Excel spreadsheet to track expenses for your upcoming trip.

Budgeting for your trip

Now that you've diligently tracked your expenses , it's time to take control of your travel finances by setting a realistic budget for your trip and allocating funds strategically.

• Establish your total budget. Decide on the maximum amount you're comfortable spending during your trip. This includes all anticipated expenses, from accommodation and transportation to meals and activities.
• Enter the total budget in your spreadsheet. Designate a cell in your spreadsheet, perhaps at the top, to enter your total budget. This serves as your financial anchor throughout the trip-planning process.
• Distribute the budget among categories. Allocate a portion of your total budget to each expense category. For example, if you've budgeted $1,000 for your trip and plan to spend more on activities than accommodation, adjust the allocation accordingly.
• Monitor category budgets. Regularly check your category budgets as you enter expenses. This will help you stay on track and make adjustments if necessary.
• Be realistic and flexible. While setting a budget is essential, it's equally crucial to be realistic and flexible. Unexpected expenses may arise, so allow some flexibility in your allocations.
• Consider contingency. Include a contingency or buffer in your budget to account for unforeseen expenses. This ensures you're prepared for unexpected costs without derailing your entire budget.

By setting a total budget and strategically allocating funds to different categories, you've taken a significant step toward financial planning for your trip.

Tips and tricks for managing your travel budget in Excel

Now that you've set up your Excel spreadsheet to manage your travel budget, let's explore additional tips and tricks to maximize Excel's features.

Tip 1: Use conditional formatting

Conditional formatting is a powerful tool in Excel that allows you to visually highlight specific cells based on their values. How to apply conditional formatting to expense totals:

• Select the cell containing the total expense for each category.
• Navigate to the "Home" tab, click on "Conditional Formatting," and choose a relevant option, such as color scales or data bars.
• This visual representation makes it easy to identify categories where you may need to reconsider your spending.

This can help you quickly identify budget exceedances or areas where you may overspend.

Tip 2: Regularly update your spreadsheet

Consistency is key to effective budget management. Make it a habit to update your spreadsheet regularly to ensure accurate and up-to-date financial information. You should:

• Set a schedule for updates. Establish a routine for updating your budget, whether it's daily, weekly, or bi-weekly. Consistent updates help you stay on top of your financial situation.
• Document expenses promptly. Record your expenses as soon as possible to avoid forgetting or misplacing receipts. This practice ensures that your spreadsheet reflects the most accurate information.

Tip 3: Include contingency in your budget

Unforeseen expenses are a part of travel. Including a contingency in your budget helps you account for unexpected costs without jeopardizing your overall financial plan.

You should allocate a contingency fund. This can act as a safety net for emergencies or unexpected opportunities that may arise during your trip. If you dip into your contingency fund, be sure to update your spreadsheet accordingly. This adjustment ensures that your remaining budget accurately reflects your financial situation.

Tip 4: Leverage Excel's graphs and charts

Excel offers various tools for visual representation, such as graphs and charts . Utilize these features to gain a more insightful overview of your budget trends:

• Select relevant data in your spreadsheet.
• Navigate to the "Insert" tab and choose the type of graph or chart that best represents your data (e.g., a pie chart for expense categories).

Visualizations can provide a quick and easy way to understand your budget distribution.

Make use of Excel templates

Here is how you can use Excel templates to manage your your trips like a pro.

⭐ Organize a meal plan

To keep track of your nutrition on the trip, you can create a table or download a ready-made one. Click the File - New tab and choose from one of Meal Planner templates.

Excel spreadsheets make it easy to plan your daily trip menu and count calories, proteins, fats, and carbohydrates. Search for " Food " within the templates and you will find not only templates for managing your grocery budget, but also the immensely popular calorie-counting logs.

These spreadsheets are designed so that if you exceed the norm, you'll immediately see the deviation. They use basic yet popular Excel functions , including IF and SUM to summarize the details entered. For convenience, there are drop-down lists and visual chart effects.

⭐ Check your car costs

To find out the cost of a car for the trip, you need basic skills in MS Excel to create your own budget or expense tracker. Skills like creating dropdown lists , using the SUBTOTAL function, and working with Excel Tables will come in handy.

Download this template

We've done most of the work for you. Just customize this free template to suit your needs.

Enter the data with detailed descriptions. As a result, you will understand what the most expensive items of car usage consist of and will be able to optimize your expenses. Statistics throughout the trip will help you plan your budget.

Suppose you go for a trip for a month with your own car. In that case, you can expand the template. You can include the cost of insurance, spare parts, technical inspections, tire fitting, and other minor expenses.

This way, you can find out how much the full cost of car maintenance costs you on your trip.

⭐ Calculate your travel budget

Buying cheap airline tickets is half the battle. Include all expenses in your travel plan to avoid flying off into the unknown.

If you search for " Trip planner ", you will find several templates for entering trip details and all expenses.

Take charge of your journey

Mastering your travel budget with Excel can be a game-changer in ensuring a financially stress-free and enjoyable trip. The step-by-step guides provided in this article empower you to take control of your finances and personal life, allowing for informed decisions and flexible adjustments as needed.

Looking for  free Excel templates for business ? We have templates for project management, finance, invoicing, and more. Get skilled-up with our  Excel courses  no matter where you are on your Excel journey.

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Eliza Medley is an experienced writer and psychologist. She is actively interested in management, new technologies, and writing motivational articles. She also loves catching up on modern trends. She inspires people to learn new things and reach new heights with her work. In case of any inquiries or suggestions kindly reach out to her at [email protected].

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Free Travel Budget Template for Google Sheets (2024 Update)

Free google sheets travel budget template.

Grab a copy of this travel budget template in Google Sheets and edit it as you see fit.

Don't request for permission to edit, simply go to File > Make a copy .

How to Use Our Free Travel Budget Template in Google Sheets

Below we have outlined the steps on how to use our travel budget template in Google Sheets: 

Step 1: Planning and Budget Estimation

Begin with researching the costs associated with your destination(s). Look into accommodation prices, transportation fares, daily food expenses, and the cost of activities or attractions you plan to visit.

Step 2: Filling Out Estimated Costs

Open your Google Sheets travel budget template. Navigate to the "Estimated Cost" column (Column B) next to each category (Accommodation, Transportation, Food, etc.).

Based on your research or past experiences, enter the estimated amount you expect to spend for each category. This will serve as your budgeted amount for each part of your trip.

Step 3: Tracking Expenses During the Trip

As you travel, keep all receipts and make quick notes of all your expenses. This can be done in a small notebook, on your phone, or by taking photos of receipts.

Step 4: Updating Actual Costs Regularly

For each expense you incur, find the appropriate category and update the "Actual Cost" column (Column C) with the amount spent. 

Step 5: Reviewing Your Budget in Real-Time

As you update your actual costs, the "Difference" column (Column D) will automatically calculate the variance between your estimated and actual expenses. This column is formulated to subtract the actual cost from the estimated cost, showing you at a glance if you are over or under budget for each category.

Use the information from the "Difference" column to make informed decisions about your spending for the remainder of the trip. If you find yourself over budget in one area, you may decide to cut back on another category to compensate.

We hope that this article has helped you and given you a better understanding of how to use our travel budget template in Google Sheets. If you enjoyed this article, you might also want to check out our free debt payoff template and our event budget template in Google Sheets .

• 27 pages of Google Sheets tips and tricks to save time
• Covers pivot tables and other advanced topics

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How to Make a Travel Budget in 5 Easy Steps (Free Planner)

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Creating a travel budget may seem like a hassle, but it’ll actually make your vacation more enjoyable. Knowing that you’ve already planned out how you’re going to pay for everything will help you relax and have a good time.

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Many people enjoy traveling the world, exploring new places, or just relaxing in a tranquil environment.

Taking a vacation is a great way to reduce stress and improve productivity, but traveling can be costly. Making a travel budget will make a big difference while planning your next getaway.

Those who love to travel should incorporate it as a line item in their monthly budgets. Each month, set aside a certain amount for travel in its own separate account.

Earmark that money specifically as a vacation budget so that it can be spent guilt-free. Money that is put toward trip expenses can simply be reimbursed from the travel account.

With that said, if there is outstanding debt that is difficult to pay off, planning an immediate vacation may not be a good idea. In this case, the priority should be to set up an emergency fund that includes three-to-six months’ worth of living expenses.

Why Is Budgeting for a Vacation Important?

While it is good to get into the habit of setting aside vacation funds every month, it is also important to create a budget for each individual trip. This will help determine how long it will take to build up enough money in the vacation account to pay for that trip. It will also allow for logistics to be planned out, while staying on budget.

Scheduling and budgeting for vacations can be very enjoyable. Researching hotel accommodations, restaurants, and free things to do helps to build up anticipation. It can be fun for the whole family to spend time together, figuring out the different parts of an upcoming trip.

How to Budget for A Vacation in 5 Simple Steps

When it comes time to map out those vacation expenses, a few key steps will help lead to success and worry-free traveling. Begin by drafting a well-rounded vacation budget, focusing on expenses in the following five main categories. Once these are figured out, the rest of the details will fall into place.

1. Choose a destination and preferred date

Start by picking a destination and nailing down travel dates. Remember that some locations are more expensive to visit than others. The time of year can also make a difference in pricing. Traveling done at peak tourist times usually costs more than off-season trips.

Be flexible

Being flexible is one of the easiest ways to save when budgeting for a vacation. Check out multiple travel destinations and compare prices before settling on options for lodging and airfare. Since these are two of the largest expenses in any travel budget, keeping them in check will go a long way toward helping to keep the overall cost down.

Be willing to look at alternative accommodations or stay at a place that is a little farther away from the tourist areas. Remember that most vacation time is spent outside the hotel room – so there is no reason to put a large chunk of the budget toward nice accommodations that will be used only for sleep.

Also, be flexible when choosing a travel date. Many travel search engines have a “flexible dates” option that can be used to research the lowest prices for airfare and lodging. Plan around these dates for added savings in the travel budget.

Consider the season

The time of year can really impact a travel budget. A lot of people have begun to plan weddings around their honeymoons, and not vise versa. For example, if the goal is to travel to Italy without spending a fortune or facing large crowds of tourists – while still enjoying nice weather – get married in early autumn, which is known as the shoulder season. It’s a great time of year to travel, because the weather is still nice, but the crowds have thinned out. Most people with children travel during the summer. Once the kids are back in school, prices for airfare and accommodations tend to drop, allowing people with more flexibility to travel cheaper.

Related: Make Money Renting Your Home with Airbnb While You’re on Vacation

2. Make a list of your major expenses (use a travel budget worksheet)

When drafting a travel budget worksheet, plan for the biggest expenses, including transportation, accommodations, and food, first. Getting those out of the way will greatly aid in putting together the overall vacation budget.

Research cheap travel deals (transportation)

Transportation costs for trips that are taken close to home will not be very high. But when airfare comes into the picture, the transportation line item will increase dramatically. Research multiple airlines for cheap travel deals, and consider taking connecting flights to cut down on the cost. If it’s feasible, check out the price of flights leaving from airports in nearby cities.

Flights on airlines to and from major airport hubs are usually lower in cost. For example, American Airlines and Southwest Airlines are both headquartered in Dallas. Flights on those airlines tend to be the cheapest travel to and from that area.

Research accommodations

Another large expense in any travel budget is lodging. There is a wide range of options to consider when it comes to picking out a place to stay, including hostels, hotels, motels, bed and breakfasts, or apartments. Or, if a trip includes camping, those accommodations can include cabins and tents.

Rather than being brand-loyal to a particular hotel, utilize travel sites like Hotels.com to compare costs at different chains. After all, most travel time is spent sightseeing and exploring, not inside the room.

The closer accommodations are to major attractions, the more expensive they will be. Consider staying somewhere off the beaten path to save money.

When traveling with a group of people, split the cost of accommodations. For example, rent a house or condo with multiple rooms and divide the costs. If your destination is more remote, consider renting an RV. For as low as $175 per night, you can comfortably sleep 10 adults and still come in under $20 per person per day.

Budget for food

One of the trickiest line items in a vacation budget is food. To save some money in this area, choose a place to stay that has a kitchen – or at least a refrigerator and microwave. Eat some meals there, and then splurge a few times by going out to eat at local restaurants.

Another great way to save money on food is to stay in a bed and breakfast or a hotel that includes breakfast. Some chains like Homewood Suites or DoubleTree offer both a kitchen area and a hot breakfast, which helps in saving money . Drinks bought while eating out can quickly add to a bill, so buy wine or beer for the room to keep that travel budget in check.

When budgeting for meals, try going out for lunch instead of dinner. Lunch is usually cheaper than dinner, and many of the same options are offered for less. It is also usually not as tempting to order pricey alcoholic beverages during lunch.

Related: How to Find Cheap Gas Nearby (When You’re On the Go)

3. Make a list of smaller expenses

Once the larger expenses are planned out, figure out the extras, like sightseeing, entertainment, and gifts.

Research potential vacation activities and local places to visit. Go online to get an idea of the associated costs, and budget accordingly.

Don’t forget to plan for any necessary vaccines if traveling abroad, as well as gifts to take back home. Build a buffer into the budget to account for any surprise expenses. It’s always best to plan for more, and then spend less.

4. Determine the monthly savings

Once a rough vacation budget has been established, it’s time to figure out how to pay for it. Take the total amount and divide it by the number of months left until the trip. For example, if the vacation date is in nine months and the cost of the trip is approximately $2,700, $300 must be set aside every month.

If that amount seems too large, there are two options: adjust the timeline or make some extra money.

If necessary, push the trip out by a few months until enough money can be saved, or figure out how to bring in some extra income. There are many different ways to make money on the side, and help to reach that savings goal.

5. Vacation budgeting doesn’t end there

Those travel budgets won’t do much good if they aren’t followed. It is important to track costs and stay on top of spending while on vacation. Don’t stress out over every penny, but don’t go overboard, either. It wouldn’t be fun to see some nasty surprises on the bank or credit card statement later.

One of the easiest ways to track expenditures while traveling is with a budgeting tool like Personal Capital. Alternatively, keep on top of spending with an Excel spreadsheet or even with a pen and paper. Whatever the method, keep it updated and check it regularly.

Bonus Tip: Draft an itinerary

While it’s not necessary to create an itinerary when budgeting for a vacation, it really helps stay on track. The best way to do this is by using an Excel spreadsheet. Make a rough outline with a separate entry for each day of the vacation. Fill in all of the travel information and any scheduled activities like sightseeing tours.

Make a separate column to the side and list out all potential vacation activities. Group together any events that are in the same area of town and write down approximately how long each one would take. Now slot them in under the different day headers for either the morning or afternoon.

Try to group together activities or sightseeing that will occur in the same part of town. Food and restaurant options can be added in after the schedule is roughed out.

Itineraries are meant to be flexible, not restrictive. Move things around to find the right balance. Note the associated cost of each entry on the list.

Add all of the expenses together at the bottom of the spreadsheet to estimate the total travel budget. Remember that it’s not necessary to follow the itinerary word for word. Use it as a planning tool and focus on enjoying the trip.

Creating a Travel Budget Is Well Worth the Time

Even though it may seem like creating a travel budget can be a hassle, in the long run, it will make vacations far more enjoyable.

Having a vacation budget means not stressing about money after the trip. It allows for advanced planning and time to save up enough money. Budgeting for a vacation means that it will be easy to relax and have a good time, knowing that everything is in the budget and ready to be paid for.

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Free travel budget templates and worksheets (excel).

Travelling can be exciting and thrilling because it is a way to meet new people and see a whole different way of life. Also, it can help create new experiences for you and expands your worldview beyond what is within your immediate reach. You may want to travel for different purposes such as relaxation, tourism, or to get away from the hustle and bustle of your life.

Irrespective of why you are going on a trip, you must prepare adequately by having a travel budget. This article is filled with information to help you correctly carry out this preparatory step before you embark on a trip. This article will outline what your travel budget should include and provide you with a travel budget template.

Pre-budgeting Considerations

Before going on a trip for any reason, there are specific basic steps to consider.

They include the following considerations:

• Determine what you can afford: There is a need to estimate how much money you have available for the vacation because of the expenses you’ll have to incur before, during, and after your trip. Therefore, it is advisable to go with whatever travel package and location is within your financial capability. But, on the other hand, there is no need to go overboard and get yourself into debt because of a trip.
• Get advice from friends and family: Asking for important information and reviews from family and friends who may have visited your intended location will also help your preparatory steps. Answers to various questions about your destination that you will find on the internet can be complemented by first-hand information from your friends and family members who may have visited that place previously. Information from acquaintances about accommodation, food, security, etc., may be more trustworthy.
• Save some money: Travelling comes with many expenses, and you must be willing and ready to save a reasonable amount of money if you want to have a great and memorable trip. Therefore, you should attempt to put money together and start saving weeks or even months before you eventually travel.  It is better to have more money than necessary for your trip instead of having way less and getting stranded.

What to Include in a Travel Budget Template?

 There are essential expenses that are included in a travel budget template. These expenses include the following:

Airfare expenses

Depending on the location you intend to travel to, you may have to consider usually expensive airfare expenses. Considering that air travel is usually the quickest option, it will be a big part of your travel budget. Therefore, you should try to make ample research on the possible cost of your flight and try to get cheap flight options that will significantly reduce your travel expenses. Note that flying during peak periods is possibly going to make flight costs skyrocket, so you should schedule your trip during the off-peak period.

 If you’re traveling a short distance, it’s advisable to look into other forms of transportation that may be more favorable.

Transportation expenses

You’ll require transportation when you get to your location, so you should prepare for that. Depending on your destination, various forms of public transportation are available to help you get around. Public transportation is usually a great option because it’s inexpensive and gives you a local experience. It may include taxis, trains, buses, motorcycles, etc.

Nevertheless, if you have some extra money, you can commute better by renting a car at your location and driving yourself around. And if you need a driver, you can book one through a rental service.

When it comes to the issue of insurance on rental cars, you can make inquiries from your insurance provider about whether your original car insurance covers rental cars as well. In the instance that you don’t own car insurance from the onset, some non-owner car insurance policies will cover a rental car through the duration of use.

Before getting any insurance policy, try to ascertain if your credit card provider has a rental car insurance policy available.

Accommodation/ lodging expenses

Having a place to stay is a big deal and a necessity that can’t be ignored. But, first, decide what type of accommodation you prefer, whether it’s a hotel, hostel, or apartment rental. Next, you must check out the prices of these accommodations compared to your financial capability.

Accommodation expenses depend on the quality of the place. So be sure to consider your exact needs and what is available at your destination. If your destination is a tourist area, there will likely be many hotels, motels, and resorts. Check out multiple sources before booking hotels to find the best deals.

Expenses for food

Without much doubt, feeding during your trip is a must-do activity. Therefore, you need to include these expenses in your budget. However, remember that you’ll most likely be eating out, and food costs can vary in different places. Therefore, determine local food costs and estimate how much you may be spending on food.

If you need to save some money on food, consider getting a hotel room with a kitchen and then purchase groceries so you can prepare some simple meals. To give yourself a fully immersive travel experience, you should budget some money mainly to try out the local delicacies of your destination.

Cell phone coverage

Depending on whether you are traveling to a different country or not, you have to consider an arrangement for your cell phone use during your trip. This includes phone calls, internet access, etc. Try to find out if your service provider offers network services that would make it easier for you in a different country, or consider purchasing a local SIM card when you get to your destination. This usually costs less than the international roaming fees your service provider may charge.

Debit card holds

You should prepare for possible debit card holds if you’re paying with a debit card, as this can delay your payments and leave you without funds. Hence, it is better to try to pay for your expenses with a credit card or plan your travel budget around the debit cardholder.

Include extras/incidental expenses

In your travel budget, you should consider the need for possible expenses that may occur. Unforeseen expenses may arise, and you’d need funds to sort them out. So, you should create your travel budget in a manner that leaves a little money left over for that. Some of these expenses may include purchasing medicines for an unforeseen illness. Thus, it is advisable to include extras expenses in your travel budget.

Sightseeing costs

You may want to do some sightseeing as other travelers do during your trip. In that event, you should include some funds for transportation, tours admittance into museums or parks, and other related costs in your budget. Get ample information about these places beforehand to know how well to plan and how much you have to budget.

Entertainment costs

Suppose there are other forms of engagement you are willing to try out at your travel destination, such as enjoying nightlife or taking up other available entertainment opportunities. In that case, you have to factor these costs into your travel budget too.

Gifts and souvenirs

A trip is not complete without picking out something worthwhile from your destination for yourself, family, and friends. In addition, you should purchase gifts and souvenirs as you go on your daily activities during your trip. It may be challenging to determine the costs of these gifts beforehand, so try to make a reasonable budget within your means and make a list of those you intend to purchase gifts and souvenirs for during your trip.

Use Budgeting Tools: Free Travel Budget Templates

As you know the importance of having a travel budget to help make your travel plans a reality, you may be asking yourself how I create a travel budget to track my spending.  If you want to create a travel budget that is well organized, easy to use, and detailed enough, it is advisable to use budgeting tools that are already made just for that purpose.

A travel budget template is a tool you need to ensure that your trip’s financial aspect is not in disarray. You can find several travel budget templates available on this website for download and use. In using these templates, you have to input details and figures into already prepared rows and columns, and you may also decide to customize them to add or delete specific fields if you wish.

Tips for Easy Budgeting

There are some extra tips to consider to help make your travel preparations easier and possibly less expensive.

These tips include:

1. Consider an all-inclusive package

You may consider purchasing an all-inclusive vacation package that several travel agencies provide for your trip, reducing the cost of specific items and making it easier for you to travel budget. These vacation packages usually include lodging, food, and entertainment provisions like tickets to amusement parks, museums, tours, etc.

2. Track your travel spending

Tracking your spending when you travel is a healthy way of preventing overspending. It’s a good idea to track what you’re spending because it would help you know how you are sticking to your travel budget. In addition, you may have overestimated or underestimated a particular expense or the other while planning your trip. Therefore, it is essential to track the exact amount of various activities. You can use various spending tracking apps to gather this information.

3. Make a travel budget savings plan.

Understanding that you have to save for your trip is one thing and making efforts to save is another. You can save money for your trip by setting up an automatic transfer from your main account into a savings account dedicated primarily to your travel preparations. This helps to keep your budget separate and safe before your trip.

4. Convert currency

Suppose you are leaving the country for another one. In that case, you’d need to convert your home country’s currency into the local currency of your destination to make your spending easier and without hassle, as local merchants may not be willing to transact with a foreign currency. In converting your money into the local currency, determine the exchange rate and how more or less valuable it is compared to your home country’s currency.

5. Redeem rewards and bonuses

If you have earned any reward or bonus on your travel credit cards over time, you should redeem them for your planned trip. This can be done directly through your card’s travel portal or by transferring them to the establishments you intend to get certain services from, such as accommodation, flights, and other benefits.

6. Consider travel insurance

Suppose you are one to bother about what might happen in the case of the unexpected. In that case, travel insurance is available to protect you from unexpected flight delays or cancellations and possible medical costs. You can inquire if your credit card servicer provides for that before you get one from a third-party insurance provider.

The level of planning of your travel budget would determine to a large extent, how hassle-free your trip would turn out. It allows you to estimate the expenses for your planned vacation and enables you to travel within your means. It is also an important tool that helps prevent you from overspending or making irrational financial decisions before, during, or after your trip.

If you plan on taking a vacation sometime soon, you should take the liberty to create your travel budget, as explained in this article, while you get ready to embark and enjoy that well-deserved vacation.

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• Travel budget

Travel Expenses Excel – Manage Your Travel Budget Efficiently

• 1.1 Why Use Excel for Managing Travel Expenses?
• 1.2 Create a Travel Budget Spreadsheet
• 1.3 Track Expenses on the Go
• 1.4 Utilize Excel Formulas and Functions
• 1.5 Visualize Your Travel Expenses
• 1.6 Set Alerts and Reminders
• 1.7 Analyze and Improve Your Travel Budget
• 1.8 Conclusion

Track and Control Your Travel Expenses with Excel

Are you someone who loves to travel but struggles with managing your travel budget effectively? Look no further! With the help of Excel, you can easily track and control your travel expenses, ensuring that you stay within your budget and have a stress-free travel experience.

Why Use Excel for Managing Travel Expenses?

Excel is a versatile tool that allows you to create customized spreadsheets to track your expenses. It provides a user-friendly interface with various formulas and functions that make it easy to calculate and analyze your travel expenses. Whether you are planning a solo trip or a family vacation, Excel can help you stay organized and make informed financial decisions.

Create a Travel Budget Spreadsheet

To get started, create a travel budget spreadsheet in Excel. List all the categories of expenses you anticipate, such as flights, accommodation, transportation, meals, activities, and miscellaneous expenses. Assign a budgeted amount for each category, based on your overall travel budget.

Track Expenses on the Go

With Excel’s mobile app, you can easily track your expenses on the go. Simply enter the amount spent, the date, and the corresponding category, and Excel will automatically update your travel budget spreadsheet. This way, you can keep a real-time record of your expenses and avoid any surprises when it comes to managing your budget.

Utilize Excel Formulas and Functions

Excel offers a wide range of formulas and functions that can help you analyze your travel expenses. Use the SUM formula to calculate the total amount spent in each category and the overall travel expenses. The AVERAGE formula can be used to determine the average daily expenditure, allowing you to adjust your spending if necessary.

Visualize Your Travel Expenses

Excel allows you to create visually appealing charts and graphs to visualize your travel expenses. Use a pie chart to show the percentage breakdown of different expense categories or a line graph to track your spending over time. These visual representations can provide valuable insights and help you make informed decisions about your travel budget.

Set Alerts and Reminders

Excel allows you to set alerts and reminders for specific budget thresholds. For example, if you exceed a certain percentage of your budget in a particular category, Excel can notify you. This feature helps you stay accountable and avoid overspending, ensuring that you stick to your travel budget.

Analyze and Improve Your Travel Budget

At the end of your trip, take some time to analyze your travel budget in Excel. Compare your actual expenses with your budgeted amounts and identify any areas where you overspent or underspent. This analysis will help you make better financial decisions for future trips and improve your overall travel budgeting skills.

Traveling doesn’t have to be expensive and stressful. With the help of Excel, you can easily manage your travel expenses, stay within your budget, and have a memorable travel experience. Start using Excel for your travel budget today and take control of your finances!

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Budget Examples

Travel budget template.

Download in desired format:

Plan your travel budget wisely with our comprehensive Travel Budget Template .

Track transportation expenses, accommodation costs, meals, and more.

Make the most of your travel experiences within your budget.

Download in Excel  or PDF for seamless budget management.

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• Travel budget

Travel Budget Template Excel: Take Control Of Your Expenses

• 1.1 Track Your Expenses with Ease
• 1.2 Set Realistic Budget Goals
• 1.3 Make Informed Financial Decisions
• 2.1 Modify the Template to Suit Your Needs
• 3 Conclusion

Plan Your Dream Vacation with Ease

Are you tired of overspending on your travels? Do you wish there was a way to keep track of your expenses and stay within your budget? Look no further! Our travel budget template Excel is here to help you take control of your finances and plan your dream vacation with ease.

Track Your Expenses with Ease

Gone are the days of scribbling down your expenses on scraps of paper or trying to remember every single purchase you made during your trip. With our travel budget template Excel, you can simply input your expenses into the spreadsheet and watch as it automatically calculates your total spending.

Whether it’s accommodation, transportation, food, or entertainment, our template has you covered. You can easily categorize your expenses and see exactly how much you’re spending in each category. This not only helps you stay within your budget, but it also allows you to identify areas where you can cut back and save.

Set Realistic Budget Goals

One of the biggest challenges of planning a trip is setting a realistic budget. It’s easy to get carried away and overspend, especially when you’re caught up in the excitement of exploring a new destination. However, with our travel budget template Excel, you can set realistic budget goals that align with your financial situation.

The template allows you to input your income and expenses, and it calculates how much you can afford to spend each day. It takes into account factors such as the duration of your trip, your accommodation costs, and your desired spending money. This way, you can have a clear idea of how much you should be spending each day to stay within your budget.

Make Informed Financial Decisions

Our travel budget template Excel not only helps you track your expenses and set budget goals, but it also empowers you to make informed financial decisions. By having a clear overview of your spending, you can easily identify areas where you can cut back and save money.

For example, if you notice that you’re spending a significant amount on dining out, you can consider cooking some meals in your accommodation or opting for more budget-friendly restaurants. Similarly, if you’re spending a lot on transportation, you can explore alternative modes of transport or look for deals and discounts.

Stay Stress-Free During Your Trip

One of the biggest benefits of using our travel budget template Excel is the peace of mind it brings. No more worrying about overspending or coming home to a mountain of credit card debt. With our template, you can enjoy your trip knowing that you’re staying within your budget and making smart financial decisions.

Modify the Template to Suit Your Needs

Our travel budget template Excel is highly customizable, allowing you to tailor it to your specific needs and preferences. You can add or remove expense categories, adjust budget goals, and even include additional columns for specific expenses that are unique to your trip.

Whether you’re planning a luxurious getaway or a budget backpacking adventure, our travel budget template Excel is the perfect tool to keep your finances in check. So why wait? Download our template today and start planning your dream vacation with ease!

Don’t let your travel expenses get out of control. With our travel budget template Excel, you can take control of your finances and plan your dream vacation without breaking the bank. Say goodbye to overspending and hello to stress-free travels. Download our template today and start making smart financial decisions while exploring the world!

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Travel Expense Budget

Traveling is always expensive. Everything from plane tickets to your lodging seems to go up and up as you try to plan your trip. The Travel Expense Budget has everything you need to hammer out the fine details of your trip and rein in your excess spending so you don’t have to break the bank to have a quality vacation. The free template is fully customizable to fit any destination or reason for travel. Whether you’re flying across the country for a business trip or want to see the pyramids, this template can help you save.

How to Use the Travel Expense Budget

After downloading the template to your computer, start your customization in the “Expenses” section of the Travel Expense document. First, enter the description of your expense in the first row. As you can see from the examples given to you, the first expense is the hotel where they will be staying.

You will then enter a category in the next column (location) in this instance, the quantity, the unit cost, and finally the budget template will calculate the total amount for the expense in the last column of this section.

Next, scroll down to the “Income/Funding” section of the template. This is where you will enter the various incomes contributing to your budget. The example displays multiple people traveling so the cost of the trip is split between them.

If you are traveling by yourself or you are the sole contributor of the trip, simply delete the other example names and enter your own.

When you have finished entering your income the Travel Expense template will automatically calculate the totals for your estimated and actual amounts and you can also see a breakdown of all your expenses in the section at the top of your screen.

The summary will show you how much your spending on each category and provide you with a timeline of your actual and estimated income with your expenses. Plan the vacation of your dreams without wasting a dime.

Download:  Travel Expense Budget

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Home » Budget Templates » Free Vacation Budget Templates (Excel / PDF)

Budget Templates

Free vacation budget templates (excel / pdf).

A vacation budget template is a helpful tool that helps you in reaching your dream destinations. Vacations are an effective way to break your routine. It provides a chance to have great moments and achieve new things. They can assist you in unwinding, resetting broken parent-child relationships. They also strength family bonds.

Moreover, vacations are quite expensive whether you are planning a vacation on small budget. You still have to get the most with your money. Planning can be complicated but there are various ways in which you can save some amount. You may also like Cash Flow Budget Template .

Table of Contents

How do you budget for your vacation?

Set a maximum budget.

You may think that according to your location, you will plan your budget. Some places are quite expenses to stay than others. Narrowing down to the list of destinations that are much affordable is the best way to set your maximum budget. According to your monthly budget, you can get this number. On monthly basis, identify how much you can set aside to save for your vacation. After that, between your first saving and when you want to go for the vacation, multiply this figure by the number of months.

Select a destination

You can be tempted to sign up for cheap airfare sites and this is the common mistake with the travelers. You may pay cheap fares and then reach in more expensive destinations. It is recommended to do your homework and check for the best destinations according to your budget.

Plan for the major expenses

After deciding your destination, search for the types of transportation and the prices of accommodation you will expect. This will assist you in knowing what you want from your vacation. In addition, you will also know how much you will expect to spend on lodging transportation and flights.

Plan for the minor things

It is important to pay attention on the little things that you can spend your money on after planning on your major vacation expenses. These may contain but not limited to;

• Entertainment
• Public transport

Emergency expenses

When you are on vacation, uncertainties may arise. Therefore, it is important to set aside a certain amount for these costs. You should also check Budget Proposal Templates .

Free Vacation Budget Template

Proposed holiday pay budget template, vacation bible school budget worksheet, family vacation budget planner template, printable vacation budget template, vacation budget activity template, vacation budget template excel, disney world vacation budget template, tips for more savings:.

Here are vacation tips that will assist you stick on your budget;

Watch for deals

It would be good to keep an eye for airline ticket deals as it would be good to keep an eye for airline ticket deals.

Look for hotel alternatives

By avoiding paying high hotel costs, you can save some amount. You can get this by looking for alternative accommodations like hostels, vacation rentals, or stay with friends.

Book last minute deals

For flights hotels and other destinations, you can look for last-minute deals. This may need flexibility but it will save you an important amount of money.

Conclusion:

In conclusion, when planning a vacation budget template you should try to save a certain amount of money. We have discussed above different ways and options which you can use for a vacation budget.

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I am Ryan Duffy and legal writer. I received a bachelor of business administration (BBA) degree from London Business School. I have 8+ years of writing experience in the different template fields and working with ExcelTMP.com for 7 years. I work with a team of writers and business and legal professionals to provide you with the best templates.

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Printable planners to organize your home, business and life!

March 5, 2019

How I use Excel to organize all my travel plans (research, itinerary, hotel, tours, bookings, packing list etc.)

I’m off to Europe later this year! This is the biggest trip I’ve done to date – almost 7 weeks. I’ve used various methods for travel planning in the past including a printable planner , bullet journal and attempted to (but quickly abandoned) various travel apps.

For this trip I wanted something I could use to keep everything in the one place. Enter: Excel spreadsheets!

I started out with a budget spreadsheet and ended up with a few spreadsheets to organize  everything: 

1. Handy info reference page 2. To do list 3. Budget 4. Attractions (and their cost) 5. Itinerary by Month 6. Itinerary by Week 7. Flight Comparison 8. Accommodation Comparison 9. Car Rental Comparison 10. Transfer comparison 11. Tour comparisons 12. Travel insurance 13. Spending Tracker 14. Before We Leave Checklist 15. Packing List 16. Outfit Planner

The spreadsheets can be used for any / every domestic and international trip. I also used these spreadsheets for a quick 10 day road trip around New Zealand and they worked great – simple, quick and easy – I wish I thought to use Excel for trip planning sooner!

Here’s a look into my trip planning process – I hope it gives you a few ideas!

To enlarge the screen of the video, click the square icon in the bottom right hand corner of the video (it will say ‘full screen’ when you hover your mouse over the icon).

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If you’d like a copy of my travel planning spreadsheets, they’re available in my online store and Etsy shop.

Handy Info reference page

I find this overview page helpful as a catch all for that random info that doesn’t really have a place e.g. the dates we’re leaving, how much annual leave each person has and what dates (if coordinating multiple schedules), what currencies are needed etc.

Since I’m travelling with others I included a column to put who is responsible for planning what. I color coded by country e.g. yellow = Finland.

This spreadsheet is specifically for things to book, research or check. I created a separate spreadsheet with things to do before we leave e.g. convert currencies, print itinerary, apply for visa etc.

I wanted to compare budget versus actual and have the totals for each travel expense automatically calculate. So what tool could be more perfect than Excel? This is the reason I ended up creating spreadsheets for everything in Excel – I already had the budget so figured I may as well keep everything in the one place.

There are pre-filled expenses (and space to add your own) for:

• Accommodation
• Tours & attractions
• Contingency

Itinerary by Month

This is one of my favorite spreadsheets and the one I go to first when planning a big trip. I can see the entire holiday in front of me. A great overview page.

Excel makes it easy to rearrange things too – just cut and paste.

I always color code my itineraries – it makes it much easier to follow. I can also see if I’m spending too much time in one place. I typically try not to spend more than 5 days in one country per trip so it doesn’t get too same same and because there’s so many places to see!

Itinerary by Week

Since Europe is a big trip I’ve opted to use Visit a City. However I created a weekly itinerary spreadsheet for my recent New Zealand road trip. Visit a City, like the name suggests, only has cities as it not ideal for planning road trips. This spreadsheet is a good overview if you don’t want to schedule things out in 30 minute timeslots (like I do with the Visit a City tool).

Related:  How I use Visit a City for trip planning

Flight Comparison

I wanted a spreadsheet to compare flight times and flight prices. I know there are online tools like SkyScanner but print outs from websites are never formatted nicely and to be honest I’d never look at them again. I wanted one place to compare everything so I had separate lines for each route and each airline I was comparing. I much prefer this format for quick and easy comparison.

This is the finished product after I’ve chosen (and booked!) the flights. I deleted all of the ones I didn’t book (so this spreadsheet was a lot more messy when it was a work in progress!)

Accommodation Comparison

I’ll be doing another post here on the blog with my process for choosing a hotel but this is the spreadsheet I use to organize it all:

There’s lots of info to keep track of and with multiple destinations it’d be impossible to remember them all. I enter in about 3 – 4 hotel options in each destination (color coded of course!) and then can compare. Once I’ve chosen and booked the hotel, I delete the others from the spreadsheet (you could also hide the cells if you want backup options / something goes wrong once you get there and the hotel has overbooked etc.)

If you’re doing a road trip and need to know which have parking included for free you could type over the ‘luggage storage?’ heading and replace it with ‘parking?’ (or just put if it has parking in the notes column).

Attractions

While researching what attractions I want to go to, I also record the cost (rather than wasting time going back to check). By recording the cost I can also check if I’m over or under-budget. I usually come up with a big list and then may scrap things. Note that the attractions list is different to the tours list. The tours spreadsheet I use for half day and full day organized trips, the attractions list is things like boat cruises, paid viewpoints, museums etc.

This spreadsheet is also useful for working out whether a city pass / discount cards are worth the money.

You could put the opening hours in the notes section but Visit a City automatically keeps track of this for me so I didn’t bother.

Still a lot of things to add for this trip!

Tour comparisons

I use these for day trips. Viator (not sponsored) is my go to for day trips. It gives me ideas of what’s popular and I also use it to compare whether it’s cheaper to get there myself (e.g. train) or if I should join an organized bus tour.

Transfer comparison

Keep track of all your transport:

• To and from airports
• Day trips e.g. train
• Bus transfers between cities
• Number of underground trips e.g. how much to pre-load on an Oyster card in London
• Compare the cost of buying one off tickets versus a 24 hour pass

I’ve found this really helpful for comparing whether it’s more cost effective to get the train and do a day trip ourselves instead of joining an organized tour.

Car Rental Comparison

I don’t need this spreadsheet this time around – no way am I brave enough to drive in Europe especially if I’m going to places where the road signs are in another language!

I did use this spreadsheet for my New Zealand road trip – the column / table format makes it really easy to compare different quotes.

Travel insurance

Self explanatory. I do my comparison in this spreadsheet recording things like the excess, how much medical cover is included, whether I need to pay extra to insure my laptop etc. Once I’ve chosen I highlight in bold. Or you could just delete the rows.

Spending Tracker

If you’re travelling by yourself, use these to record your spending as you go. I.e. stop trying to piece together receipts and bank statements when you get back (especially if you’re traveling for work)

Traveling with friends or family? Don’t worry about trying to split the bill at dinner – record who paid for what in the spending tracker

Before We Leave Checklist

I transferred my printable before we leave checklist into Excel and since I’m travelling with up to 3 other people for parts of this trip, added a column for who is responsible.

Packing List

Pre-filled but with space to add your own. Conveniently categorised into: – Documents to Take – Essentials – Clothes – Toiletries – Miscellaneous – Kids

Outfit Planner

I feel the cold so like to be prepared for all weather conditions. But I also don’t want to overpack (gotta leave room for chocolate and stationery). So instead of trying to remember what the temperature will be at each place, I created this spreadsheet.

Record the high and low temperature, as well as the usual number of days rain during the month you’re visiting each destination. Now you have a good idea what weather to pack for.

It may seem like a lot of spreadsheets but it’s so much less stressful with everything organized and color-coded in the one place for quick reference. I’ve found travel planning peace <3

About the spreadsheets:

• Add and delete columns as you please
• Formulas are already set up e.g. budget spreadsheet
• Filters (e.g. by city or country)
• You can print the spreadsheet when you’re finished
• Since you’ll be doing your hotel research using a computer it’s convenient to pop it straight in digitally
• Because it’s digital you can email yourself a copy for backup and don’t have to worry about losing paper
• You can adjust the spreadsheets
• Dates pre-fill on the itinerary spreadsheets
• Keep all your research organized and in the one place – the spreadsheet is set up for easy comparison

See Part 2 of my itinerary planning process + the other half of my travel itinerary template in this post.

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Travel Budget Template

Financial chaos? Frustration? Underestimated costs? We have the simplest and easiest solution for your next adventure.

With our Travel Budget excel sheet you can:

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My excel travel itinerary template & how to use it

After 9 years of creating travel itineraries - I have come to follow my own little process. I even crafted an excel travel itinerary template and I am sharing in this post the methodology and steps I always take !

1. Select the country for the travel itinerary

First pick a country, either like this famous French lottery ad or from an existing bucket list. There is no better ways, just let your mind wander!

(Pardon the bad subtitles encryption, but this ad in France is like a national private joke now. I had to add them myself to share this to the world ! but I am no pro at this at all :) ) 

My first stop is usually the French Ministry of foreign affair website section called “ advices to travelers ”. I would seek the similar platform of your own country. On the French one I can get real and up-to-date information about safety, visa process for my citizenship as well as any mandatory vaccines I must have. It also has all the great links to the official visa websites of the country I want to visit. This avoid wasting time searching for visa information and ending up on un-official agent site who do the procedures for you expensively.

2. Create the rough structure of your travel itinerary

Once I have decided that traveling there was safe and my timeline to get the visa was okay - I start into the details of the travel itinerary. My first step is often to see the couple of recommended itineraries from  the lonely planet - either I own the book or sometimes it can be found on their website.

It’s also great because you can buy just the chapters that you need on their shop in digital format so I can have them with me to work wherever I am on my iPad Pro (see how I turned mine into a blogging station ).

This way I have a rough idea of names of places, where most of the tourists go. Sometimes their itineraries are great and suit my needs, and sometimes it will be the “what I should avoid list” to stay off-the-beaten track.

Then I start searching, searching and searching the internet with key works such as: itinerary, road trip, one week in, two weeks in etc... This is to be able to understand the most common routes and get a sense of what can be achieved in the same timeframe as mine.

By that point, you have been exposed to dozens of travel plans, amazing photos and videos. You should start to get an idea of the key sights or activities you want to do. It’s time to put it into a format that suits you.

3. Put the travel itinerary down into a readable format ! My excel travel itinerary template !

Over the course of 9 years, I almost always work with the same excel file format. You can download the empty template here ! Do customize it to your liking !

Tab 1 is the overall route breakdown - it’s the non-detailed piece that helps me get a rough sense of what can be done in a day and timeline. I put weeks. Usually colors the dates if they are public holidays or week-end. Then, the following details per day: Morning, afternoon, evening, night, transport and comments.

I would just put lists of visits & sights to see in morning, afternoon and evening to see how busy my days are. I try to plan per half days or full days (then I merge the cells together). I have a night row to be able to add either the city where the night will be spent or if I have to take an overnight bus or train. Transport is where I would put information such as: self-drive, flights ETA, train or other relevant mode of transport. Comments are any other things that I must know at a glance.

Once I have done all the above - in this page I can see a general overview, when I need to rent a car, where I will be tired from an overnight train and need to put the next morning as “rest” for example. It gives a good and quick summary of my trip.

Under this table, I usually copy/paste all the links to amazing blogs, content that have significantly helped me build my travel itinerary. So that when I am traveling, I can go back to them or just to re-read them later on as I continue the fine tuning of the travel itinerary. I also copy paste the website or contact of the travel agent, tours and other diving center I am considering.   

4. Time to dive in budgeting the details of the travel itinerary

The second tab is the detailed budget. It’s where I go into the neaty-gritty and I start compiling the numbers. This usually is done by another round of detailed research and some educated guesswork.

As I am still wired as a French person - my currency of reference is always the Euro. Most information you find on the internet are often expressed into the local currency too. Therefore, in this file on the left side, there is the detailed day to day budget and on the upper part and upper right there are all the information that are permanent: any relevant exchange rates as well as food budget.

My food budgets are my buffer in most itinerary. First, because I love to eat and I don’t like being restricted to try that amazing restaurant I saw on a blog. Second, when you walk all day long, I need to plan for coffee or beer break - these are important to budget too! I mostly budget breakfast unless I have already pre-booked all accommodation and they all contain it. 

At the very end of this list of possible detailed expenses, I usually add up the fixed costs: visa, flights and vaccines. Then make the total. Most my budget files have a buffer of 10-15% more (mainly thanks to the oversized food budget) and if I am unsure of a cost, I always put it at the highest that I could find on the internet to be on the safe side. These extras allow as well for souvenirs shopping (since I never budget that).

I keep track on my budget white travelling by using the app called Trabee pocket. I have done a full review of it here.

5. Add more tabs and details to suit your needs

When the travel is a long one - I often create 2 more tabs - they help me with the bookings and as a checklist:

Transport: listing in the date of departure and arrival, as well as from and to. Then I fill up the exact time and company or method. If a private driver I would also add the contact information in the notes.  

Hotels: I would list here, the check in and check out date as well as the number of nights. Then once the bookings are made, I add the name of the hotel/hostel and the contact information or website. In some countries, I even add the GPS coordinate or I pre-save the addresses into google maps (to find them quicker when I need to find my way to them).

On average a travel itinerary takes me between 1 week and 3 days depending on how familiar I am with the country I am researching. Since I am always on the lookout for new travel ideas - I often compile lots of notes so I can be much quicker. If I have no idea at all and no-one I know to give me pointers, I can take up to 2 weeks to research a destination fully.

Check out my Resource page to know all the websites that I use the most to build my travel itineraries.

To me making those itineraries is already a good part of the trip, it builds my anticipation and I get really excited when I start looking at all the photos and videos available from other fellow travelers!

Some extra research tips to create your travel itinerary

• Don’t believe the instagram photos only. It takes a lot of skills to take photos of a highly touristic place and making it look like it’s empty. (Like Maya bay in Thailand?) Always research non-glamorous and less qualitative photos of a place just to make sure you set your expectations right.
• If you are a frequent traveler, don’t hesitate to cut some of the things that don’t impress you anymore. This way you can just take time to see the off-the-beaten track and more difficult to reach locations. Like for me: temples. If they are not UNESCO listed, have a very special view point or are en-route, then I don't make special detours to visit one and if it’s the only thing to see in a city, I can skip the city altogether. 
• I found that in the Lonely planet, the places that where mentioned with the least amount of details or just as a small paragraph are often the ones that I personally liked the most. 
• Don’t rely only on books & internet. Your colleagues, family and friends are the best source of information because they probably have the same expectations as you!
• Don’t be cheap. If you are not on a super long journey, then you don’t always need to follow a backpacker lifestyle. It’s important to know where to spend and where it’s okay to spend more to get a better experience. No-one will judge you if you splurge a bit, and you will forever keep the memory, that is priceless.
• I use extensively google translates which is really useful in countries like Taiwan or Japan when the best online resources are not in English.   

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Ten Best Travel Budget Template Excel Free Spreadsheet

A travel budget template excel sheet is a great way to keep track of your travel expenses. It helps you to know how much you have left in your budget and what you can do with that money. You can use this travel budget template excel spreadsheet to keep track of your travel expenses by adding each item and then totaling the amount at the bottom. It is also helpful to keep track of the different types of expenses you have so that you can figure out where your money is going.

1. Useful Travel Schedule Excel Template

Looking for perfect travel scheduling? Download this blue-colored well-organized travel excel template as it allows you to plan your accommodation, transportation, budget, and many other things.

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2. Travel Expense and Reimbursement Form Template

Wants to calculate your travel expense? Edit this simple travel excel template with your data to calculate your total travel expense. Free download this life easier template. You can also customize it for your monthly travel excel template.

3. Travel Account Book Excel Template

Make your travel fully managed with this simply beautiful travel excel template. It allows you to calculate all of the expenses you have while traveling. Grab this wonderful template for free.

4. Fresh Travel Bookkeeping Form Excel Template

This professional travel excel template helps you to keep track of all expenses you spent on different travels. Such templates are used by the organization to accommodate their employees on their company-based travel.

5. Travel Carry-on List Excel Template

Make simple travel excel template for your easiness. So you cannot miss anything to bring with you. Free download this professional travel excel template.

6. Travel Expense Report Excel Template

Make your travel expenses report to find out what you have spent on your previous travel. Make sure to add up all the expenses for a more realistic travel expense report.

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Prepare your travel expense report by using this simple travel excel template. Free download this fully described expense template.

8. Business Trip Application Excel Template

This is the minimalistic travel excel template for business trip applications. It can be used in a business organization as a request for expenses for a business trip.  This is available for free download.

9. Business Trip Application Form Excel Template

A well-described business trip application that you can use for requesting a business trip. This professional travel excel template includes the reason for the trip, days of the trip, and expense of tip. You can download this simple travel excel template for free.

10. Business Trip Form Excel Template

The tabular form always presents data in a more sophisticated and arranged form. You can download free this minimalistic travel excel template.

To make travel plans easier, it is best to have a budget that you can stick to. This can be done by using a travel budget template excel spreadsheet. This will allow you to track your expenses and plan your trips accordingly. You can choose what type of activities you want to do, the amount of days you want to spend on each activity, and the total cost of each trip. This will allow you to plan out your trips and know exactly how much money you need for each trip. Budget template sheets are freely available in the WPS office. WPS office is a free office suite that is available for download from its website and the Google Play Store. The suite consists of word processing, spreadsheets, presentations, and graphics software for both Windows and Mac computers. You can download the whole software from their official website for free. WPS office is easy to install and comes with a variety of options that are perfect for any office or home use.

• 1. 10 Best Mileage Log Excel Template to Track Your Business Travel
• 2. 10 Best Excel Travel Expense Templates that Help to Manage Your Budget
• 3. 9+ simple travel itinerary template Excel free download
• 4. Best 10 Travel Excel Template Free Download
• 5. The ten most beautiful excel event budget templates for free
• 6. The 10 best travel itinerary template Word: how to organize your trip

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10 Simple Steps for Making a Budget in Excel [Free Template]

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A budget is the foundation of your financial health. Want to know if you can afford a vacation? How much you can save for retirement? How you can pay off your mortgage faster ? These questions can all be answered if you have a budget.

And one of the most popular ways to create your own budget is building a budget spreadsheet in Microsoft Excel.

This article will explain how to make a budget in Excel in 10 simple, easy-to-understand steps. And to help get you started, we’ll even include a free budget spreadsheet template in Excel. 

Budgeting Apps to Consider—Top Picks

What Is a Budget?

What is a budget? A budget is a listing of your actual income and the amount you can afford to spend on your expenses and put into savings.

Income typically includes your wages, though it can also include things such as investment returns.

Expenses include every dollar you spend, from housing costs and income taxes to food and fun stuff like vacations, sporting events, and going out for a nice dinner and drinks.

You’ll also want to include line items in your budget for different types of saving: emergencies, specific large purchases, and long-term/retirement.

To be clear: The budgeting process is to your financial health what cleaning your bathroom is to your physical health. Most people don’t find creating and sticking to a budget to be a lot of fun.

But the longer you put it off, the harder it is to do. And if you don’t do it regularly, you can end up with a problem that’s really difficult to overcome.

However, if you make a budget and review it regularly, you’ll make better financial decisions and have more confidence in your finances. You will be less likely to run up more debt than you can afford to repay. And you’ll be more likely to be able to retire in the fashion you desire.

How to Create a Budget Spreadsheet in Excel

To make this easier on you, we have created a free budget template . You can sign up in the box below and quickly receive the budget template in your inbox.

Use it to follow along with the steps outlined below to make sure you are learning how to create a budget in Excel that works for you.

(If you’re reading this in Reader View, you can visit the form here .)

As an overview, here are the steps necessary to create a budget in Excel:

1. Identify Your Financial Goals

In my case, my primary financial goal is to make sure I enjoy my retirement. Your goal might be the same. But other popular goals include saving for down payments on houses , refinancing student loans, affording college for your children, and funding retirement.

2. Determine Your Budget Period

The most common time periods for a budget are monthly and annually. If you budget for a month, it is critical to remember to add expenses that you don’t pay every month. That’s because you’ll need to set aside money in short-term savings so you have the money when those expenses become due.

3. Calculate Your Total Income

Figure out how much Form W-2 or Form 1099 income you’re going to earn during your budgeting period ( 1099 vs. W-2 can result in different tax situations).

4. Begin Creating Your Excel Budget

Build a personal budget worksheet for tracking your expenses. You can use a host of budget templates, but we suggest using the free Excel budget template provided above.

5. Enter All Cash, Debit and Check Transactions Into the Budget Spreadsheet

Enter all of the checks, debit card , and cash transactions from your checkbook or online bank account into the Excel spreadsheet. Identify the types of expenses.

6. Enter All Credit Transactions

Enter all of the transactions on your credit cards into the same Excel spreadsheet, identifying the types of expenses. (Important note: Don’t double-count the credit card payments from your checkbook with the details of the expenses from your credit card bills.)

7. Calculate Total Expenses From All Sources

Add up all of the expenses in Steps 5 and 6 by type of expense. Apart, they tell you where you’ve been spending money; together, they show you how much you’ve spent in total.

8. Run a Comparison of Income to Expenses

Compare your expense budget to your income. If your projected expenses and target savings exceed your budgeted income, you need to figure out how to get more income (take a second job or, in my case, take on a consulting assignment in my retirement?).

Of course, most people can’t just create income out of thin air, so the other option is to cut expenses.

9. Identify Areas for Expense Reduction

Make a first pass at the expense part of your budget by looking at how much you’ve spent. Review to see if there are any expenses you can reduce. You likely won’t find many opportunities for savings with utilities and other vital bills like for cell-phone service—maybe you can be a little more energy-conscious or pick a slightly cheaper phone plan. Typically, people find more savings on “discretionary” spending (think wants, not needs) like going to restaurants or frivolous shopping.

Occasionally, harder decisions have to be made. It might be downsizing to a smaller home, going from two cars to one.

10. Be Diligent With Your Budget

Monitor your actual expenses to make sure you are not overspending your budget.

Do I Need a Budget Spreadsheet? I’m Already Saving Some Money.

If you have been working for several years and are able to put money in savings, you might wonder why you need to create a budget. The biggest reason to make a budget at this stage of your life is to make sure you are putting enough money into savings.

I think of savings in three components:

Emergency Savings

Emergency savings is money that will cover either your living expenses if you find yourself without an income, facing a medical emergency, or needing to cover travel expenses because of the death of a close family member. Most people recommend that you target three to six months of basic living expenses for your emergency savings.

• It is critical to distinguish between what is an emergency and what is not. For example, a funeral is an emergency; a wedding is not.
• If you want to be able to go to someone’s wedding, the costs should already be in your budget or come from savings specifically designated for attending weddings.

Designated Savings

Designated savings is money to fund large purchases you want to make in the future. Think of creating designated savings as budgeting over several years.

• You will need to replace your car every so often. You might have a few “dream” vacations you’d like to take. Maybe you want to make a down payment on a condo vs. apartment -renting or to fund your children’s education.
• Unless you make so much money that you can fit the full cost of these items in one year’s budget, you’ll need to fund them over several years.

Long-Term or Retirement Savings

Long-term or retirement savings is money that allows you to live when you are no longer working.

By creating a budget that includes all three components of savings, you’ll be more confident that you will have the cash flow to tackle your monthly expenses, but also be able to navigate emergencies and still realize your dreams.

The amounts you need to include in your budget for emergency and designated savings are pretty straightforward. Determine how much you need and the date by which you want to have those amounts available and do the arithmetic.

Retirement savings, however, might be a little more complicated.

Check Out Our Top IRA Accounts

How Much Retirement Savings Should I Budget For?

When you go to figure out how much to budget each year for retirement savings , you have to consider a number of factors:

• How much you’ve already saved.
• How much money you want to spend each year when you retire.
• How much risk you are willing to take with your retirement savings.
• Whether the amounts you set aside are before or after-tax (i.e., in health savings accounts [HSAs] , traditional or Roth IRAs and 401(k)s ).
• Your current age.
• Your target retirement age .
• How long you expect to live.
• Whether any of your employers provide you with a defined benefit pension plan.
• How much you’ll get from Social Security.
• Expected inflation rates between now and the time you die.
• Tax rates on any non-Roth savings when you retire.

To provide you with some insights on how much to save, I’ve created a very simple example:

• You want to retire at age 60.
• You want to be able to spend an amount equal to 80% of your current after-tax salary, adjusted for future inflation. Federal, state, and Social Security taxes currently total 40% of your salary, so the equivalent percentage of your pre-tax salary is 48%. The math: (Percent of after-tax salary desired * [1 – your total combined rate for federal, state, and Social Security taxes] = equivalent percentage of your pre-tax salary). So here, the math would be (80% * [100% – 40%] = 48%)
• You are willing to take the risk of the overall stock market, so we will assume you average 9% return on your investments.
• Inflation is 4% per year until you die at age 90. Your salary increases with inflation plus 1 percentage point for merit raises and promotions.
• You put all of your retirement savings in Roth accounts , so future taxes aren’t an issue.
• You don’t have any retirement savings yet.
• You don’t have or plan to get money from any defined benefit plans and, for conservatism, I will assume you get nothing from Social Security.

The chart below shows you what percentage of your salary you need to put in a Roth IRA and/or Roth 401(k) to meet these goals based on your current age.

This chart shows that, if you start saving at age 25 under the assumptions above, you need to save “only” 11% of your pre-tax salary in a Roth IRA or 401(k) every year until you retire.

On the other hand, if you are 45, have the characteristics above and use those assumptions, you’ll need to save 42% of your salary every year just for retirement. (But remember: Your employer’s matching 401(k) contributions help reduce the amount you need to contribute.)

All of the values in this chart scale proportionally, so you can increase or reduce the salary percentages if your retirement needs are more or less than are assumed in the illustration.

Also, please note that retirement plan limits have increased for 2024. Take advantage of them if you can when creating a budget in Excel and be sure to put as much in your retirement plan as you can afford.

You Need a Budget

The amounts you need to set aside for emergency, designated, and retirement savings often take up a large percentage of your salary.

That means you need to be disciplined with the remainder to ensure you can meet your current day-to-day needs and realize your long-term dreams.

A budget is a critical tool in helping you maintain that discipline. By tracking your income, expenses, and financial goals across time, you’ll be better able to find additional room for savings in your budget.

But no matter how much (or little) money you make, you can take more control of your financial future by following the steps above and creating a budget in Excel.

Budgeting Apps That Can Help

Budgeting apps can help take you from a simple Excel spreadsheet to a big next step in organizing your finances. Here, we explore three budgeting apps of note:

1. You Need a Budget (the App)

• Available: Sign up here
• Price: Free 34-day trial, then $14.99/mo. if paid monthly or $99/yr. if paid annually

Consider pairing You Need a Budget (YNAB) with your new Excel budget to gain full visibility into your personal finances.

YNAB determines how much money you have and tracks your monthly income, and it also helps you determine what your expenses are and when they need to be paid. It can track fixed expenses and allows you to budget for less frequent variable expenses.

In addition to keeping track of expenses, it can help you establish goals and plan for saving money.

You can try YNAB for free for 34 days ; after that, it costs $99 per year if paid annually or $14.99 per month if paid monthly.

• You Need a Budget (YNAB) is an award-winning software platform which uses a proven method to teach you how to manage your money and get ahead.
• Budgets update automatically and in real time, and can be accessed on your computer, phone, or tablet.
• Customizable
• Allows for multiple budgets
• Difficult for beginners
• No bill tracking or bill pay
• No investment tracking features

Related: Best Kids Savings Accounts [Bank Accounts for Kids]

2. Quicken Simplifi

• Price: $24/yr.*

Quicken Simplifi is a useful budgeting app that can help you progress toward your financial goals with confidence.

Simplifi allows you to build monthly budgets yourself, or it will create customized budgets generated automatically based on your income, expenses, and savings. It also provides budget suggestions, and it helps you track progress toward saving goals. The app provides a comprehensive view of your finances, too, syncing up with your bank accounts , credit cards , brokerage and retirement accounts, mortgages, even private investments.

If all of this makes Simplifi seem like a lighter version of Quicken … well that’s because it pretty much is. Quicken literally markets the service right alongside Classic Deluxe, Classic Premier, and Classic Business & Personal, and Simplifi is both cheaper and features fewer options than all three programs.

That said, Simplifi does have a few perks of its own that keep it from truly feeling like “Quicken Lite.” For one, it has a dedicated mobile app—one of my biggest gripes about Quicken is that it only has a “mobile companion app” that syncs up with the desktop versions. Simplifi can also automatically detect bills and identify subscriptions, and, unlike Quicken, it can separate those categories.

Try out Simplifi to see if it’s the budgeting app you need.

• Simplifi allows you to see all your finances in one place by connecting your bank accounts, credit cards, loans, 401(k), and other investments in a single dashboard.
• Save more money and plan better through goal setting.
• Know where your money goes through insight into spending across categories, tracking upcoming bills and building a projected cash flow.
• Get an automatically generated spending plan customizable to your needs.
• Wide range of compatible accounts
• Intuitive dashboard
• Robust budgeting tools
• Savings goals
• Comprehensive, easy-to-read reports
• No free version/free trial
• No credit score

Related: Best Prepaid Debit Cards for Kids and Teens

• Price: Free

Empower is best known for helping more than 3 million users put their retirement on track by putting its tools and/or advisory services to work for them.

You can use Empower’s free tools to understand your full financial picture by taking control of your saving, spending and investing. The tool easily tracks all of your accounts in one place, offering ways to uncover areas to improve your financial situation.

Whole the tool falls short as a pure-play budgeting app, it does offer effective tracking across several accounts and actionable insights based on transaction history pulled into the app. Further, you can use it inform the best ways to build your portfolio with additional tools built into the app.

And if you need more personalized financial advice? Empower offers a full-service Wealth Management account. Empower will create a recommended portfolio spanning six asset classes, then help you implement your plans by giving you access to financial advisors who can guide you through retirement planning, college savings, workplace stock options, and more.

Regardless of how much money you bring to the table, if you sign up , you will be given the option to schedule an initial 30-minute financial consultation with an Empower advisor.

• Empower (formerly Personal Capital) offers both a free set of portfolio, net worth, and cash flow tracking tools, as well as paid asset management service.
• Link Empower to your bank and investing accounts, credit cards, and more to see a single view of useful information and data, including your net worth.
• Empower Wealth Management offers unlimited advice and retirement planning help, as well as managed ETF portfolios, for accounts with between $100,000 and $250,000 in assets. Higher asset tiers include access to dedicated financial advisors, retirement specialists, and more investment options (including stocks, options, real estate, and private equity).
• Free portfolio tracker
• Free net worth, cash flow, and investment reporting tools
• Dedicated investment advisor
• Free tax-loss harvesting
• Dividend reinvestment
• Automatic rebalancing
• 5-day-a-week live customer support, 24/7 email support
• High minimum for investment management ($100k)
• High investment management fee (0.89% AUM)

• 60 Personal Finance Statistics You Might Not Know [But Should!]
• How to Invest Money: 5 Steps to Start Investing With Little Money
• How to Invest as a Teenager or Minor [Start Investing Under 18 Years Old]

About the Author

Riley Adams is the Founder and CEO of Young and the Invested . He is a licensed CPA who worked at Google as a Senior Financial Analyst overseeing advertising incentive programs for the company’s largest advertising partners and agencies. Previously, he worked as a utility regulatory strategy analyst at Entergy Corporation for six years in New Orleans.

His work has appeared in major publications like Kiplinger, MarketWatch, MSN, TurboTax, Nasdaq, Yahoo! Finance, The Globe and Mail, and CNBC’s Acorns. Riley currently holds areas of expertise in investing, taxes, real estate, cryptocurrencies and personal finance where he has been cited as an authoritative source in outlets like CNBC, Time, NBC News, APM’s Marketplace, HuffPost, Business Insider, Slate, NerdWallet, Investopedia, The Balance and Fast Company.

Riley holds a Masters of Science in Applied Economics and Demography from Pennsylvania State University and a Bachelor of Arts in Economics and Bachelor of Science in Business Administration and Finance from Centenary College of Louisiana.

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