A template for personal budget planning can be a handy spreadsheet tool to plan and track your personal income and budget household expenses

1 First find a personal template to download for your budget planning. Try to find one that is versatile to use and make changes but also does the budget calculations for you.

2 Next locate a place on your budget template to record your personal income and adjust the amounts to fit your household pay schedules.

3 If you have two personal incomes then it might benefit to set up your template on a bi - weekly basis for budget planning.

4 Now list all your personal expenses and group them into planning categories according to priority starting with fixed expenses (must pay on schedule), then personal needs (budget amounts and pay schedules vary), and lastly personal allowances and pocket money.

5 Make a category on your template to allow for emergency budget planning and personal savings. Set a goal and try to maintain this amount of savings monthly to use to fund tuition, retirement and for liquidity.

6 Subtract your expenses and your emergency fund amounts from your income to get your balance. Use your personal per pay period as a way of planning out your template to keep your household budget on schedule.

"Planning household finances without a budget is like trying to drive to your vacation without having a destination," warn the experts at Consumer Credit Counseling Services. If you've never created a budget, or are just looking for a simpler way to track your finances, there are personal budget planning tools to make creating a budget both convenient and easy. Whether you choose an online service or a software application, making a personal budget has never been simpler.

Mint

One of the most popular web-based personal budget tools, Mint pulls information from your online banking and credit card accounts to assist you in tracking where your money is, and where it's going. Tools such as email alerts when account balances get low and bills are to be deducted help you stay one step ahead, while alerts to warn you when you are close to exceeding monthly budget limits keep your budget on track.

David Weliver of the website Money Under 30 calls Mint "elegantly simple," while Wall Street Journal recommends Mint as a best online tool for personal finance.

One of the best things about Mint is it won't become a line item in your budget--it's free for users, although it's supported by advertising.

Geezeo

If you're more into social networking than financial planning, try Geezeo. This online personal budgeting tool allows you to view information for all your financial accounts--savings, checking, credit cards--in one place and to create a budget within the system.

Users can access their Geezeo account from the Internet or smartphone, and can share financial advice or other information through social networking interfaces built in to the Geezeo site. Members can leverage the collective brainpower of the Geezeo network to answer financial questions and get help.Geezeo is also recommended by the Wall Street Journal. It is free to register for and to use.

Word and Excel Applications

If you're one of the millions of people who use Microsoft Office Word or Excel programs, you're in luck. The beginning of a personal budget are already on your computer. Perfect for those who are wary of sharing personal financial information with a third party, would rather not have to remember passwords, and those who don't bank online but would like a budget file on the computer. The budget templates offered as free downloads on Microsoft.com offer an array of budgeting options. Whether you'd like a bare bones Word document budget, or a feature-rich Excel budget file, Microsoft has you covered, offering a range of templates for personal budgets; additionally, it offers templates for special occasion budgets for events like weddings and even holiday spending.

Paying your bills online through your bank's electronic bill pay is convenient, flexible and cost effective. Some people fear that paying bills over the Internet or electronically runs a greater risk of identity theft. However, according to Consumer Reports, identity theft occurs more often to those who pay bills using traditional methods. There are many advantages to paying your bills through electronic bill-pay.
Convenience

Electronic bill pay allows you to pay bills at your convenience, anytime, day or night. By setting up a recurring payment, you can schedule your payments to be withdrawn from your account at the same time each month. This reduces the risk of late fees and negative effects to your credit rating.
Payment Flexibility

Traditional bill-paying methods require you to submit payments by check or money order. Using electronic bill pay, you can pay your bills directly from your checking or savings account, with a credit or debit card or as an electronic check.
Secure Payments

Each time you throw away a bill or receipt, you risk the chance of having your identity stolen. Bills and some receipts contain personal information and account numbers. Reducing the paper trail from traditional bill-paying methods reduces the risk of identity theft. In addition, banks and websites that accept electronic bill payment must have a secure website, also reducing the risk of identity theft.
Processing Times

Most banking institutions guarantee your payment is sent immediately to ensure it is received on time. If the payment date falls on a weekend or holiday, the bank will submit your payment on the last business day before the weekend or holiday. Payments are withdrawn immediately from your account, thus reducing the processing time it takes for your check to clear.
Cost

Paying your bills electronically reduces the cost of envelopes, stamps and check printing fees. For many banks and financial institutions, electronic bill pay transactions are free. Some banks charge a nominal fee if you pay more than ten bills a month through the electronic bill pay service.
Environmental Advantages

Paying your bills using electronic bill pay allows you to eliminate most of the paper from traditional bill paying methods. Electronic bill pay abolishes the need for envelopes, invoices and stamps. Edit your online account preferences to receive your bills via email to eliminate even more paper.
Electronic Records

The financial institution keeps track of all payments made through electronic bill pay. If you need to recall a previous transaction, you can log into your account and view the records, reducing the amount of time and effort it takes sorting through paper records.

Recent grads and young adults aren't always interested in establishing a solid financial plan. But they aren't alone; many people think their financial future is decades away or that they have plenty of time to earn money before they need to think about retirement. Taking a few simple steps early in your career (it's never too late to start) can significantly improve your resources and quality of life in the future. Making some key decisions and taking several practical steps will help you align your finances with the future you see for yourself.

Retirement Planning

When you are in your 20s, retirement seems like something that is a lifetime away. You have many other things to think about like getting married, getting a good job and possibly buying a house. While it may seem like something that you do not need to worry about, retirement planning actually is very important for young people. If you can get in the habit of setting aside a certain percentage of your income now (financial planners suggest setting aside at least 10% of your income) it becomes a habit that continues over your career. With the power of compound interest, you can build a nice nest egg by the time you retire without putting too much thought into it.
Consider Your Credit Card Use

Light credit card use is one of the best ways to help build your credit profile when you are young, but don't use that as an excuse to use plastic to buy things your can't afford. Many young people get in serious trouble with credit cards. If you decide to use credit cards, you need to use them sparingly. Credit cards are easy to use to make purchases (research shows people spend more when they use a card than when they pay for something with cash), and you might be tempted to buy everything you want until you reach your limit. This can be a quick way to financial ruin, and it could take you years to pay off the debt.
Build Up an Emergency Fund

Start building an emergency fund as soon as possible. An emergency fund is an amount of money that you set aside to help you with unexpected expenses. Setting a goal of saving three to six months of expenses in your savings account would be advisable. This way, if you ever lose your job or face some other type of serious emergency in the future, you will have enough money set aside to weather the storm.
Save for Big Buys, Like a House

If you are interested in eventually buying a house, you may want to start saving for a down payment now. While you could potentially buy a house with very little money down, it could hurt you in the long run. When you do not put 20 percent down on the house, you will have to pay private mortgage insurance, which adds money to your monthly payment. When you do not have any equity in the house, it can trap you in the property for many years if property values drop.