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Expense tracker template

Updated on October 28, 2026

Many people know how much they earn but not where the money goes. Writing down every expense for a few weeks, one line each, shows that better than any app. At the end of each week, a summary by category reveals where you can save.

Expenses · November 2026

Format: date · amount · category · what it was

Week 1

  • Nov 3 · $12 · groceries · bread, milk and fruit
  • Nov 3 · $9 · transport · ride-hailing
  • Nov 4 · $22 · eating out · team lunch
  • Nov 5 · $6 · coffee · coffee and a muffin
  • Nov 6 · $35 · pharmacy · medicine

Week 1 summary

  • Groceries: $12
  • Transport: $9
  • Eating out and coffee: $28
  • Pharmacy: $35
Total: $84

Week 2



What I noticed


How to use it

  1. Create the month’s note with "Use this template" and install AnotPad as an app on your phone, so you can log expenses in seconds.
  2. Right after each purchase, write one line: date, amount, category and what it was. Small expenses count too.
  3. At the end of the week, add up each category in the week’s summary.
  4. After three or four weeks, write under "What I noticed" where your money is going and what you want to change.

Tips

  • Use a few categories, always with the same name: groceries, transport, eating out, home, health, fun and other. It makes adding up and searching easier.
  • Write it down right away. Leaving it for the end of the day makes you forget the small expenses, which add up.
  • Do not judge while you log. The goal of the first weeks is just to see; decisions come later.
  • Search (Ctrl+K) finds every line of a category in the folder, even across months.

From tracking to budgeting

An expense tracker looks back: it shows what happened. A budget looks ahead: it decides what will happen. They work best together. With one month of expenses logged, you already know how much really goes to groceries, transport and fun, and can build next month’s budget with realistic limits. If you do not want to log forever, repeat the tracker for one month twice a year to check that nothing has changed much.

Only write amounts and descriptions. Do not copy statements with account numbers or card details into the note.

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