The Lazy Budget | UK Budget Planner Spreadsheet

Budgeting doesn't have to be a hobby. The Lazy Budget is a UK budget planner spreadsheet built for people who want the answer without the admin: type your bank balance once a week and it tells you what's safe to spend this week.

What it does

• Works out what's safe to spend this week. It takes off the bills still due before payday, keeps your cushion to one side and spreads the rest over the days until you're paid.
• Traffic lights (green, amber, red) show at a glance whether your plan adds up, whether you're on track this week and when renewals are coming.
• Every common UK bill is already listed: council tax, TV licence, car tax, energy, water, broadband and more. Add your amounts and choose No for the ones you don't have.
• Handles up-and-down income such as freelance work and side hustles, plus yearly costs like Christmas and the MOT, turned into a small monthly set-aside.
• Everything is worked out for you. You only type in the coloured boxes, and the calculated cells are locked so nothing breaks.

What's inside: 12 tabs

1. Start Here: three quick steps to set up
2. My Money: your dashboard, with Safe to spend this week, traffic lights and two charts
3. Money In: pay, side income and irregular income
4. Bills: 25 UK bills already listed, with renewal nudges and spare rows
5. Everyday Spending: food, fuel, fun and an "everything else" pot
6. Yearly Costs: birthdays, Christmas, MOT and renewals as a monthly set-aside
7. Savings Pots: goals with progress bars and an estimated "goal reached by" date
8. Debts: what you owe and a rough date each one will be cleared
9. Investments: what you've paid into ISAs, pensions and shares, and what they're worth (tracking only)
10. Spending Log: optional, if you want to jot down what you spend
11. Monthly View: all 12 months side by side
12. My Categories: add your own categories and they appear in every dropdown and on My Money

Who it's for

UK households, couples, first-time budgeters and anyone who has tried a budgeting app and given up. If you can type a number into a box, you can use this.

What you get

• The-Lazy-Budget-Sage.xlsx: the blank planner in Sage & Blush
• The-Lazy-Budget-Dark.xlsx: the same blank planner in dark mode
• The-Lazy-Budget-Example.xlsx: filled in with made-up figures so you can see how it works
• README.txt: quick how-to-use steps

Requirements

Microsoft Excel 2016 or later / Microsoft 365, Excel for the web, or a free Google account (Google Sheets). In Google Sheets, use File > Import, or upload the file to Google Drive and choose "Open with Google Sheets".

Instant download

You'll get a .zip file to download straight after checkout. Nothing is posted.

A money-organising tool only. Not financial advice.