Why use a monthly budget when you get paid every other week? This Google Sheets bi-weekly budget template is just what you need. But watch out for 3 mistakes that will bust it!
You get paid every other week…but all of the budgets out there are broken up by months.
I mean, even if you squish two paychecks together, that’s 28 days of pay…
and you’re going to try to budget that into a 30 or 31 day month?
Does this make sense?
No!
Then why does everyone insist you make a monthly budget when you get paid bi-weekly?
And heaven forbid we compare those months when you get 3 paychecks instead of 2. Sure, they call that a “bonus” paycheck. But the last time I checked, we still need at least food and gas for those “extra” 14 days.
There must be a better way!
Well of course there is! It’s called the bi-weekly budget template, which I’ve created just for you.
As a bonus, it also makes those 3 paycheck months easier to factor into your money saving plan!
Watch Out for These Mistakes From The Start
It’s easy to say you’re going to start budgeting, but harder to make it work. Beware these mistakes that will sidetrack your budget before it leaves the umbilical cord.
Quitting Before You Begin
So someone told you that the best way to start a budget is to collect all of your receipts for a month to see how much you’re spending on things like groceries, gas, etc.
Or maybe by pulling up old statements and doing a lot of writing and math.
If you ain’t got time for that, no worries.
It’s the digital age, so obviously you can automate this process. Sign up for Empower (formerly Personal Capital) and they’ll dump your purchases into categories for you.
I love to use Personal Capital as a guide to getting set up and keeping an eye on my spending. And don’t worry, it’s totally free to use!
But nothing beats my simple spreadsheet (below!) when it comes to the bi-weekly budget.
Challenging Yourself Right Away
I know, I know. You tallied up your grocery bill and could NOT believe how high it is!
How can you possibly be spending $1,000 per month on food? Surely you can spend something more like, I don’t know, $700??
Hitting the delete button on a spreadsheet and typing new numbers is one thing. Actually cutting your grocery bill by 30% is another.
Your budget is just a little baby. Let’s not expect huge things from it right away.
It’s awesome to figure out that one category seems to be causing trouble.
But instead of expecting a major overhaul, take some time to brainstorm ideas for cutting back on that spending.
Baby steps keep you from getting overwhelmed.
That’s a sure way to make you abandon the whole thing in a hurry.
Read: How To Save Money On Groceries
Stop Being Complicated
I’ll be honest and say that sometimes, when I look at an online budget, it completely aggravates me.
Why do people insist on one budget line for groceries, but toilet paper and cleaning products as a separate line item?
Simplify!
Dump everything you buy at the grocery store into one line item. If you pick up your dog food on a regular grocery run, just include it in your grocery budget.
How few categories can you get away with?
Everyone’s life is different, so create a budget that is as simple as you can make it.
The Free Bi-Weekly Budget Template Spreadsheet
Spreadsheets are a beautiful thing for those of us who are just a teensy bit of a control freak.
You can tweak and change them until they fit your life just right.
Here’s what my spreadsheet looks like:
My budget sheet is set up so fixed monthly expenses (bills) are on top. They’re always the same, or pretty close, month after month.
Categories that are more flexible (food, gas, gifts) are on the bottom. That way, all the items I can get creative with are lumped together.
There are tons of ways to lower those payments, by the way. You can get tons of frugal living tips here, for starters.
Get the Bi-Weekly Budget Sheet
The bi-weekly budget template is totally free for my subscribers.
You’ll get a newsletter just once per week from me with extra money saving tips I don’t put on the blog! (No spam, ever!)
With this bi-weekly budget sheet, you’ll have a plan that finally fits your life.
This budget understands you! Give it a try today and let me know how it works.
Did you leave a line for paying yourself? Then you need this 52 week money challenge that fits into any budget!
What part of budgeting is the hardest for you?
I'm Jamie, and I want to help you afford a beautiful life with your family. 
I loved getting paid biweekly and having that extra paycheck (without most of the benefit deductions) a few times a year (especially when that extra fell in November.) But, because my budget was based on two checks a month, I don’t know that I always used the extra funds as effectively as I could have.
Looking back, I think basing the budget on 2 checks was probably fine, but putting at least half of that extra check toward big goals (funding IRA, paying down debt, bulking up the emergency fund) would have been better than just the extra spending that tended to happen. But incorporating them into the total budget is probably best 🙂
This is a great idea! I get paid irregularly, but I used to do a monthly budget and then figure out how to move money from each paycheck around as a part of it. This is simpler.
When we started seriously budgeting this past April, I was doing exactly what you warned against: “Let’s get rid of the idea of spreading 28 days worth of pay across 30 days of spending.” We get paid biweekly, and as you’ve described here, that can get tricky with a cookie-cutter monthly budget. My solution at this point is to create a budget at the beginning of each month that a) is tailored to our # of paychecks and total earnings for that month and b) takes into account one-time expenses that we need to cover in that month (in July, it’s new work clothes for my husband). Also, I love what you said about leaving a line for paying yourself. Absolutely!