Track More Monthly Expenses by Adding Sheets

In this extension, you will add new sheets to your spreadsheet to extend your budget from month to month.

Tracking your expenses from month to month gives you a complete picture of how you’re spending your money and will help you make more informed financial decisions.

To add additional months to your budget, you will duplicate your current sheet, rename your sheets, and update your expenses in the new sheet.

To begin, open your spreadsheet.

Your spreadsheet is automatically saved in Google Drive, and you can come back to it anytime.

At the bottom left, additional tabs can be added.

These tabs are like the labels of files in a folder.

To build your budget from month to month, add more sheets to your spreadsheet by creating more tabs.

In this case, each sheet will track one month of expenses.

Reproduce your expense table in a new sheet by duplicating your current sheet.

This way, you don’t have to create the table each time you add a sheet.

You are now on the new sheet.

The sheet tab at the bottom of your screen tells you this is the Copy of Sheet1.

To move between sheets, click on the tabs.

Now, rename each tab to better organize your sheets.

This is the beginning of a yearly budget, so label your first sheet January and your second sheet February.

Click on the tab of your original sheet to change its label.

Click on the tab of your new sheet to change its label.

Next, update your expenses for the new month.

The expenses most likely to change from month to month are non-recurring -- one-time -- expenses.

In your new sheet, delete the rows of expenses that do not apply to the new month.

For example, you probably didn’t buy another stroller in February, and maybe you didn’t go to the movies or have any medical expenses.

To delete a row, click on the row number, then select Edit from the toolbar and delete row.

Change amounts for new spending on the same items.

For example, in February, you may have doubled the amount you spent at restaurants, or purchased a different item of clothing.

Add rows for new expenses at the bottom of your table.

Enter your new expense data.

You may notice that the total amount of your expenses did not update after you entered the new item.

Change your spreadsheet formula, so the costs of any new items are calculated in the total amount.

To do this, select the cell that shows the total amount.

In the formula toolbar, change the second value in the SUM formula to include the new cell in your cost column.

Continue to duplicate sheets and update expenses as you extend your budget from month to month.

Tracking your expenses over time shows you in detail what you spend your money on and helps you manage your personal finances.

Now, it’s your turn. Duplicate your current sheet, rename your sheets, and update your expenses in the new sheet.