How to Make a Budget in Excel (Step by Step)

By Cedar & Ledger

Excel can run a solid monthly budget with one Excel Table, a dropdown and a handful of formulas. The trick that makes it easy to keep using: turn your transactions into a Table, so formulas grow automatically as you add rows. Here's the full setup in about 30 minutes.

All amounts below are made-up examples. This is general information, not financial advice. Steps are for Excel for Microsoft 365 / Excel 2021 on Windows; Mac and Excel for the web use the same menus with small differences.

Step 1: Make two sheets

Rename Sheet1 to Budget and add a second sheet named Transactions (click + at the bottom).

Step 2: Turn transactions into an Excel Table

On Transactions, type these headers in A1:D1: Date, Description, Category, Amount. Add one example row. Click any cell in it and press Ctrl+T (Mac: Cmd+T) > check "My table has headers" > OK.

Then on the Table Design tab, rename the table (far left) to Tx. Now every new row you type below is part of the table automatically.

Format the Amount column as Currency (Home > Number > Currency) and the Date column as Short Date.

Step 3: Add a category dropdown

1. On the Budget sheet, list your categories in A2:A7 (Housing, Food, Car, Bills, Fun, Savings).
2. On Transactions, select the Category column of the table.
3. Data > Data Validation > Allow: List > Source: =Budget!$A$2:$A$7 > OK.

Every purchase now uses the exact category spelling, which keeps the totals right.

Step 4: Build the Budget sheet

Put your monthly Income in G2 (e.g. 3300).

Step 5: Paste the formulas

Spent (C2, then fill down to C7). It reads the table by name, so it never needs updating: =SUMIFS(Tx[Amount], Tx[Category], A2)

Left (D2, fill down): =B2-C2

Totals (row 8): =SUM(B2:B7) =SUM(C2:C7) =SUM(D2:D7)

Not yet assigned (G3): =G2-SUM(B2:B7)

Positive G3 = money without a job (send it to savings or debt). Negative = the plan is bigger than your income.

Step 6: Only count this month

Add a Month column to the table (E1) with =TEXT([@Date],"mmm yyyy"). It fills down by itself. Put the month you're viewing in G5 (e.g. Nov 2026, typed as text) and change Spent to: =SUMIFS(Tx[Amount], Tx[Category], A2, Tx[Month], $G$5) Change G5 to see any month without copying sheets.

Step 7: Red for overspending, plus a chart

• Select D2:D7 > Home > Conditional Formatting > Highlight Cells Rules > Less Than > 0 > Light Red Fill.
• Select A1:A7, hold Ctrl, select C1:C7 > Insert > Pie or Clustered Bar chart.

Common snags

• SUMIFS returns 0: category spelling or extra spaces; use the dropdown. Or amounts are stored as text (green triangle): select them > the warning icon > Convert to Number.
• New rows not counted: they were typed below a blank row, outside the table. Delete the gap or drag the table's corner handle down.
• #NAME?: a typo in the table name; it must match exactly (Tx).
• Refunds: enter as negative amounts in the original category.

Excel or Google Sheets?

Same idea, different strengths: Excel Tables and offline use vs. Sheets' free sharing on any device. Prefer Sheets? See how to make a budget in Google Sheets.

Skip the setup

Our Paycheck Budget Planner ($7) is a ready .xlsx that lists every paycheck for the year and assigns each bill to the paycheck before its due date, with a dashboard by category. Starting simple? The free Starter Budget Sheet is one page.

Made with AI assistance and reviewed before release.

Related template: Paycheck Budget Planner. Also see: free Starter Budget Sheet · 2027 Budget Planner

See all Cedar & Ledger templates

Try the free 50/30/20 budget calculator →