Video:How to Create a Family Budget in Quicken

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Transcript:How to Create a Family Budget in Quicken

Hi I'm Don Schechter for About.com money. Today I'll show you how to create a family budget using Quicken.

Start a Family Budget File

First open up quicken. I'm working with the Home and Business Version of Quicken. To create a budget, go up to 'planning' in the menu and select 'Budget.' There are three choices in the window. If you have been using Quicken already and have existing data, choose the automatic option and Quicken will create a budget for you, which you can then tailor to your needs. If you already have a budget, you can copy it. For now I'll click 'Manual' and fill in my own budget. Then click 'create budget.' Give it a name and description. Click 'ok.'

Fill in Your Budget Income

The next page is all about income. At the bottom click the choose categories button to select which categories you would categorize your income. I'll click salary and bonus income then click ok. On the right, you can enter the amount of your income by average, or detailed monthly or quarterly. I'll use the average then type or calculate in with the calculator the average monthly amount for my income. If you want to change the period, click the drop down menu and choose a time period from daily to yearly.

It might be a good idea to do the average of each check, so if you get paid every two weeks, you could click on every two weeks and type the average amount of your checks. Then click apply. For each separate income you have in your family, you must enter the amount for each. Remember you can always come back to this screen and change the amount of your income if it changes.

Add Your Family Expenses

Now click on the expenses tab at the top. Click on the choose categories button only this time the categories are expenses. Click on each one that you want in your budget. When you're done, click 'apply.' Click the first category in your list. Enter the method then the period and the average expense for that item.

Add Budget Alerts in Quicken

Below there is another step called alert. Quicken can notify you when your spending exceeds your budget in that category. You can turn this option on or off by checking the box. I will have it notify me if it exceeds 100.00 dollars. Click apply. Then choose the next category. If you forget which category you've selected, there is a title at the top that shows you which expense you're budgeting in.

Add Savings to the Family Budget

When you've finished, click the savings tab at the top. Follow the same steps as before only this time for savings. Click the choose accounts button at the bottom and select a savings account and click ok. Now you can budget in how much you would like to put into savings for your monthly budget. Click 'apply.'

Review Your Family Budget Summary

Click on the last tab called Summary. Here you'll see a chart of each month with your total income, expenses, transactions and the difference. To view the budget amounts for a specific month click the month in the chart then click the details button.

Also on this page you'll find a graph of your top yearly budget items, which shows you where most of your money actually comes from and where it actually gets spent. Click all expenses in the drop down menu and you'll see how the graph changes. In the legend, it also tells you the percentage of each expense out of your total income. To analyze your spending you can look at a budget report by clicking this link below the graph.

Thanks for watching. For more information please visit us online at money.about.com.