UPDATE: Be sure to stop by this post to see how I've started using my Savings Tracker. I'm illustrating using my own, real-life transactions!
Some of you might have been using the Excel spreadsheet savings tracker I created last year. In order to start the New Year of right, I decided I wanted to make some modifications to this spreadsheet. As some of you know, I used to work as an Administrative Assistant to Senior Management for a local bank, so I got rather handy with Excel. 
With this spreadsheet you'll be able to:
- Easily imput your monthly and yearly goals
- Enter data from your reciepts and let my preset formulas tally your spending, savings, actual-to-budget, and more
- Track and manage your rebates (NEW!)
- Determine how much you saved with coupons, store sales, and rebates
- Have your monthly and year-to-date savings ratio update instantly
I've worked hard to create this spreadsheet and make it as user-friendly as possible. My goal was to have you be able to enter only a few pieces of data from your receipts and let it do all the calculating for you.
To get started, download and save a copy of the spreadsheet to your computer. Then, open the Summary tab. This is where you can get a year-to-date view of your savings. All you need to do on this tab is set up your monthly budget for food and household items – one entry per month. Once you input that information, your monthly tabs will prefill with your goals. At any point, you can visit the Summary tab to keep an eye on the "bigger picture" of your spending and savings.
Each time you shop, come back and fill out the few pieces of information from your receipts onto the appropriate monthly tab. Again, I have formulas preset to keep your stats updated EVERY TIME new information is entered.
A couple last notes about this Savings Tracker. First, while I've worked to make it as user-friendly as possible, please note a basic understanding of Excel is essential. I've included a "Start Here" tab with a few basic instructions, but unfortunately, I can't offer Excel training to everyone. Sorry.
Lastly – and this should be common sense – this spreadsheet is intended for personal use ONLY. Please be considerate of copyright issues. If you are a blogger and wish to direct your readers to my Tracker, you are welcome and encouraged to link to this post. However, I request you not place the Tracker for download directly on your personal blog or website.
I hope this helps some of my nerdy Excel friends! I will be using this spreadsheet myself and will try to show you how I make use of it in the days and weeks ahead to illustrate how it works.
UPDATE: One commentor mentioned that the links weren't working from the Summary Page to the monthly tabs. When I took a look, I reazlied I'd hard entered $150 from Feb – Dec. I have uploaded the corrected versions below. I apologize for this!
Download 2010SavingsTracker (Excel 2007 Version)
Download 2010SavingsTracker2 (Excel1997 – 2003 Version; some formats may vary slightly)
Thoughts? Let me know!
{ 133 comments… read them below or add one }
Next Comments →
Angela, you read my mind
I started a spreadsheet this afternoon to capture this information. But I’m going to use yours instead since it is more detailed & tested. I did add drop down boxes to the store column. Mainly because I’d like to run some reports at the end of 2010 & I’d like to have them all the same (I can forward it to you if you’d like me to). Thanks for taking the time to create this & for being willing to share it. Happy 2010
Random question:
for entering receipt information, are u entering the total shelf cost (for the entire shopping trip), and then coupons and store deal savings, for all things purchased or individual items?
for example, when I shop Safeway, there is always a summary of what I saved – for both coupons and also store savings – but never a “shelf cost” of what I could have paid if I didn’t use coupons, sales, etc. (I would have to calculate backwards to get that number) — am I entering in that info or do I do individual items.
Sorry if this is a silly question but it may be relevant to how much time I want to spend entering in information
thanks for the download, though, I have been wondering about how much I was saving per month
thanks,
liz
oops, has I have looked closer at the pic you have posted above this post – I am noting that it looks like it is an overall amount, not individual items. guess I just answered my own question!
thanks,
liz
Alissa, oooo…I’d love to see how you did the drop-down boxes can you email me at thecouponproject at hotmail dot com? I was trying to figure out how to do this earlier. Glad you found it helpful.
Liz, glad you figured it out! Yes each line is intended to be used per receipt – not per item! That’d be a LOT of work!!
I would love to download this but don’t have excel. I have works spreadsheet. is there a way to download it anyways?
Thank you thank you thank you thank you! My own spreadsheet was not nearly as nice as yours. Thank you for sharing your skills with us!
This looks like a great tool. Thank you. Love your blog, by the way!
Thanks!
What a wonderful idea! I recently created one for Open Office because I do not have Excel. I have no idea how to make it do the calculations though.
It’s really sweet of you to share this with your readers!
Betsy, I just read your comment and we don’t have Excel either. But if you download OpenOffice (it’s free) you can open and save this file in their excel version.
I entered my budget on the summary page. It put the correct amount for January but on the subsequent months it was $50 less than what I had entered. Actually in Nov. and Dec. it is $100 less. It entered a static $150 from Feb-Dec. HELP!!!
Thank you so much for doing this. I would also love the version with the drop down menus.
Thank you SOOOO much for sharing!!! This will be such a blessing for my family!!!!
Thank you, thank you for this spreadsheet. I was really wanting to track my savings for this year but didn’t know quite how to go about it. This is a wonderful tool, I can’t wait to see my savings all in one place!
Awesome — thanks so much for sharing. I know that was a lot of work!
Thank you so much! This is wonderful!
Wendy, hmmm. I wonder when I made the changes last night if it altered where those were pulling from. I’ll take a look as soon as I can and see if it needs correcting.
Thanks! One of my goals for this year is to track all of our spending/savings. I was going to create my own spreadsheet, but this saves me time!
I’m so excited!!! Thanks so much for your hard work.
Thanks so much! I love Excel and was planning on creating a sheet for myself, but this is going to save me so much time.
Wendy, for some reason at some point I’d hard entered $150 into the monthly tabs – who knows why! I went back and fixed the links and uploaded the corrected versions.
If folks already have a bunch of info on the new sheets, you can correct this easily enough. On each monthly sheet, where it reads Monthly Budget, you’ll want to create the following formula in the adjacent cell: =Summary!i2 (for Jan) =Summary!i3 (for Feb) =Summary!i4 (for March) and so on. Email me at thecouponproject at hotmail dot com if you need additional assistance on repairing. Sorry about that!
awesome! thank you!
can someone help me to get this open in Open Office? I just downloaded that since I don’t have Excel on my computer anymore
Now I can’t get this to open correctly!
Thanks for this spreadsheet, I too was trying to make one of my own but this is much better!
Quick question, for the “shelf cost” did you include tax or not?
Aubrey – good question. Yes, I do include tax. Basically “shelf cost” is what I would’ve paid for the total transaction had there not been sales or coupons, etc. Some stores do a better job than others in giving this information to you.
For instance, the Albertsons in my area show you exactly what sales saved you. Another store I like to shop at, Fred Meyer, doesn’t. So sometimes I just estimate savings. The point is to make that column what makes sense to you. Feel free to rename it if it helps!
Thanks so much for doing this. One of my resolutions was to keep track of my savings this year, and I wasn’t quite sure how I was going to do that. I do have a couple of quick questions however. I shop at CVS a lot. Which column would you include the ECB’s that you receive w/ your purchase, and which column would you use to show the ECB’s you paid with? Also, what if you use a gift card that you’ve earned from like a prescription transfer? Would you just use that as a discount? Sorry for all the questions. This is the first year I’ve done it, and I really want to stick with it. Thanks for your help.
Thanks so much. I LOVE Excel and am so excited to start using this.
Thank you so much for posting this! I was wanting to keep track of my spending this year and, while I had been planning to use Excel, it was nothing compared to this. Yours makes it so easy!
Alissa – could I get a copy of your spreadsheet with the drop downs? That would be awesome since I shop at different stores often. My email is CABean03 at yahoo dot com. Thanks!
Angela… you Rock!!!! Thank you so much!
Is there a place to record/enter when rebates are received? Also, are you entering Wags RR as rebates?
Thanks! I LOVE your spreadsheet. (Those of us who are numerically challenged especially appreciate you sharing this!)
This is AWESOME! Thanks for sharing!!!
this is great! Thanks! Similar questions as Rhonda referring to ECBs from CVS. I entered my ECB in the discount column and the coupons in the coupon column. Their receipts don’t show a subtotal, so it looks like you’ll have to total up the reciept on our own? to show entire savings and I guess add in the tax?
Thanks for following up!
Regarding rebates…
This is a TRICKY one and something I struggled with last year. So this is how the spreadsheet is set up and how it makes sense to me.
When you have an item that’s on rebate, you’ll note it on your line-item entries. Up at the top section, you’ll notice there’s a place you’ll be able to see how much you’ve spent AFTER rebates as well as BEFORE rebates are accounted in. There is a separate tab called “rebate tracker” where you can then manage your rebates – when you sent them, when you received them.
Catalinas/RRs…again, here’s my thinking. I will simply count the savings in the coupon category when they are redeemed. For instance, let’s say I have two WAGS transactions.
Trx 1: I spend $10 and use a $2 coupon and get a $5 RR. I’d just note that shelf cost was $10, and enter a $2 in the coupon field. Trx 2: I redeem the $5 RR on a $15 purchase. Shelf cost $15 and then I enter a $5 on the coupon field. The good news is that your total savings ratio at the top of the montly tab will account for your overall savings rate.
Again, I designed the spreadsheet to make sense for my brain – but feel free to tweak it however it makes sense for you! Feel free to add comments and notes into your copy to remind yourself how you intend to use it.
I’m planning on making a few transactions this week and will do another post soon illustrating how my sheet looks with real data entered. HTH!!
I too can’t open this in Open Office, it is a read only file. Any suggestions?
Thank you, you saved me from making my own as I was planning to track how much I’m actually saving by using coupons and rebates. I will add this to my 2010 records, along with my online earnings sheet (for my survey sites and such)and my spending plan worksheet.
Thank you so much…..my New Years resolution was to get organized. What a wonderful way to start. This is fantastic! Now if I could get you to come to my house………..:)
Hmmmmmm…….
For ECB’s:
1. You have to be consistent for whatever method you decide to use to account for ECBs
2. For me, I’m not tracking them on the transaction that I received them. I track them as a “coupon” in the transaction that I use them since this is the time when the ECB has true cash value.
This is great! thanks for sharing this! (coming from Money Saving Mom!)
This fits PERFECTLY with my New Years Resolution of tracking my savings! My husband says that every dollar I save is just like earning a dollar – so I am interesting is discovering how much i’m worth! haha!
I also posted & linked to you on my site!
http://savingourway.blogspot.com/2010/01/free-downloadable-savings-tracker.html
THANK YOU & Happy New Year!
Thank you, Thank you, Thank you!!!
Help! I have downloaded the 2010 Savings Tracker,but it won’t let me enter anything! Did I miss something?I can’t wait to get started! Happy New Year!Thanks for any help.
Wow, I love this spreadsheet! Thanks for doing all of the hard work and sharing with us! I am going to pass it along to my readers – I think they’ll love it!
Elizabeth @ The Thrifty Divas
I am an Excel nerd and I love this idea! I hope I will actually use it!
Thanks, Angela. Just found your blog through the “Money Saving Mom” blog. I look forward to trying out your worksheet and following your blog. Happy New Year!
Thank you so much for this. I’m going to try and give it a go.
Thank you for sharing your skills. I wouldn’t have been able to make the spreadsheet but I can fill in the blanks. Thanks for making it so user friendly. I am excited to see how the months shape up.
Thank you! It is so much better than my spreadsheet! I appreciate all of your hard work!
Thank you so much for making sharing this with all of us non talented Excel people! I am new to your site. I started using coupons in the middle of last year but did not keep up with really how much I saved other then in my mind! My goal this year was to track it and stick to a budget! Thanks again so much!
this is really awesome, i was using a notebook before, but i didn’t calculate the percentage saved, just the amount of money saved. i love it, i wanted a tool to use to calculate the savings, thank you thank you thank you so much!!!!
Thank you so much for sharing!! What a great tool. I just started couponing about 6 months ago so I will be excited to see on paper what my savings are for the year!
Thank you so much for creating this and sharing. I wanting to start cracking down and created a detailed budget and tracker for 2010 and the one I created was nothing like yours. Thank you!!
Next Comments →
{ 3 trackbacks }