the budget that finally stuck for me 💸
okay confession: i tried SO many budgets when i first started and almost all of them fell apart within a month 😅
spreadsheets with 40 categories, tracking every coffee, color-coding everything… i'd burn out and just give up.
the one that finally stuck for me is stupidly simple. it's the 50/30/20 rule 👀
you basically split your after-tax income into three buckets:
- 50% to needs — rent, groceries, bills, transit, minimum debt payments
- 30% to wants — eating out, shopping, the fun stuff (you're allowed to enjoy life!)
- 20% to savings + investing — emergency fund, TFSA, future you 💛
that's it. no 40 categories. just three.
why i love it:
- it's flexible — the percentages bend to your actual life
- it makes "paying yourself first" automatic instead of an afterthought
- you don't feel guilty spending on wants, because it's already planned for
- it scales as you earn more
honestly the 20% is the part that changed things for me. treating savings + investing like a non-negotiable bill (not whatever's left over at the end of the month) is what actually got my money working 🚀
and if 20% feels like a lot right now? start with 5%. the habit matters way more than the number when you're beginning.
not financial advice, just the thing that finally clicked for me 💛
what split actually works for you guys — do you stick to something like this, or do you budget totally differently? 👀
