What is your budgeting "Achilles heel"?

[Bellex917]

What's the area that often hampers your progress? We became debt free in 2024 and have been trying to spend 2025 building up our savings, but in the process I've really evaluated what hampers us. For us it's eating out. We live in an area with great food and temptation. We also both work and have two school aged kids going 400 directions, so it's often just way easier to grab something. We have made progress here, but still have a lot of room to grow.

 

[leebee]

Yup, eating out definitely sinks us, as does the "let's have just one cocktail" mindset on the way home from work. 99% of the time, this leads to a second cocktail and dinner...

 

[lanejudy]

For me it's those quick runs to the grocery store -- I never end up just buying 1 loaf of bread, or a gallon of milk, or whatever item was the intent. I end up grabbing a few other things while I'm there.

 

[Bellex917]

For me it's those quick runs to the grocery store -- I never end up just buying 1 loaf of bread, or a gallon of milk, or whatever item was the intent. I end up grabbing a few other things while I'm there.

Oh yes... this one is a danger zone. I REALLY am trying to keep the grocery budget down right now bc we have tons of food, so I needed FOUR things this week. I went to the store and managed to leave with only five. I was so proud. You'd think I solved world hunger with how accomplished I felt lol!!

 

[SteveH]

Costco!

 

[MaleficentUK]

Disney Cruises!

 

[val1234]

Target Drive up

 

[Bellex917]

Disney Cruises!

We don't do the cruises, but do go to the parks every 10 months or so. We def spend a LOT a year on Disney, but that doesn't bother me bc it's truly my family's happy place at this stage in the game. I try to cut corners everywhere else to allow for this Disney obsession lol! But even if we skipped one trip it would help, but I'm not currently willing to, as long as we are paying for it and not going into debt for it.

 

[tvguy]

Been retired for four years, and this year we have really worked on our "things we want to do to the house before we die" list.
Been in our house 42 years, completely remodeled the interior 12 years ago. THIS year catching up on deferred exterior projects. New siding. Painting the exterior. Dual pane windows. Drip irrigation system. Security camera system. Fence repairs. Dipped into savings because our outlay this year for home projects will exceed our income from Social Security. Throw in our first big trip of retirement, a two week Princess Cruise land/sea vacation, we are even further in the red.
One good thing, our exterior home projects cost half what the interior remodel cost. Except the interior remodel cost more than we paid for the house in 1983.

 

[barkley]

my achilles heel is not being as aware of how much prices are/have increased until i'm faced with paying it. I only go out of the house maybe at most 3 or 4 times a month so I don't see those gas prices edging up or how the price of a coffee or what I used to consider the less expensive to-go food places have sharply risen. we have a month like July with dh and I both having a couple of medical appointments each and they entail no morning coffee consumption so we drive through a coffee place and BAM a couple weeks later i'm looking at the bank statement and see how much those added up to. same with the VERY rare to-go food, it's complete (after the fact) sticker shock. gas prices depend on the day of the week and esp. if it's in proximity to a 'travel weekend'.

all of these expenses are bundled into one line item in my budget-'household expenses' and I up the amount budgeted yearly by 10% but 2025 is showing I need to increase it higher.

For me it's those quick runs to the grocery store -- I never end up just buying 1 loaf of bread, or a gallon of milk, or whatever item was the intent. I end up grabbing a few other things while I'm there.

I have found that if I do one single very large trip for the entire month and then limit myself to produce/dairy for any other trips I do better (though if there's a significant sale on something I will make a trip to stock up).

 

[tvguy]

my achilles heel is not being as aware of how much prices are/have increased until i'm faced with paying it. I only go out of the house maybe at most 3 or 4 times a month so I don't see those gas prices edging up or how the price of a coffee or what I used to consider the less expensive to-go food places have sharply risen. we have a month like July with dh and I both having a couple of medical appointments each and they entail no morning coffee consumption so we drive through a coffee place and BAM a couple weeks later i'm looking at the bank statement and see how much those added up to. same with the VERY rare to-go food, it's complete (after the fact) sticker shock. gas prices depend on the day of the week and esp. if it's in proximity to a 'travel weekend'.

all of these expenses are bundled into one line item in my budget-'household expenses' and I up the amount budgeted yearly by 10% but 2025 is showing I need to increase it higher.



I have found that if I do one single very large trip for the entire month and then limit myself to produce/dairy for any other trips I do better (though if there's a significant sale on something I will make a trip to stock up).

Biggest change this year at the store has been that store brands aren't always less expensive. Great Value orange juice shot up in price. Used to be $1 a carton less than Minute Maid, now it is $1 more. And at our local chain grocery store, the weekly sale flyer has been a disappointment, not because of the prices, but because most of the products on special are things we don't buy. Things like Whiskey and Vodka and Pampers.

 

[barkley]

Biggest change this year at the store has been that store brands aren't always less expensive. Great Value orange juice shot up in price. Used to be $1 a carton less than Minute Maid, now it is $1 more. And at our local chain grocery store, the weekly sale flyer has been a disappointment, not because of the prices, but because most of the products on special are things we don't buy. Things like Whiskey and Vodka and Pampers.

my once a month trip is to Walmart. I order online and pickup all but the frozen/dairy/produce (hop into the store to grab this)-so I can go back over the last few months to years and compare what i've paid for the identical items

I just looked at your juice here-it's $1.25 more so you are saving vs. us but to their credit great value unlike minute maid has not shrunk their 'half gallons'. great value is still a full 69 oz vs. minute maid's 59 oz (still a higher per ounce cost but I detest shrinkflation practices).

yeah the sales are not great these days-none of the traditional summer fare on good deals. I couldn't believe how much tortilla chips had gone up until I had to restock recently.

 

[tvguy]

my once a month trip is to Walmart. I order online and pickup all but the frozen/dairy/produce (hop into the store to grab this)-so I can go back over the last few months to years and compare what i've paid for the identical items

I just looked at your juice here-it's $1.25 more so you are saving vs. us but to their credit great value unlike minute maid has not shrunk their 'half gallons'. great value is still a full 69 oz vs. minute maid's 59 oz (still a higher per ounce cost but I detest shrinkflation practices).

yeah the sales are not great these days-none of the traditional summer fare on good deals. I couldn't believe how much tortilla chips had gone up until I had to restock recently.

Interesting, had not noticed the small minute maid size.

 

[barkley]

Interesting, had not noticed the small minute maid size.

I started noticing it when it happened with the most popular brand of milk in our region and the stores started posting notices on the cold boxes directed at WIC clients that those size containers were no longer eligible for that program, then more and more cartons started showing less ounces (but same size carton) but yeah-walmart tracks all my purchases-pickup, shipped and in store so I can just page down in my order history and

 

[DisneyHardin]

Target Drive up

That's interesting because Target Drive-up has saved me money. I used to run into Target to get a couple things and would always spend $80!! Now I just get when I need because they bring it out to me and I don't buy things not on my list.

Our Achilles heel is eating/drinking out. My husband is also very generous and we will often invite friends to meet us for dinner or a drink and he always insists on paying for everyone.

 

[QueenIsabella]

My children! I grew up poor, have many lasting scars from it. I don't want my kids to have to experience that. So, they get a LOT from me--loan-free college, over-the-top Christmases, and so forth. I wouldn't call them spoiled--they're nice, kind, thoughtful, and hard-working. But, I spend a lot on them, because it brings me joy to do so. They're all adults, BTW.

 

[Bellex917]

My children! I grew up poor, have many lasting scars from it. I don't want my kids to have to experience that. So, they get a LOT from me--loan-free college, over-the-top Christmases, and so forth. I wouldn't call them spoiled--they're nice, kind, thoughtful, and hard-working. But, I spend a lot on them, because it brings me joy to do so. They're all adults, BTW.

I didn't even include my kids but they are 100% my biggest budget category lol! But, they're still young-ish (13 and 10) so I have years of this ahead lol!

 

[disney212]

YMMV but I gave up "budgeting" 20 years ago and switched to a "spending plan". I saw where our "over budget" issues were and worked to incorporate the added expenses into our spending plan. For us trying to "budget" in a way that didn't work resulted in frustration. When the kids were in activities we spent more on them eating out. Once they were grown we allocated those funds to another category like savings. Now we have our first grandchild and we were able to adjust our spending plan to fit activities and gifts to him in. We focus on how to get the most out of our money instead what we are limited to. I keep a 5 year spending plan with built in inflation for everything from utilities, food, vacations and it makes it easier to adapt when an unexpected change happens. DH worked in the hotel industry and was laid off during the pandemic and we were able to go to the plan and adjust where needed. Luckily he got a new job quickly but at a lower salary. Having the year's expenses made it possible to pivot without much pain. Same concept as a "budget" but the shift in how to spend instead of a cutting back focus works for us.

 

[Bellex917]

YMMV but I gave up "budgeting" 20 years ago and switched to a "spending plan". I saw where our "over budget" issues were and worked to incorporate the added expenses into our spending plan. For us trying to "budget" in a way that didn't work resulted in frustration. When the kids were in activities we spent more on them eating out. Once they were grown we allocated those funds to another category like savings. Now we have our first grandchild and we were able to adjust our spending plan to fit activities and gifts to him in. We focus on how to get the most out of our money instead what we are limited to. I keep a 5 year spending plan with built in inflation for everything from utilities, food, vacations and it makes it easier to adapt when an unexpected change happens. DH worked in the hotel industry and was laid off during the pandemic and we were able to go to the plan and adjust where needed. Luckily he got a new job quickly but at a lower salary. Having the year's expenses made it possible to pivot without much pain. Same concept as a "budget" but the shift in how to spend instead of a cutting back focus works for us.

I'd say we are similar. When we get paid our bills and savings are automatic- everything is on autopilot. Then, what remains can be spent (and I try to budget within that but "budget" more so means by mindful) and at the end of the month what's left goes to extra saving goals. In the summer it's often nothing to very little left- summer is our spendiest season by FAR with the kids needing stuff, going places, etc. But the rest of the year we have a decent amount left to save (or apply to debt when we were still doing that).

 

[barkley]

YMMV but I gave up "budgeting" 20 years ago and switched to a "spending plan". I saw where our "over budget" issues were and worked to incorporate the added expenses into our spending plan. For us trying to "budget" in a way that didn't work resulted in frustration. When the kids were in activities we spent more on them eating out. Once they were grown we allocated those funds to another category like savings. Now we have our first grandchild and we were able to adjust our spending plan to fit activities and gifts to him in. We focus on how to get the most out of our money instead what we are limited to. I keep a 5 year spending plan with built in inflation for everything from utilities, food, vacations and it makes it easier to adapt when an unexpected change happens. DH worked in the hotel industry and was laid off during the pandemic and we were able to go to the plan and adjust where needed. Luckily he got a new job quickly but at a lower salary. Having the year's expenses made it possible to pivot without much pain. Same concept as a "budget" but the shift in how to spend instead of a cutting back focus works for us.

along these lines we don't have individual budget line items for groceries, gasoline, eating out, cleaning products, furnace and other filters....it's one single amount per month for 'household expenses'. if more than normal gets spent in one area we look to reduce in the other, if we spend less overall it rolls over to the next month.