The practical desk
Put your own numbers to work.
Small, transparent tools for household spending decisions. No bank connection. No sign-up. Every calculation shows its formula and assumptions, and runs entirely in your browser.
Recurring costs
Subscription cost calculator
Convert weekly, monthly, quarterly and annual charges to the same basis. Mark subscriptions you might cancel and compare the annual difference.
What it establishes: the annual weight of charges that each look small on a monthly statement. What it does not do: recommend which subscription to keep — that depends on your usage, not arithmetic.
Calculate my costs →Budget templates
Copy-paste budget templates
Six working templates for different pay schedules and methods. Each opens in your browser, calculates live, and copies to Google Sheets or Excel with formulas intact.
Monthly budget template
Income minus expenses by category. The classic monthly view for predictable pay.
Weekly budget template
Four or five week columns with per-week leftover. For weekly paychecks.
Biweekly budget template
Check 1 / Check 2 / Check 3 layout. Explains 26 checks vs semimonthly 24.
50/30/20 budget template
Needs / wants / savings with editable percentages. Live target vs actual gap.
Debt payoff spreadsheet
Month-by-month simulation with APR/12 interest. Snowball vs avalanche toggle.
Savings challenge tracker
100-envelope, 52-week forward/reversed, or custom goals with live totals.
How-to guides
Build the habit
How to create a budget
One evening, five moves, three habits that make it survive the first month.
How to budget money
Seven steps from real income to weekly review. Works with paper, spreadsheet, or app.
How to use these tools
Use charges from your own statements, including taxes where applicable. Keep all inputs in one currency. Estimates are arithmetic projections, not product recommendations or promises of savings. Nothing you enter leaves your browser.
Every tool links the written assumptions next to its inputs. If a formula is not shown, the number is not ours to publish — that is the same evidence standard we apply to reviews.
Where these tools fit
Tools answer the arithmetic; the desk covers the judgment calls around it:
- Choosing a budgeting app — workflow, account access and household visibility before you pay.
- Budgeting without bank linking — a manual workflow if you prefer not to connect accounts at all.
- Dated app prices and billing terms — what the apps themselves cost, checked against provider pages.
- Practical guides — checklists for reading fine print and building money habits.
Verify current provider terms before choosing a subscription.