Do you spend a set amount & save what's left or save a set amount & spend whats left?

[Shockedshell]

I've run out of spending money two weeks before payday again! I give myself a set amount of spending money to get me through the month which is too be used buy anything myself & 3 children need, DH has his own spends. So, it needs to cover clothes, haircuts, eyebrow waxing, shoes, presents for partys they're invited to, school trips, days out, subs for guides, meals out, entertainment etc
I can't decide if I should up my budget and save less or what. How do you decide whats a reasonable amount to spend on stuff other than bills each month? Do you save a set amount and spend what's left or spend a set amount and save what's left??

I do a bit of a hybrid approach really. First things first, the day after pay day a set amount goes to our joint account out of which all bills, mortgage and grocery shopping etc are paid, so I know that is covered.

On the same day a set amount comes out of my account and into my ISA/long term savings account each month, without fail (except in dire emergencies). This money is only for specific purposes, e.g. home improvement goals, car replacement fund, rainy day fund.

I also have a set amount which goes into an easy access/unlimited withdrawals savings account which is to cover annual bills like insurances, holidays and Christmas. I have on occasion dipped into this when unexpected things like vet bills or car breakdown occurs but I try to avoid this except where really necessary.

What's left is then mine for spends on hobbies, socialising, clothes, make up, frittering etc. DH keeps a similar amount in his own current account so we are equal. I have found over time that what's left should (in a normal month) be enough to cover my needs, if I am particularly frugal there is sometimes a surplus which I either roll over to the next month (e.g. if I know I need to buy something expensive like winter boots or a coat the next month) or sometimes I transfer a bit extra to the holiday/Christmas funds. As I say, on occasion I've had to borrow a bit from the savings account where we'd have a big surprise bill but in general I manage to avoid this by taking the attitude of once I've spent my monthly budget, that's it, no more spending except where it's completely unavoidable - every £ I spend out of the savings is less money to spend on important stuff like holidays and birthdays which acts as a bit of a brake...

If I get an unexpected bit of income (e.g. payrise at work) or tax rebate, it goes straight into savings.

Can you do a bit of an audit on your spending, go over your last few months spending and try (being honest but not harsh with yourself, it's a not a blame game) to work out a reasonable amount for spends? I wouldn't try and set it unrealistically low as you'll only end up overspending, so it should be an amount that if you are being reasonably frugal you can stick to?

A set amount goes into savings at the beginning of the month and then at the end of the month if I have anything left I might transfer all or some of it to savings too.

I get paid weekly which I absolutely love. I always seemed to run out of money when it was monthly and find it so much easier to budget (and save) week to week. The other plus point being if you need to be frugal till next payday it's only a few days to wait!

Every week I pay rent, any bills, and do an online shop if I need stuff. Then I leave myself maybe £30 or so for any bits and pieces and stick the rest in my savings account. I have sometimes transferred money back from savings if needed but I try and always stick to at least taking less back than I put in that week, so that I'm always saving something. However I am single so I only answer to my self!

Savings come first. We each save into a regular saver and each put money into separate joint accounts for food, car, holiday, Christmas and an upcoming wedding. We also do Tilly tidies so small amounts are added to the savings pot on an ad-hoc basis.

I budget weekly too. It works better for me.

OP is the children’s stuff coming out of your personal spends? Or is it coming out of the joint account?

Savings and spending is budgeted for.

Its not that one comes out first...its just the way its worked.

As a rule if thumb depending on what expenses thete is..i.e chtistmas etc then i save between 10-20% of pay a month.

I couldnt do this at first sk i stsrted with 5 % then figured ways to cut back on bills or get better deals. The more money savvy i got the more i could and can save.

There are times when it all goes to pot. Usually when something big has happened i.e break up, job change, flu. I just put away however much is left then stay strict the following months

Save first, spend the rest. It's best to only save what is realistic otherwise you leave yourself short and end up borrowing your savings.

A set amount goes into joint account and savings on payday. The rest is for me and covers nails waxing clothes and my riding lessons for the month and anything else I might want/need.

Why do “your” spends have to cover the kids stuff too? Surely that comes out of family money?

A mixture. I set a rough amount for spending based on what I normally spend, then send some to different saving categories. I always overspend though, am pretty crap.

Mixture here too. All bills are accounted for, we get £100 each to spend on random rubbish like takeout or coffees. Then a chunk goes into savings and that leaves a few hundred which covers more adhoc things like haircuts and dinner out.

I budget every single £ in our household using YNAB. Absolute life changer. Their mantra is "give every dollar a job". I have a budget for "fun money" which I usually put £100ish in each month to cover impulse purchases etc.

Just to clarify that the kids spends is just lumped in with my spending money not coming out of it.
DH & I have a joint account which all our income is paid into & bills are paid out of, we then pay a set amount into an account for christmas & the same for holidays. DH takes an agreed amount for his "spends" and I take an agreed amount for mine and the kids "spends" (more than DH has) but it has to cover everything I listed in my op. Anything left after all this is taken into account is added to our savings which is for car repairs etc, home improvements etc
I think maybe Im just trying to get by on too little spending money and need to be more realistic about how much I need each month.