YNAB and using cash

[Playmobilpeacock]

I've tried to use YNAB for a few years now but always come unstuck along the way. I'm determined to get to grips with it as I can see how helpful it is.

But, using cash always messes me up!

How do other people manage cash purchases?

I might need to buy something for £6 So I take out £10. Then my bank shows I'm £10 down but I still have £4. Then this inevitably gets frittered away.

I'm not sure I'm being clear but hopefully someone understands what I'm on about!

You've got to make a choice and stick to it.

Either have "cash" as an outgoing category and so record money taken out as such.

Or record everything you spend including cash, taking it out of the appropriate category when you spend it.

Personally I'm not disciplined enough for the latter, I forget and get off track so the only thing I can manage is to have cash as a spending category of its own.

I think I will also have to have a cash category. Trying to remember what change I have is messing me up.

Maybe I should put the change aside and pay it into the bank periodically. like that'll ever happen

I just list the money taken out of the ATM, so for example I will record a £20 withdrawal but wouldn't record what i had spent that £20 on.

I'm the other choice from the two Bertie talks about. I have an account Cash (actually I have 2 - one for me, one for my husband) and post every spend through there just as if it was done via the bank.

When I take money out of the ATM, I process a transfer from Bank X to Cash-Kuri. Then I spend out of the Cash-Kuri account. It's really helped me to cut down on random cash spending, although the general 'groceries' category does tend to hide a multitude of sins as a consequence. (what? chocolate is so a grocery item. And magazines and ...).

It can be a bit of pain counting everyone's cash on a regular basis, but to be honest I've been YNABing so long that everything's under control to the extent that some days I miss having something else to tinker with.

I also have a cash account and try to record the majority of my cash transactions there. I also try to limit the number of cash transactions I have. Occasionally I know that I've missed a few and so do a reconciliation against my purse, discover I'm 20 quid down, say, and enter a balancing transaction called 'LOST CASH' against a particular category - Household in my case.

I think either method can work, although if you are looking for how to reduce your outgoings, knowing only how much cash you've taken out in a given month isn't going to be very helpful.

I don't have a separate cash account, but I record the whole cash withdrawal to the category I'm mostly spending the money on. So if I get £10 out for lunch, even though I'm only spending £6, and the other £4 with be frittered, I put it down as £10 to my "dining out" category. That way I can spend loose change without worrying about recording it.

Thank you all for your help.

I think I've decided to pocket any change and let it go untracked.

Ive just got a new app called spending tracker which allows you to have an account called cash! Actually just done it for my son too as he had no idea where he spends any money and this allows him to keep track.
I show £10 coming out of my bank account and going in to my cash account I can then use the app to record what I spend the cash on. I have to say it is such an easy little app but had really allowed me to see what I spend the cash on!

I know this is a few days old but I'll add my 2p worth. We have purse / wallet as separate accounts and do record the majority of the bigger cash transactions. The pennies or unknown spends get put to "miscellaneous" and I like to keep an eye on how much gets put there.

I do love YNAB. Its really clicked with me and has helped focus where we spend our money.