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First, enter your income and your fixed costs into the budget table. “Fixed costs,” as the term makes clear, are expenses that must be paid regularly.

Typical fixed costs include:

• Housing costs (rent, utilities, electricity)
• Insurance premiums (health insurance, supplementary insurance, liability insurance, and others)
• Internet, TV and streaming services
• Mobile phone subscription
• Public transport subscription
• Other subscriptions and memberships

You can transfer these monthly costs directly. Expenses such as the cost of a travelcard are best divided over twelve (months). This way, you know how much you need to plan for and set aside each month. But watch out: some months you may come up short if several annual or semiannual payments come due at the same time.

The next step is to consider variable costs. These are also sometimes incurred on a regular basis but aren’t always the same amount.

They include:

• Household costs: food, hygiene products, household items, etc.
• Mobility: irregular expenses for car, bike, and public transportation (such as fuel, repairs, service, and single tickets)
• Personal expenses: shopping, hairdresser/cosmetic treatments, vacations, leisure (eating out, going out, events, hobbies) etc.
• Taxes
• Savings, gifts, and donations

You have two ways to get a first estimate of how much you’re spending: Record all your monthly expenses from now on and organize them into different categories. Or look at your past bank statements and invoices retrospectively. This is easy if you use Digital Banking and dedicated tools such as ��ţ�������� key4 insights.

For a more accurate estimate, take the average value of your previous spending over several months. It’s also best to include major one-off events such as trips or festivals as well as taxes in the monthly accounts. To do this, simply divide the estimated costs by twelve.

Do you use a credit card with monthly billing? Take a detailed look at this billing cycle and assign the expenses to your budget categories. As a rule, be careful with “buy now, pay later” payment offers to avoid falling into the debt trap.

Work with standing orders and eBill

Scheduled and automatic payments can prevent you from spending money you don’t have. For example, certain amounts leave your account automatically at the appointed time, e.g., directly after you receive your wages.

eBill allows you to receive invoices from various providers (e.g., insurance companies, electricity providers, internet providers, or public transport operators) directly in your Digital Banking. You can have them paid automatically at any time by standing order or decide when the amount should be debited.

Use standing orders so that other fixed costs such as rent are transferred automatically. Standing orders are also helpful for transferring money from your private account to savings accounts. This lets you put money aside automatically without having to think about it every time. For example:
the monthly share for costs that are only billed quarterly, semiannually or annually

• the estimated percentage of your salary for taxes
• the fixed amount you want to save each month: for reserves (planned and unplanned expenses as well as short-term purchases), retirement provision and to gradually build up assets for other goals

For unforeseen expenses such as medical costs or repairs, we recommend: if you have about three months’ expenses set aside as a safety cushion, unexpected bills won’t upset you.