Experts at «Finkultu» named five tools for planning a personal budget for 2027 and gave an example of a family with a combined income of 30 000 UAH.
Calculate income and expenses
The first step is to find out how much money the family receives and what it is spent on. Total income is all the family’s income combined; the experts suggest recording expenses and allocating them by category.
Allocating expenses by category makes it possible to assess how much goes to everyday needs and how much can realistically be saved. However, the experts stress that the example should be adapted to your own income, the number of family members and actual needs.
The 50/30/20 rule and financial goals
Under the 50/30/20 rule, with a combined income of 30 000 UAH you can allocate 15 000 UAH to necessities, 9 000 UAH to wants, and 6 000 UAH to savings. It is not obligatory to stick to these proportions - if a large part of income is taken up by mandatory payments, the ratios can be adjusted.
The experts recommend setting specific goals and deadlines: for example - save 20 000 UAH for an emergency fund, put aside 12 000 UAH for a holiday, or 10 000 UAH for appliances. To save 12 000 UAH for a vacation over a year, you need to set aside 1 000 UAH each month. An emergency fund is a reserve of money for loss of employment, illness or repairs; it is advisable to accumulate an amount equal to 3−6 months of essential expenses, and you can open a separate savings account.
Financial calendar, deadlines and control
A financial calendar helps to pay bills on time and not miss regular obligations. In the calendar you should mark payment dates, for example utility bills that must be paid by the 20th.
Deadline: pay utility bills by the 20th of each month; add this date to the calendar in advance and allocate the amount in the budget. This reduces the risk of late payments, fines and running out of money for mandatory expenses at the end of the month.
The plan should be reviewed regularly: income and expenses can change, so the budget is adjusted. For example, if you initially planned to save 2 000 UAH per month, but due to rising prices you can only save 1 000 UAH, make the corresponding change to the plan and analyse budget performance at the end of the month.
